China+and+Tibet

=Media Representations of China and Tibet= Group Project by Sid, Katie toc

Location
Where is Tibet? Tibet is located in Central/Southeast Asia between China and India. media type="googlemap" key="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=104862655907184837096.000450484a53de962a94c&ll=29.649878,91.142567&spn=26.60219,38.496094&output=embed&s=AARTsJreUL2xF9Yi7wM6WcaIo5Ut45vzSQ" width="425" height="350" However, do protesters know where Tibet is? Below is local media coverage from the April 9, 2008 torch relay stop in San Francisco. media type="youtube" key="twHzXN3kNTs&hl=en" height="344" width="425"



Brief History
To the right is a picture of Dalai Lama in 1954, when he was invited over to China by Mao's invitation. To Mao's right is Dalai Lama, and to his left is Panchen Lama. The picture was originally black and white - color was added after it was taken.

"The Dalai Lamas continued to rule [|Tibet] until the People's Republic of China invaded the region in 1949 and then took full control in 1959. The 14th Dalai Lama then fled to India and has since ceded temporal power to an elected [|government-in-exile]. The current 14th Dalai Lama seeks greater autonomy for Tibet. The current Dalai Lama's name is [|Tenzin Gyatso]." - an excerpt from the [|Wikipedia Dalai Lama article]

The high altitude Himalayan plateau that is Tibet has been experiencing periodic violence ever since it was militarily seized by the Republic of China. Over time, the bitterness between the Dalai Lama’s government and the Communist party of China has resulted in several riots and protests. Direct talks between the two sides have apparently led to no good as Beijing still continues to condemn Dalai Lama as a threat to the relationship between Tibet and China.

On March 10, 1959 the first attempt to free Tibet from Chinese control took place in Tibet’s capital of Lhasa. On the same day, almost 50 years later Tibet saw one of the worst riots in history, which ended in a bloody clash with the Chinese security forces. This disturbance forces immense pressure on the ruling Chinese party, as they hope to portray a harmonious image to the rest of the world in the upcoming Olympics.

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China's Viewpoint
One of China's primary goals is to create a unified motherland. Nationalism is the driving force behind this goal and expressed in responses to the "Free Tibet" movement. For instance, an [|anti-cnn] website was created to highlight misinformation reported by the western media. Many videos on YouTube criticize protesters or the Dalai Lama directly. The Chinese contend that Tibet was, is, and will continue to be part of China.


 * Historically, the region of Tibet was part of China, dating back to the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368).
 * China helped free Tibet from a colonial occupation by Britain in the first half of the twentieth century.
 * China's involvement with Tibet improves its economy. "Since the beginning of the 1980s, the State has arranged for government departments and other provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions to give Tibet manpower, material, financial and technological aid, with an aim of boosting the Tibetan economy and improving the people's livelihood." - an excerpt from [|China's Tibet Facts & Figures 2002]
 * Western influence to free Tibet "touches on the unity of Chinese territory, and especially touches on the issue of the West as predator, the violator of Chinese sovereignty." - Peter Hessler in "[|Tibet Through Chinese Eyes]"

Tibet's Viewpoint
One of Tibet's primary goals is to preserve its culture. Tibetan Buddhism is central to the way of life of the population. Chinese living in Tibet are viewed as invaders, encroaching on Tibet's independence and freedom.


 * According to a [|website] maintained by the government of Tibet in exile, China’s rule over Tibet is considered colonial in nature where the Chinese view Tibet as a colony and a part of the mother country.
 * Tibetans claim that the notion of ownership adopted the Chinese proves their imperialist and colonist nature. Tibet could not form the object of "ownership" by the country it is already a part of.
 * Tibet was an independent country at the time of China’s invasion with all conditions of statehood under international law; they possessed was a defined territory, a population inhabiting that territory; and a functioning Government exercising authority over that territory, and possessing the ability to enter into international relations.
 * The Chinese government claims that the Tibetans signed a treaty in 1951 that allowed Chinese communist troops to liberate Tibet. However, the Tibetans believe that this treaty for forced upon by the Chinese under the threat of an all out military invasion.



A Tibetan woman and a monk inside a monastery in Gansu Province. There are no restrictions on praying or similar religious activity, but there are curbs on the number of monks a monastery can have.

A herdsman with his sheep on a nearly vertical slope of a hillside between the towns of Xining and Tongren in Qinghai Province. Han Chinese have moved into the cities in formerly Tibetan areas, but the countryside remains overwhelmingly Tibetan with few Han Chinese. The government has tried to settle nomads in fixed places, which makes education easier but has angered Tibetans who see it as an infringement of their culture.

"Since ancient times, Tibetan and Chinese peoples have lived as neighbors. In the two thousand year old recorded history of our peoples, we have at times developed friendly relations, even entering into matrimonial alliances, while at others we fought each other. However, since Buddhism flourished in China first before it arrived in Tibet from India, we Tibetans have historically accorded the Chinese people the respect and affection due to elder Dharma brothers and sisters." - except from "[|An Appeal to the Chinese People]" by the 14th Dalai Lama

The Beijing Olympics


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Only a few months ago, the disturbances in Tibet appeared likely to cast a negative effect over the Summer Olympics in Beijing. China had designed the global torch relay to be the longest and grandest ever. However, it had become the occasion for large protests in London, Paris, San Francisco and elsewhere, as pro-Tibet advocates clashed with Chinese supporters. Talks of boycotting the opening ceremonies of the Games spread through European capitals.

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According to Kate Woznow, campaign director of Students for a Free Tibet, “The torch relay in Lhasa is China’s latest episode in a series of betrayals of everything the Olympics represent. Parading the torch through Lhasa while Tibetans live under virtual martial law is China’s most egregious exploitation of the Games yet.”

Related article: [|China blocks access to YouTube in Tibet]

Lhasa Riot (March, 2008) Questions and Answers about Lhasa Riot( IN CHINESE VIEW) [|Read the full article]

Q: How many people were killed or injured in Lhasa? A: Eighteen civilians and one police officer were killed in the Lhasa unrest, and 623 people including 241 police and armed police were injured. Q: Who are among the victims of the Lhasa unrest? A: An arson attack at a shop named Yishion saw five female sales assistants, aged around 20, burnt to death, while another arson attack at a motorbike shop caused the deaths of five people, including an eight-month-old boy and his parents. In a separate incident Zuo Yuancun, a 1.7-meter-tall man, was burnt to death, in another incident, a migrant worker was stabbed. In another case, a woman was severely beaten and her ear was sliced off. A doctor named Losang Cering was assaulted by knife-wielding rioters when successfully saving a six-year-old boy who had been trampled and suffocated. The rioters scooped a fist-sized chunk flesh from the buttocks of Liu Dingwei, a young police officer. Q: What is the cost of the damage in Lhasa? A: Damage is estimated at more than 244 million yuan (about 34 million U.S. dollars). Q: What is the casualty total in Gansu? The riot in the Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Gannan in northwest China's Gansu Province saw 94 people injured, including 64 police, 27 armed police, two government officials and one civilian. Q: What is the cost of the damage in Gansu? A: Damage is estimated at 230 million yuan. Beating, smashing, looting and arson occurred in the counties of Xiahe, Maqu, Luqu and Jone and Hezuo City of Gannan. Nearly all the shops in a street in Maqu were smashed, and many were torched. The street was covered with bricks, stones and glass fragments. In the county seat of Xiahe, windows were broken. In Amuquhu town, Xiahe, not only windows of the local government, police bureau, health center and judiciary office were broken, but also trees in the police bureau were chopped down and televisions smashed. Q: What are the casualties and damages in Sichuan? A: One policeman was killed and several others injured in the latest assault in the Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Sichuan Province on March 24. A group of rioters attacked the armed police officers on duty with knives and stones, forcing the police to fire warning shots, local officials said. The total number of casualties and the cost of the damage caused by riot in Aba County, Sichuan, have yet to be determined. Rioters, carrying rocks and home-made petrol bombs or waving the flag of the "Tibetan-government-in-exile", attacked government offices, including the county government office building, police stations, hospitals, schools, shops and markets. They also torched houses and shops, burnt a dozen vehicles, and beat civilians, police and government officials. Chinese view on Lhasa Riot: [|3.14 Tibet Riots]