And now the violence …
Filed Under Tibet, Human Rights | Posted on March 14, 2008
Too much sad news to digest coming out of India, Nepal, and Tibet. Reports of Tibetans killed by the Chinese police in Lhasa; monks injured in Nepal; protestors arrested and detained in Dharamsala and Delhi; Lhasa is “on fire”; monks attempt suicide…
The following is just a small sampling of the headlines currently (and rapidly) appearing on my aggregated Other Voices page:
- Protests Turn Violent in Tibetan Capital
- U.S. Embassy in Beijing: Warden Message: Reports of Violence in Tibet
- Tibetan Tragedy And A Call to Boycott the Chinese Olympics
- China rolls out tanks to suppress Tibet Protests
- At least 12 monks injured during Tibet protest in Nepal
- Witnesses Report Gunfire in Tibetan Capital
- Several dead in Tibet protests — Lhasa emergency center
- Eyewitness: Monk ‘kicked to floor’
- China Clamps Down on Tibetan Protests As Many Deaths, Injuries Reported
- Tibetan Monks in Critical Condition After Attempted Suicide, as Protests Mount
World governments and human rights organizations are beginning to speak out against the Chinese crackdown and the actions of the Nepalese and Indian governments. Originally at least, the protests that sparked this violent response appear to have been largely peaceful.
Where will it lead? The brutality of the Chinese repression of Tibet during the 1950s and the Cultural Revolution went largely unnoticed and unremarked. In recent decades, concerns over China’s continued abuses have been set aside for the benefit of Wal-Mart’s profit margins. The U.S. has sold its economic soul to Chinese Communism, and allowed innocent Tibetans to die for the sake of cheap, toxic toys produced by China’s slave labor. Beijing has been awarded the Olympics based on promises of improved human rights, which even the most sheltered half-wit could not have expected to be honored.
This time, however, even the American media seems to be paying attention. Can China’s actions withstand growing global scrutiny?
I pray for the safety and well-being of those brave Tibetans who are risking all for freedom. I pray that they are able to maintain a spirit of non-violence and compassion in the face of repression and hatred. I pray that the world will take notice, and that some good may arise from their suffering.
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