{"id":1148,"date":"2008-11-24T22:02:10","date_gmt":"2008-11-25T03:02:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/s265039441.onlinehome.us\/philpaine\/?p=1148"},"modified":"2018-08-11T03:24:04","modified_gmt":"2018-08-11T07:24:04","slug":"monday-november-24-2008-rangzen-or-%e2%80%9cmiddle-way%e2%80%9d","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/?p=1148","title":{"rendered":"Monday, November 24, 2008 \u2014 Rangzen or \u201cMiddle Way\u201d?"},"content":{"rendered":"

While the world was pre\u00adoc\u00adcu\u00adpied with the finan\u00adcial cri\u00adsis, the UK<\/span> Gov\u00adern\u00adment took advan\u00adtage of pub\u00adlic inat\u00adten\u00adtion to write off Tibet. In a lit\u00adtle pub\u00adli\u00adcized par\u00adlia\u00admen\u00adtary state\u00adment on Octo\u00adber 29, For\u00adeign Sec\u00adre\u00adtary David Miliband claimed that Tibet has actu\u00adal\u00adly \u201calways been a part of Chi\u00adna, and that it has no claim what\u00adso\u00adev\u00ader to be viewed in any\u00adway dif\u00adfer\u00adent\u00adly from the rest of Chi\u00adna.\u201d Every\u00adone under\u00adstands that the elect\u00aded gov\u00adern\u00adments of Europe and North Amer\u00adi\u00adcan have nev\u00ader had any seri\u00adous inten\u00adtion of sup\u00adport\u00ading demo\u00adc\u00adra\u00adt\u00adic reform in Chi\u00adna, or of giv\u00ading any tan\u00adgi\u00adble sup\u00adport to the con\u00adquered and colo\u00adnialised Tibetan peo\u00adple. But, until now, a nudge-nudge-wink-wink pre\u00adtense of con\u00adcern for human rights has been con\u00adsid\u00adered good pub\u00adlic rela\u00adtions. Appar\u00adent\u00adly, it is no longer de rigeur. Gor\u00addon Brown\u2019s gov\u00adern\u00adment in Lon\u00addon seized on the dis\u00adtrac\u00adtion of the glob\u00adal finan\u00adcial melt\u00addown to sig\u00adnal to Bei\u00adjing that its impe\u00adri\u00adal\u00adist con\u00adquests are a\u2011okay, and gave it carte-blanche to pro\u00adceed with any human rights vio\u00adla\u00adtions it wants, against its own peo\u00adple, or others.\"08-11-24<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

For the last six years, there have been \u201ctalks\u201d between the Com\u00admu\u00adnist con\u00adquerors and the Dalai Lama. These talks have pro\u00adduced noth\u00ading for the Tibetan peo\u00adple. The only ben\u00ade\u00adfi\u00adcia\u00adry has been China\u2019s dic\u00adta\u00adtor, Hu Jin\u00adtao, who has been able to stage a pan\u00adtomime that sat\u00adis\u00adfies the deco\u00adrum pre\u00adferred by his chums among the pow\u00ader elites of Europe and Amer\u00adi\u00adca. The Dalai Lama has long oper\u00adat\u00aded under a Bud\u00addhist-inspired pol\u00adi\u00adcy dubbed \u201cThe Mid\u00addle Way\u201d, in which his exiled gov\u00adern\u00adment, based in Dharam\u00adsala, only nego\u00adti\u00adates for some degree of \u201cauton\u00ado\u00admy\u201d, and not for out\u00adright inde\u00adpen\u00addence. He hoped that it might win enough inter\u00adna\u00adtion\u00adal sup\u00adport to con\u00advince Bei\u00adjing to run the leash a lit\u00adtle slack\u00ader. It was a false hope.<\/span><\/p>\n

At the most recent talks, this month, Bei\u00adjing again reject\u00aded any degree of auton\u00ado\u00admy out of hand. The Dalai Lama, with unchar\u00adac\u00adter\u00adis\u00adtic despon\u00adden\u00adcy, acknowl\u00adedged that years of efforts had failed to achieve even this mod\u00adest degree of suc\u00adcess. \u201cAs far as I\u2019m con\u00adcerned, I have giv\u00aden up,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

U. K. Prime Min\u00adis\u00adter Gor\u00addon Brown\u2019s cow\u00adard\u00adly action has added insult to injury, in this tragedy. For decades, the Tibetan peo\u00adple have had only one card to play in the ruth\u00adless game of world pol\u00adi\u00adtics. The Dalai Lama has used his rep\u00adu\u00adta\u00adtion for saint\u00adli\u00adness to bring atten\u00adtion to the plight of Tibet, and has remind\u00aded the world who the under\u00addog is. He has cul\u00adti\u00advat\u00aded sup\u00adport from a lot of ordi\u00adnary peo\u00adple around the world, who think that human rights issues mat\u00adter. He patient\u00adly meets with any\u00adone who can influ\u00adence the cul\u00adture, giv\u00ading them the thrill of meet\u00ading an incar\u00adna\u00adtion of the Bud\u00addha of Com\u00adpas\u00adsion. A lot of this plays up to a cer\u00adtain silli\u00adness among those who are attract\u00aded to caus\u00ades. You would think that mere\u00adly being con\u00adquered and oppressed would be suf\u00adfi\u00adcient to make the pub\u00adlic be on your side, but that\u2019s not how it works. Nobody is inter\u00adest\u00aded in ordi\u00adnary human beings being oppressed. They only take notice if you ful\u00adfill some car\u00adtoon image of \u201cspir\u00adi\u00adtu\u00adal\u00adi\u00adty\u201d \u2014 the human equiv\u00ada\u00adlent of being a baby seal. As a reli\u00adgious fig\u00adure with\u00adin a Bud\u00addhist frame\u00adwork that requires paci\u00adfism and mod\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion, the Dalai Lama could only serve his peo\u00adple by trot\u00adting around the world, impress\u00ading the pub\u00adlic with his piety and good char\u00adac\u00adter. This at least won some pub\u00adlic sup\u00adport and cre\u00adat\u00aded aware\u00adness of the Tibetan cause, mak\u00ading Bei\u00adjing\u2019s repres\u00adsion embar\u00adrass\u00ading. Tibetans have a much high\u00ader glob\u00adal pro\u00adfile than, say, those strug\u00adgling against the same regime in Xin\u00adjiang, or any\u00adone suf\u00adfer\u00ading under dic\u00adta\u00adtor\u00adship in Africa. The Dalai Lama\u2019s obvi\u00adous sin\u00adcer\u00adi\u00adty and good char\u00adac\u00adter made the Com\u00admu\u00adnist Par\u00adty\u2019s pro\u00adpa\u00adgan\u00adda against him look absurd. This was not accom\u00adplished with\u00adout a gru\u00adel\u00ading self-imposed work-load and, doubt\u00adless, the sac\u00adri\u00adfice of most of his per\u00adson\u00adal life.<\/span><\/p>\n

But the Com\u00admu\u00adnist Par\u00adty, with a record of mur\u00adder\u00ading about 75,000,000 peo\u00adple so far, is not going to be dri\u00adven out of Tibet by embar\u00adrass\u00adment. It has been pro\u00adceed\u00ading unhin\u00addered with its pro\u00adgram of repres\u00adsion and eth\u00adnic cleans\u00ading. Its ulti\u00admate aim is the exter\u00admi\u00adna\u00adtion, or at least the com\u00adplete assim\u00adi\u00adla\u00adtion, of the Tibetan peo\u00adple, replac\u00ading them with a pop\u00adu\u00adla\u00adtion of import\u00aded eth\u00adnic Han. The \u201ctalks\u201d have mere\u00adly been what Com\u00admu\u00adnist offi\u00adcials call tu\u00f5 y\u00e1n zh\u00e8ng c\u00e8<\/em> (\u62d6\u5ef6\u653f\u7b56) \u2014 \u201ctime wast\u00ading pol\u00adi\u00adcy\u201d. It is clear\u00adly Hu Jintao\u2019s tac\u00adtic to waste time, and keep the Tibetan exile lead\u00ader\u00adship busy in fruit\u00adless talks, until the Dalai Lama dies. The assump\u00adtion is that, with him dead, the pub\u00adlic sup\u00adport for Tibet will rapid\u00adly evap\u00ado\u00adrate. The Dalai Lama is ill. Sup\u00adpos\u00aded\u00adly, it\u2019s mere\u00adly gall-blad\u00adder trou\u00adble, but the rumour mill around Dhar\u00admasala sug\u00adgests that it is more seri\u00adous. It is prob\u00ada\u00adbly no coin\u00adci\u00addence that, on Novem\u00adber 10th, the Bei\u00adjing dic\u00adta\u00adtor\u00adship announced that the talks were \u201cfruit\u00adless\u201d and that no form of auton\u00ado\u00admy, no mat\u00adter how min\u00adi\u00admal, would ever be tol\u00ader\u00adat\u00aded. It was even claimed that doc\u00adu\u00adment\u00aded past promis\u00ades of nego\u00adti\u00adat\u00ading auton\u00ado\u00admy, made by Deng Xiaop\u00ading, nev\u00ader hap\u00adpened. It\u2019s clear that Hu Jin\u00adtao and his hench\u00admen have cor\u00adrect\u00adly inter\u00adpret\u00aded the accep\u00adtance of the Olympics as the glob\u00adal pow\u00aders\u2019 \u201cgreen light\u201d to do what\u00adev\u00ader it wants in Tibet. They are prob\u00ada\u00adbly right, in this esti\u00adma\u00adtion, if the U.K.\u2019s recent slimy announce\u00adment is any indication.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tseten Nor\u00adbu, an MP<\/span> in the Dharam\u00adsala par\u00adlia\u00adment, has remarked: \u201cWe\u2019ve been talk\u00ading for 30 years and there has been no result at all. This is the big ques\u00adtion mark. Now we have to think and strate\u00adgise.\u201d There has long been a divi\u00adsion among exiled Tibetans between those who sup\u00adport the Dalai Lama\u2019s \u201cMid\u00addle Way\u201d pol\u00adi\u00adcy, and those who feel that it\u2019s time for the Tibetan Gov\u00adern\u00adment in Exile to pro\u00adclaim that true inde\u00adpen\u00addence is what is being pur\u00adsued and demand\u00aded by the Tibetan peo\u00adple. This vari\u00adant posi\u00adtion is known in Tibetan as rangzen<\/em>. The debate between the two posi\u00adtions has some\u00adtimes been ran\u00adcorous with\u00adin the exile com\u00admu\u00adni\u00adty. It is par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly com\u00adplex because there are now Tibetans scat\u00adtered around the world, and sev\u00ader\u00adal gen\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtions who have lived out\u00adside of Tibet. My impres\u00adsion is that rangzen<\/em> is the pre\u00addom\u00adi\u00adnant posi\u00adtion among the younger gen\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion of exiled Tibetans.<\/span><\/p>\n

Assert\u00ading the desire for true inde\u00adpen\u00addence in no way com\u00adpro\u00admis\u00ades the doc\u00adtrine of non-vio\u00adlence espoused by the Dalai Lama. Jamyang Nor\u00adbu, one of expa\u00adtri\u00adate Tibet\u2019s most elo\u00adquent schol\u00adars, has been argu\u00ading that the Dalai Lama him\u00adself has been ques\u00adtion\u00ading the cur\u00adrent via\u00adbil\u00adi\u00adty of the \u201cMid\u00addle Way\u201d pol\u00adi\u00adcy. He asserts that it has become a self-serv\u00ading doc\u00adtrine for many of those who hold sinecures in the exile gov\u00adern\u00adment in Dharm\u00adsala. \u201cMid\u00addle Way,\u201d in his view, is now more or less \u201csta\u00adtus quo\u201d and \u201cdon\u2019t rock the boat\u201d dressed up in Bud\u00addhist piety, some\u00adthing which he feels was nev\u00ader intend\u00aded by the Dalai Lama.<\/span><\/p>\n

This divi\u00adsive stress cul\u00admi\u00adnat\u00aded in a grand con\u00adfer\u00adence at Dharam\u00adsala last week, to carve out a pol\u00adi\u00adcy. The result seems to have been an entrench\u00adment of the ortho\u00addox \u201cMid\u00addle Way\u201d pol\u00adi\u00adcy, which I sus\u00adpect is a pro\u00adfound error of judgement.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Dalai Lama can\u00adnot live for\u00adev\u00ader, and a sur\u00advival strat\u00ade\u00adgy that depends exclu\u00adsive\u00adly on his per\u00adson\u00adal\u00adi\u00adty for its jus\u00adti\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adtion and its vital\u00adi\u00adty will be dis\u00adas\u00adtrous, in the long run. Now, it has been the great\u00adest for\u00adtune for the Tibetan peo\u00adple that a man of his cal\u00adiber of intel\u00adlect and integri\u00adty turned up in his posi\u00adtion (I will leave aside reli\u00adgious inter\u00adpre\u00adta\u00adtions of this good for\u00adtune, which I don\u2019t share). How\u00adev\u00ader, the pol\u00adi\u00adcy of renounc\u00ading a claim to inde\u00adpen\u00addence, in favour of seek\u00ading auton\u00ado\u00admy, is not a com\u00admand from the first page of the Sut\u00adta Nipa\u00adta<\/em>. It\u2019s mere\u00adly a strat\u00ade\u00adgy that the Dalai Lama select\u00aded on a prag\u00admat\u00adic basis. His main con\u00adcern was to min\u00adi\u00admize the pos\u00adsi\u00adbil\u00adi\u00adty of loss of life among his peo\u00adple, and per\u00adhaps exploit what\u00adev\u00ader shred of tem\u00adper\u00adance and human\u00adi\u00adty might exist with\u00adin the Com\u00admu\u00adnist regime. Time, how\u00adev\u00ader, has demon\u00adstrat\u00aded that there is none.<\/span><\/p>\n

At this stage, it is more log\u00adi\u00adcal to pro\u00adclaim out\u00adright that Tibetans are strug\u00adgling for true inde\u00adpen\u00addence, not any form of \u201cauton\u00ado\u00admy\u201d (an utter\u00adly mean\u00ading\u00adless con\u00adcept in a Com\u00admu\u00adnist dic\u00adta\u00adtor\u00adship). The notion, cir\u00adcu\u00adlat\u00ading among many par\u00adti\u00adsans of the old strat\u00ade\u00adgy, that this will alien\u00adate the friends that Tibet has acquired, does not stand up to log\u00adi\u00adcal analy\u00adsis. All the rich and pow\u00ader\u00adful of the world are agreed that Tibet should remain enslaved. They have nev\u00ader been friends of Tibet. As the world\u2019s most suc\u00adcess\u00adful ultra-con\u00adser\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtive regime, the Com\u00admu\u00adnist dic\u00adta\u00adtor\u00adship has the loy\u00adal\u00adty and admi\u00adra\u00adtion of every Con\u00adser\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtive and anti-demo\u00adc\u00adra\u00adt\u00adic ele\u00adment on the plan\u00adet. They are quite will\u00ading to see every last Tibetan die if it means that they will have con\u00adtin\u00adued access to China\u2019s wealthy elite. The slimy behav\u00adiour of the British gov\u00adern\u00adment clear\u00adly demon\u00adstrates this.<\/span><\/p>\n

By con\u00adtrast, those who actu\u00adal\u00adly do sup\u00adport Tibet\u2019s strug\u00adgle \u2014 on moral grounds \u2014 have always assumed that what Tibetans need and deserve is absolute, unfet\u00adtered inde\u00adpen\u00addence. Not a sin\u00adgle true friend of Tibet will be lost if rangzen<\/em> replaces an obvi\u00adous\u00adly out\u00addat\u00aded policy.<\/span><\/p>\n

While an old\u00ader gen\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion may be com\u00adfort\u00adable with the sta\u00adtus quo, we can\u2019t seri\u00adous\u00adly expect the younger gen\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion of Tibetans, both with\u00adin Tibet and out\u00adside, to main\u00adtain enthu\u00adsi\u00adasm for a cause that is con\u00adfined in such a nam\u00adby-pam\u00adby con\u00adcep\u00adtu\u00adal frame\u00adwork. You can\u00adnot ask peo\u00adple to risk their lives, exhaust their ener\u00adgy, and invest their hope, mere\u00adly to achieve a slight\u00adly less degrad\u00ading form of slavery.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While the world was pre\u00adoc\u00adcu\u00adpied with the finan\u00adcial cri\u00adsis, the UK<\/span> Gov\u00adern\u00adment took advan\u00adtage of pub\u00adlic inat\u00adten\u00adtion to write off Tibet. In a lit\u00adtle pub\u00adli\u00adcized par\u00adlia\u00admen\u00adtary state\u00adment on Octo\u00adber 29, For\u00adeign Sec\u00adre\u00adtary David Miliband claimed that Tibet has actu\u00adal\u00adly \u201calways \u2026<\/p>\n

Read more \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1148","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-as-blog-2008"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1148","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1148"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1148\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8239,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1148\/revisions\/8239"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1148"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1148"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1148"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}