Rising_Tibet

TIBET

The Facts
Tibet at glance

SIZE	2.5 million sq. km.
CAPITAL	Lhasa
POPULATION	6 million Tibetans and an estimated 7.5 million Chinese, most of whom are in Kham and Amdo.
LANGUAGE	Tibetan (of the Tibeto-Burmese language family).
STAPLE FOOD	Tsampa (roasted barley flour)
NATIONAL DRINK	Salted butter tea
TYPICAL ANIMALS	Wild yak, Bharal (blue) sheep, Musk deer, Tibetan antelope, Tibetan gazelle, Kyang (wild ass), Pica
TYPICAL BIRDS	Black necked crane, Lammergeier, Great crested grebe, Bar-headed goose, Ruddy shel duck, Ibis-bill
MAJOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS	Rampant deforestation in Eastern Tibet, poaching of large mammals
AVERAGE ALTITUDE	14,000 ft.
HIGHEST MOUNTAIN	Chomo Langma (Mt. Everest) 29, 028 ft.
AVERAGE RAINFALL	Varies widely. In the west it is 1 mm in Jan. to 25 mm in July. In the east, it is 25-50 in Jan. and 800 in July
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE	July 58 f; Jan. 24 f.
MINERAL DEPOSITS	Borax, uranium, iron, chromite, gold
MAJOR RIVERS	Mekong, Yangtse, Salween, Tsangpo, Yellow
ECONOMY	Tibetans: predominantly in agriculture and animal husbandry. Chinese: predominantly in government, commerce and the service sector.
PROVINCES	U-Tsang (Central Tibet), Amdo (N.E. Tibet), Kham (S.E. Tibet)
BORDERING COUNTRIES	India, Nepal, Bhutan, Burma, China
NATIONAL FLAG	Snow lions with red and blue rays. Outlawed in Tibet.
LEGAL STATUS	Occupied country and without United nation’s representation.

Introduction:

Tibet existed as an independent state for almost 2000 years before the communist Chinese invaded and occupied the country in 1949. China's policy of occupation and oppression has resulted in no more or less than the destruction of Tibet's national independence, culture and religion, environment and the universal human rights of its people. China has broken international laws and routinely violates its own constitution, yet time and again without punishment.

Issues facing Tibet Today:

Culture and religion:

China's relentless destruction of religion in Tibet saw the loss of over 6000 monasteries and countless religious artifacts during the culture revolution and, today, the communist authority's approach to religion has changed little. In 1996 the "strike hard" campaign was initiated, specifically targeting Tibetan Buddhism. This campaign has been vehemently pursued in recent years.

Denouncing Tibet's spiritual leaders: Forced to denounce the Dalai Lama, Tibet's spiritual and temporal leader, and his chosen Panchen Lama, Tibetans must pledge their allegiance too the Chinese government. Failure to do so can result in imprisonment or other forms of punishment. Possessing an image of the Dalai Lama is today illegal in Tibet.

Population transfer:
The continued population transfer of Chinese to Tibet in recent years has seen the Tibetans become a minority in their own land. Today 6 million Tibetans are outnumbered by 7.5 million Chinese in Tibet. Under the guise of economic and social development, the calculated and government-encouraged population transfers have marginalised Tibetans in economic, educational, political and social spheres, and thereby threaten to quash Tibetan culture.

Education:
Chinese occupation and the massive migration of Chinese to Tibet has seen the Tibetan language surpassed by that of the Chinese. The government is repressing Tibetan culture by making the language redundant in all sectors. Tibet's education system, controlled entirely by the Chinese and their Communist ideology, is directed to the Chinese immigrants and compromises Tibetans. Tibetan students also suffer from prohibitive and discriminatory fees and inadequate facilities in rural areas.

THE ENVIRONMENT:
Situated at the heart of Asia, Tibet is one of the most environmentally strategic and sensitive regions in the world. Tibetans live in harmony with nature, guided by their Buddhist belief in the interdependence of both living and non-living elements of the earth. However with the invasion of Tibet, the consumerist and materialistic Chinese Communist ideology trampled upon this nature-friendly attitude of the Tibetan people. The past 50 years has seen widespread environmental destruction resulting in deforestation, soil erosion, extinction of wildlife, overgrazing, uncontrolled mining and nuclear waste dumping. Today, the Chinese continue to extract various natural resources - often with foreign backing - without any environmental safeguards, and consequently Tibet is facing an environmental crisis the ramifications of which will be felt far beyond its borders.

Global Climatic Effects:
Scientists have observed a correlation between natural vegetation on the Tibetan Plateau and the stability of the monsoon, which is indispensable to the break-baskets of south Asia. Scientists have also shown that the environment of the Tibetan Plateau affects jet- streams which are related to the cause of Pacific typhoons and the El Nino phenomenon, which has had adverse environmental effects world-wide.

Extinction of Wildlife:
In 1901, the 13th Dalai Lama issued a decree banning the hunting of wild animals in Tibet. Unfortunately, the Chinese have not enforced similar restrictions and instead the "trophy-hunting" of endangered species has been actively encouraged. There are at least 81 endangered species on the Tibetan Plateau of which 39 are mammals, 37 birds, four amphibians and one a reptile. Perhaps the most famous of these is the Giant Panda, an animal native to Tibet yet one that is propagated by the Chinese as their national mascot.

Uncontrolled mining:
Extraction of borax, chromium, salt, copper, coal, gold and uranium is being vigorously developed by the Chinese government as a means of providing raw materials for industrial growth. Seven of China's 15 key minerals are expected to run out within a decade and consequently the extraction of minerals in Tibet is increasing in a rapid and unregulated manner. Increased mining activities further reduces vegetation cover and thereby increases the danger for severe landslides, massive soil erosion, loss of wildlife habitat and the pollution of streams and rivers.

China's military presence in Tibet includes:

* 300,000 to 500,000 troops, most of them along the Indian border.

* 17 secret radar stations.

* 14 military airfields.

* 8 missile bases with:

-8 ICBMs (International ballistic missiles)

-70 medium range missiles.

-20 intermediate range missiles.

*Besides, China utilizes Tibet for chemical warfare exercise, dumping

*Nuclear waste from other countries on payment of huge sums of money.

UNIVERSAL HUMAN RIGHTS:

By the end of 1998, the People's Republic of China had signed the three covenants comprising the International Bill of Rights, but it is still far from implementing these domestically and in Tibet. Individual and collective rights abuses continue to challenge the Tibetan people in their daily lives and in the future survival of their unique cultural identity.

As we commence the 21st century, the Tibetan Government-in-Exile solemnly relays that the Chinese government's treatment of Tibetans in Tibet is still in breach of the rights to life, liberty and security, and the freedoms of expression, religion, culture and education. Today, in Tibet:

1. Any expression of opinion contrary to Chinese Communist Party ideology can result in arrest

2. The Chinese government has systematically covered religious institutions with police presence in an attempt to eradicate allegiance to the Dalai Lama, Tibetan nationalism and any dissention.

3. Tibetans are subject to arbitrary arrest and detention.

4. Those imprisoned are often denied legal representation and Chinese legal proceedings fail to meet international standards.

5. Torture still prevails in Chinese prisons and detention centre despite being in contradiction with the United Nations Convention against Torture.

6. Tibetan women are subjected to enforced sterilization, contraception and abortion procedures.

7. Due to subsistence difficulties, inadequate facilities and discriminatory measures, many Tibetan children are denied access to adequate healthcare and schooling.

8. The rate of imprisonment for political reasons is far greater than in other areas under Chinese rule.

9. Children are not exempt from China's repression of freedom of expression. There are Tibetan political prisoners below the age of 18 and child monks and nuns are consistently dismissed from their religious institutions. China has recently declared Tibet to be non- Buddhist.

10. . Enforced disappearances, where a person is taken into custody and the details of their detention are not disclosed, continue to occur.

11. .The eleven-year-old 11th Panchen Lama has been missing since his status was announced in 1995.

12. .More than 70 per cent of Tibetans in the "TAR" now live below the poverty line.

The Chinese rule in Tibet at a Glance:

* More than 1.2 million Tibetans have been killed.

* More than 6,000 monasteries have been destroyed.

* Thousands of Tibetans are still imprisoned for exercising their fundamental rights.

* Tibet's natural resources and fragile ecology are being irreversibly destroyed.

* There are evidences suggesting that Tibet is being used for dumping of

nuclear wastes.

* Tibetans (6 million) have been outnumbered by Chinese (7.5 millions) in

Tibet.

* Tibet, once a peaceful buffer state between India and China, has been

transport into vast military.

An appeal for help:

Tibetan people living in and outside Tibet appeal the great people of India and other free world to help and support the freedom struggle of the Tibetans people to save its identity and civilization from extinction. You can help and support our cause by the following ways:

* Express support for the Tibetans people's right to freedom and justice by

writing to newspapers and magazine.

* Write to your MPs about Tibet and ask them to rise the issue of Tibet in the

parliament.

* Urge your government to review its policy on Tibet.

* Urge your government to support a resolution on Tibet to UN.

* Ask your MPs and government to recognize the Tibetan government-in-

exile headed by his holiness the Dalai lama. Set up Tibet support group at

your place and inform the local people in your region about the Tibetan

people.

Source of Information:

www.tibet.net