Myths Vs Reality in Tibet a Woman Working on the Fresco
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A CHINESE WEEKLY OF NEWS AND VIEWS Vol. 30, No. 41 October 12, 1987 Myths vs Reality in Tibet A woman working on the fresco. Zhang Jifeng Music and Dance of Tang Dynasty, an embroidery fresco 8 metres in length and 3 metres wide, has been recently completed in Xian's Jinjiang Embroidery Factory. The fresco has already been exhibited in the Great Hall of the People, Beijing. The completed work. Zhang Jifeng Beijingf^jir HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK The Lhasa Riot and Dalai's Statement VOL 30, NO. 41 OCT. 12, 1987 • Commenting on the recent riot in Lhasa (p. 5), Beijing CONTENTS Review editor says it was designed as an echo to the Dalai Lama's current activities aimed at separating Tibet from China. NOTES FROM THE EDITORS 4 He refutes Dalai's accusations against China while criticising The Tibet Mvth Vs. Rcaliiv the United Stales for allowing the Tibetan exile to carry out his EVENTS/TREhlbS 5-9 political activities on US soil (p. 4). Demonstrations Disrupt Peace A letter by a British resident in Beijing who recently returned in Lhasa from Tibet throws light on some of the developments there (p. China Revives lis Post 34). Code Project New Plans to F.asc tjjcrgy Problem Moscow's Asia Policy Takes on New Look Beijing Opcni - - Rise or Fall? • To advance its political and economic interests, the Soviet Bi-wceklv Chronicle Union under Mikhail Gorbachev has been adjusting its policy (Scpt.it-Ocl.4) towards the Asia-Pacific region. Characterized by a INTERNATIONAL 10-13 conciliatory stance towards China, the United States, Japan Angola; Seeking Peace in and other US allies, the new policy has achieved little to date (p. Southern Africa 14). US-Poland: Relations to Be l-uliy Normafizcd ,fapun-US: Nakasonc Visits Planning and Marketing Unify Washington Oman; Thinkiitg About a future Without Oil • Whereas commodity economies were regarded as l.inited States: Stock Market capitalist, breakthroughs in both economic theory and practice have been made since the reform, including efforts to unify Shows Resilience planning and market regulation (p. 17). A Look at Gori>achev's Asia-Paolfic Policy 14 Discussions on Economic Theories: Work or Family, or Both? Unifying Planning and Marketing 17 Career Woman.. .Obedient • The high employment rate of women in urban areas Wife...or 20 indicates the increasing emancipation of Chinese women. But Facts & Figures: High Employment working women find they must still do much of the family work Rate Among Urban Women 23 in their roles as wives and mothers and they are now having to The ABC of Investing in China (IX): make certain choices between work and family (p. 20). How to Hire and Dismiss , Employees 24 FROM THE CHINESE PRESS 26-27 NORTH AMERICAN SPECIAL BUSINESS/TRADE 28-29 (in Canadian and US issues only) CULTURE/SCIENCE 30-32 To Our Readers I TOURISM 33 Confucianism in China Today I LETTERS 34 The Confucius Foundation of China V Workers at a neighbourhood COVER: Evaluation Aims at Better Education VI coini«ittcc-run straw crafts factory in 'Boximiya Ren' in California VIII Shanhatguan, Hcbci Prtnincc. Wang Donghai Published every Monday by Subscription rates (1 year): USA US$22.00 BEIJING REVIEW General Editorial Office Tel: 893860 English Dept Tel: 831.5599 Ext. 546 Australia A.$22.00 Canada Can.$21.00 24 Baiwanzhuang Road Distributed by Cfiina International Book New Zealand NZ.$30.00 Beijing 100037 Trading Corporation (GUOJISHUDIAN) The Peoples Republic of China PC Box 399, Beijing, China UK £12.00 m NOTK»FROM THE EDITORS the autonomous region. What are the facts? According to 1986 statistics, there were 2,024,938 The Tibet Myth Vs. Reality people in the whole region, of by Zhu Li whom 1,937,379 were Tibetans. The 73,534 Hans accounted for only 3.6 percent of the total population; most of them went he riot which disrupted the border areas continued for most of there to help with work in Tpeaceful atmosphere in Lhasa the first half of the 20th century. scienfific, educational and cultural on October 1 and resulted in 6 Even during those difficult years, fields. deaths and 19 serious injuries was when foreign powers were by no means accidental. Although manoeuvring to detach Tibet from His statements deploring the still under investigation, there are China by encouraging separation- untimely deaths of 1 million many indications that the incident ism there, none of them went so far Tibetans and the imprisonment of was designed in faraway quarters as to recognize Tibet as an another 1 million in labour camps as an echo to the Dalai Lama's independent state. were equally ridiculous. The separationist activities during his Tibetan population in the auto• visits to the United States and nomous region was 1,206,200 in Europe. 1959; it has increased to almost 2 million today. Other Tibetan- Such activities, which have inhabited areas have also wit• never ceased since the Dalai Lama nessed rapid population growth. If and his followers fled their J^he recent riot in Lhasa 1 million Tibetans had suffered homeland after an abortive was designed as an echo to the unnatural deaths, how could these rebellion 28 years ago, have increases have been possible? intensified in recent years. Dalai Lama's current activities aimed at separating To counter similar false Trying to deceive their com• Tibet from China. In trying to charges, a senior court official in patriots as well as the world Tibet said recently that the region public, they have resorted to deceive people, he and his has one prison and two labour rumour-mongering and dema• followers have resorted to camps with a total of 974 inmates, gogy in addition to tampering with rumour-mongering and 97.2 percent of whom were history. demagogy in addition to convicted on criminal charges. Only 28 were imprisoned for their In a September 21 statement tampering with histofy. during his US visit, the Dalai counter-revolutionary activities. Lama wanted to make people The Dalai Lama was putting the believe that Tibet was an cart before the horse when he independent country before what hypocritically proposed making he called a "Chinese invasion" in Prime Minister Nehru of India the whole of Tibet a zone of peace 1949-50. This is a hoary lie that was quite objective when he stated and stated that the tension along flies in the face of facts. in 1954, "I am not aware that at the Sino-Indian border was the any time during the last few result of the stationing of Chinese Historical records show that hundred years, Chinese sovereign• troops in Tibet. The hard fact is growing political and other ties ty, or if you like suzerainty, was that, like many other border dating back to the 7th century led challenged by any outside coun• disputes among third world Tibet to become part of China try." The use of the word countries, the one between China more than seven hundred years "suzerainty" was introduced and and India is an outcome of the old ago. Since then, China has promoted in reference to Tibet by colonial policy of "divide and maintained its sovereignty over some people who were trying to rule" as well as direct imperialist Tibet despite changes of dynasties weaken and eventually destroy aggression. and many other social upheavals. China's authority over that part of its territory. I could go on refuting the many During the hundred years after other absurdities in the Dalai the Opium War of 1840, Tibet fell The Dalai Lama, in the same Lama's statement, but would like victim to imperialist aggression as statement, made a big fuss about to stop and ask: Why should the did many other parts of China. so-called immigration of Han Dalai Lama have been allowed to There were two open invasions, in people to Tibetan-inhabited areas carry out his separationist activ• 1888 and 1904, by Britain, and and lamented that the Tibetans ities and make such wanton "creeping" alienation of Tibet's have already become a minority in attacks on China in the United 4 BEIJING REVIEW, NO. 41 EVENTS/TRENDS Demonstrations Disrupt Peace in Lhasa wo demonstrations aimed at Prominent local patriotic fi• Tsplitting Tibet from China took gures all expressed their strong place in Lhasa, the capital of the opposition to these activities. Tibet Autonomous Region, on During the second incident, on September 27 and October 1, October 1, six people were causing injuries and deaths. reportedly killed and 19 policemen were badly injured. The first demonstration took place at 10 am on September 27, In the morning, as people in when 21 lamas and five other Lhasa were peacefully celebrating people took to the street, carrying National Day, more than 10 people wearing kasaya and several States'? The Dalai Lama as a a flag of "the snow mountains and dozen unidentified people religious figure is one thing. As a lions," a religious icon of marched in the downtown street of former top leader of a serf society Tibetans, and shouting "Tibet Bajiaojie. They carried the same now living in exile and engaging in wants independence" and other kind of flag as in the earlier political activities, he is another. slogans. The demonstrators made agitational speeches at the Joh- demonstration and shouted the It was particularly noteworthy kang (Qoikang) Temple Square slogan "Independence of Tibet." that the Dalai Lama was allowed and then moved on to the regional When policemen came out to to make his political statement people's government building. stop them, the rioters threw stones before a meeting of the US House at the policemen and bystanders, The demonstrators hit and of RepresentaUves Human Rights set the Bajiaojie Street police sub• injured several police officers who Subcommittee.