View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by OTHES DIPLOMARBEIT Titel der Diplomarbeit Soft-Power Resources of the Tibetan Government in Exile Verfasser Manuel Lendorfer Angestrebter akademischer Grad Magister der Philosophie (Mag.phil) Wien, Mai 2009 Studienkennzahl lt. Studienblatt: A 057 390 Studienrichtung lt. Studienblatt: Internationale Entwicklung Betreuer: Univ. Prof. Mag. Dr. Rüdiger Frank 1 2 Table of Contents PART 1 – Introduction......................................................................................................................7 1.1 The Tibetan Government in Exile and Soft Power................................................................7 1.2 The Soft Power of the Tibetan Government in Exile in the Context of Development Studies..........................................................................................................................................9 1.3. Research Questions.............................................................................................................12 1.4. Chapter Outline...................................................................................................................13 PART 2 – The Theory of Soft Power..............................................................................................14 2.1 Introduction to the Theory of Soft Power............................................................................14 2.2 What is Soft Power?.............................................................................................................14 2.3 Soft Power and Hard Power.................................................................................................18 2.4 Brief History of the Term Soft Power..................................................................................20 2.5 Soft Power in a Global Information Age.............................................................................21 2.6 Definition of Soft-Power Resources....................................................................................22 2.7 Using the Theory of Soft Power as an analytical Tool........................................................24 PART 3 – Outline of the Tibetan Government in Exile – Structure, Organization, Objectives.....26 3.1 Introduction to the Tibetan Government in Exile................................................................26 3.2 Who does the Central Tibetan Administration represent?...................................................27 3.3 The Charter of the Tibetan Refugee Community.................................................................29 3.4 The Position of the 14th Dalai Lama...................................................................................30 3.5 The Executive......................................................................................................................32 3.6 The Legislature....................................................................................................................35 3.7 The Judiciary........................................................................................................................37 3.8.1 Introduction to Exile Tibetan NGOs.................................................................................38 3.8.2 Tibetan Youth Congress...............................................................................................39 3.8.3 Tibetan Women's Association......................................................................................40 3.8.4 Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy......................................................41 3.9 Democratization of the Tibetan Government in Exile.........................................................41 3.10 The Status of Women.........................................................................................................44 3.11 Religion and Politics – Tibetan Buddhism and the TGE...................................................46 3.12 The TGE's Approach to the Exile Struggle........................................................................47 3 3.13.1 Introduction to the TGE's Objectives in the Exile Struggle............................................50 3.13.2 Objectives of Exile Governments in Theory..............................................................50 3.13.3 Objectives of the TGE in Practice..............................................................................52 3.13.4 Summary of the TGE's Objectives.............................................................................55 PART 4 – International Support for the TGE and the Tibetan Cause.............................................58 4.1 Introduction to International Support for the TGE..............................................................58 4.2 Civil Society Support for Tibet in the West.........................................................................59 4.3 The Internet as a Tool for Support.......................................................................................65 4.4 Celebrity Support for Tibet in the West...............................................................................66 4.5 Western Government and Parliamentary Support for Tibet.................................................69 4.6 Summary of International Support for the Tibetan Cause...................................................72 PART 5 – The Myth of Tibet..........................................................................................................73 5.1 Introduction to the Myth of Tibet........................................................................................73 5.2 Origins of the Term Shangri-La...........................................................................................74 5.3 Short History of the Myth of Tibet......................................................................................75 5.4 Negative Myths of Tibet......................................................................................................77 5.5 Illustrating the Myth: The Tibetan Book of the Dead and The Third Eye...........................78 5.6 The Myth of Tibet after the Chinese Invasion of Tibet........................................................81 5.7 The Myth of Tibet Today.....................................................................................................82 5.8 The Myth of Tibet as a Soft-Power Resource for the TGE.................................................85 5.9 How has the Myth been politicized by the TGE?................................................................86 PART 6 – The 14th Dalai Lama as an Agent of Soft Power for the TGE......................................88 6.1 Soft Power of Tenzin Gyatso...............................................................................................88 6.2 What does the 14th Dalai Lama represent?.........................................................................89 6.3 Dalai Lama – Nobel Peace Prize Laureate..........................................................................92 6.4 The Dalai Lama invoking the Myth of Tibet ......................................................................94 PART 7 – Values represented by the TGE as Soft-Power Resources.............................................96 7.1 Values as Soft-Power Resources..........................................................................................96 7.2.1 'Green Tibetans'.................................................................................................................99 7.2.2 Illustrating the Tibetan 'Green' Identity......................................................................100 4 7.2.3 How did the Tibetan 'Green' Identity come about?....................................................102 7.2.4 When did 'Green' Tibetan Representations begin?.....................................................104 7.2.5 Communicating the Tibetan 'Green' Image................................................................104 7.2.6 The 'Green' Tibetan Image as a Soft-Power Resource...............................................106 7.2.7 The Value of Environmental Protection as a Soft-Power Resource...........................107 7.3 The Values of Human Rights as a Soft-Power Resource...................................................109 7.4 The Value of Democracy as a Soft-Power Resource.........................................................113 7.5 Women's Rights as a Soft-Power Resource.......................................................................115 7.6.1 Tibetan Buddhism as a Resource of Soft Power.............................................................117 7.6.2 Uniqueness of Tibetan Culture...................................................................................117 7.6.3 Western Followers of Tibetan Buddhism...................................................................118 7.6.4 Universal Values associated with Tibetan Buddhism.................................................120 PART 8 – Conclusion....................................................................................................................124 8.1 What are the Soft-Power Resources of the Tibetan Government in Exile?.......................124 8.2 The TGE's Approach to the Exile Struggle: A Soft-Power Strategy.................................125 8.3 How has the TGE's Soft Power contributed or not, to approaching the Achievement of its Objectives?...............................................................................................................................126