By Choekyi Lhamo
DHARAMSHALA, July 15: The US Congress on Wednesday introduced a new bill which recognizes Tibet’s unresolved political status and holds China suspect for violating Tibetan people’s legitimate right to self-determination. The ‘Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Conflict Act’, which aims to affirm the US government’s position on Tibet’s legal status in the international arena, was introduced by long-time Tibet supporter Reps. Jim McGovern, and Reps. Michael McCaul earlier this week.
The Democratic parliamentarian McGovern on the introduction of the bill said, “The US government has consistently called on Chinese officials to return to dialogue, without preconditions. But that hasn’t worked. The Chinese continue to turn their backs on the Dalai Lama. Our bipartisan legislation seeks to strengthen U.S. policy by grounding it in international law and countering Chinese disinformation, with the aim of getting the two sides to negotiate a durable solution.” The Act also aims to counter disinformation from the Chinese side, which repeatedly claims that Tibet has always been a part of China since time immemorial.
The Tibet-China Conflict Act makes clear that Tibet’s land mass does not only include the so-called Tibet Autonomous Region but also the important Tibetan areas in Gansu, Sichuan, Qinghai and Yunnan provinces. “Tibetans simply want the same right to self-determination that all people across the globe deserve. We have suffered enormous abuse from the Chinese government over many decades, yet we have always sought to settle our differences through peaceful dialogue. This bill would allow the United States to back its consistent calls for dialogue with more force and urgency while helping give Tibetans a voice in their own country,” President of the Tibetan government-in-exile Penpa Tsering said after the introduction of the bill, thanking all the concerned US officials for their support.
Furthermore, the bill faults China for failing to meet with the Dalai Lama or his representatives; rejects false claims of Tibet being a part of China; and also seeks to empower the position of US Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues (currently taken up by Under Secretary Uzra Zeya) to counter CCP’s propaganda.
This unprecedented move by the US Congress under the Biden Administration is followed by two other Acts that work on demanding more access from inside Tibet and reaffirming that the reincarnation of the next Dalai Lama falls strictly in the hands of the Tibetan people; Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act (2018) and Tibetan Policy and Support Act (2020) respectively.
Despite nine rounds of talks between the representatives of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and representatives of Beijing administration from 2002-10, China has rejected the Middle Way Approach, the official stance of the exile Tibetan government, that seeks genuine autonomy under the framework of the Chinese constitution. The diplomatic stalemate between the two sides has also stalled discussions on His Holiness’ return to Tibet.
2 Responses
Hooray; and finally the US has garnered strong support in Congress to bring this bill to the Floor. Especially important is the recognition that lands where Tibetans have traditionally and permanently populated are not restricted to the PRRC’s defined TAR region of Tibet. And, recognizing the matter of Tibet’s invasion and current control by the PRRC, rather than ignore the extreme injustice and illegal invasion of Tibet, could not be more timely given Russias unprovoked, illegal Invasion of the Ukraine.
No matter how the CCP and its predecessors twisted, fabricated and created massive disinformation campaign against Tibet and its status as a sovereign nation, they have not succeeded in erasing the truth about Tibet as an independent nation. Chinese claims of overlordship over Tibet are as fickle and flimsy, dubious and devoid of truth as their claim over South China Sea. Five years ago, an International Tribunal in a landmark ruling dismissed China’s claim to much of South China Sea. The Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague said on 12th of July 2016 that there was “ NO EVIDENCE that China had exercised exclusive control historically over the key water ways”. But that didn’t deter communist China from land reclamation and militarising the sea to enforce its claim. When we look at the grounds of the court of Arbitration’s rejection of Chinese claim over South China Sea, it is as clear as day light that it is based on the evidence of China having exercised no exclusive control of South China Sea as the prima facie reason for its rejection of false Chinese claims. If we now apply the same logic to Chinese claims over Tibet, the same rejection of Chinese claim over Tibet can be made by the very same logic of China having NO EVIDENCE of having exercised exclusive control over Tibet at any time since the founding of the Tibetan nation in 127 BC.
The only document signed by the Government of Tibet with the Chinese Communist Government is the so called “17 point Treaty” of 1951 which was forced upon Tibet and the Dalai Lama rejected the treaty both from Tsona Dzong and Tawang on his way to India in 1959. This was an unequal treaty which was forced upon the Tibetan delegation led by Ngapo Ngawang Jigme and the stamp of the Dalai Lama was duplicated by the Chinese. Even though Ngapo did have the Dalai Lama’s stamp with him, he made sure that it was not affixed in order to avoid legitimacy to the infamous treaty between two unequal partners. However, the Chinese communist Government DID RECOGNISE THE TIBETAN GOVERNMENT AS THE SOVEREIGN OF TIBET TO CONDUCT THE BUSINESS OF SIGNING THE TREATY to allow Chinese troops to enter Tibet. This demonstrates the ownership of Tibet by the Government of Tibet!!! It clearly demonstrated that China had no ownership of Tibet and thus had to force Tibet to come to the negotiating table by threatening to wage a full scale military campaign to bring Tibet under their control!
Even though the official CTA policy is autonomy by cozying up to communist China, nothing has happened in the last four decades. If anything, it has only helped China to legitimise its illegal occupation of Tibet.
The CTA’s China friendly approach and Phillipines President Rodrigo Duarte’s approach on South China Sea arbitration have uncanny similarities.
Duarte did no favour to his country when he dismissed the Court’s ruling as a “scrap of paper” and undermined the court’s ruling which favoured his country!!! The reasoning was based on the belief that good relations with China will bring economic benefits and that confronting Communist China will lead to repercussions. During his brutal rule during which thousands were murdered in the name of fighting drug scourge, Beijing lost no time to promise billions for ditching both the Arbitration Court ruling and the embrace of America which has been Phillipines traditional ally. But to the dismay of the Phillipines people and Duarte himself, no promised billions materialised! Disillusioned with China’s perfidy, Duarte told the UN General Assembly last year that it “is now part of international law, beyond compromise and beyond the reach of passing Governments to dilute, diminish or abandon”. This clearly demonstrates that cozying up with communist China is a futile exercise and the best way to extract concession is to confront them.
The CTA has placated the CCP for the last four decades but nothing tangible has materialised. It continues to demonise the Dalai Lama even though he has been almost saying nothing and stopped visiting any western country to drum-up support for Tibet. Now, the CCP has the temerity to complain for “alleged interference” when Indian PM Modi conveyed his birthday wishes to the Dalai Lama recently! It has only emboldened the Chinese dictators!
Having nothing to show for the Middle Way approach, the CTA and its MW adherents are creating a diversionary tactic by raising the spectre of Tibet’s independent status as the primary cause to the success of the MW approach!!!
If they had realised this earlier and didn’t suppress the Independence advocates and relegated them to the dust bin of history, things might have been different. Like PM Nehru in the 1950s was swept by the communist rhetoric and compromised the security of his nation by accepting dubious Chinese claims over Tibet, the CTA’s idealistic notion of China and Tibet co-existing is nothing but another pie in the sky! Nehru’s idealism of India and China co-existing as socialist and anti-colonial nations evaporated with 1962 Chinese invasion of India. The idealistic Tibetan delusion of Tibet co-existing with communist China will evaporate in the same way in the end. Communist China is ruled by Han chauvinists and is therefore Han-centric. It will never tolerate any semblance of difference from the Han straitjacket! It will destroy everything that is different from Han China!
Therefore, only total independence will save Tibet and its precious Tibetan culture, religion and Tibetan identity from total annihilation. The US Congress’s bill which recognises TIBET’S STATUS AS UNSOLVED POLITICAL STATUS is a welcome step in the right direction. The US must also reignite the cozy relation it had with Tibetan freedom fighters in order to put pressure on the CCP for genuine dialogue backed by military assistance to future Tibetan Freedom Fighters. India also has high stakes in the independence of Tibet and if America wants to protect Indian democracy and stop Chinese influence in South Asia and beyond, America should be prepared for contingency plans to rearm Tibetan freedom fighters! India shouldn’t be shy away from supporting Tibet if it wants to secure a peaceful frontier with Tibet. It should not repeat the unforgivable blunder of its previous leaders in order to break the nexus between China and Pakistan and avoid being needled by two extremely hostile neighbours!