By Choekyi Lhamo
DHARAMSHALA, Mar. 17: A Tibetan MP’s remarks on Tuesday during the ongoing parliamentary session has drawn criticism from Tibetans, including on social media circuits. MP Dolma Tsering questioned whether the slogan ‘Bhod Gyalo’ (Victory to Tibet / Free Tibet) and the iconic song that paid tribute to the Tibetan uprising day, asserting Tibetan independence and nationalism are in line with the Middle Way Approach (MWA) policy.
The MWA is the official stance of the Tibetan government-in-exile, known officially as the Central Tibetan Administration. Some Tibetan netizens in exile took to social media platforms and condemned her remarks. The phrase ‘Bhod Gyalo’ is trending on some social media circuits as netizens posted the slogan on their social media accounts in protest. A video clip of the MP making the remarks in the parliament is being widely circulated since yesterday.
Fellow lawmakers also weighed in on the discourse with few targeting the speech for negligence. Dotoe MP Serta Tsultrim, Dotoe MP Lobsang Yeshi among others condemned the speech for overlooking the kind of message it sent out.
MP Dolma Tsering in response told Phayul that she had no intention whatsoever to irk different sensibilities but had to ask the question in the parliament for reasons she deemed important, “Our exile community is a democratic society, wherein one has the power to assert one’s own opinion on different ideologies, be it Umaylam or Rangzen. NGOs like Tibetan Youth Congress believe in Rangzen ideology and it is their right to voice their opinions, however, the CTA established by His Holiness the Dalai Lama has worked towards the MWA policy.
“During the recent commemoration event, the public sang the Tibetan uprising song and shouted “Bhod Gyalo”, and I thought that these undermined the Umaylam policy. For the Middle Way to first undergo changes, there was a public mandate and the referendum was achieved through due process when it was first introduced. However, this matter will be decided in the parliament, whether it should be allowed or not. The question remains whether we should focus on our emotions or remain practical.”
CTA President Lobsang Sangay responded to the matter in the parliament on Wednesday, “Emotions and policy are different. We should not succumb to “anticipatory compliance” with China. We cannot let our own opinions dictate the Middle Way policy. Some had even told me that if we could welcome Chinese leaders with khatak [white scarf] so that they would be happy and help Tibetans in some way. What is it that we are even proposing? Given the India-US geopolitics, this would only prove counterproductive to our movement.”
Sangay further cautioned against compliance with China over the policy. ‘Bhod-Gyalo’ and singing the March 10 uprising tribute song does not undermine the existing policy that CTA upholds, he said.
6 Responses
I am saddened by the topic raised by the Tibetan MP Dolma Tsering la.
There are certain boundaries that we shouldn’t cross, and this MP has in spades by even brining the validity of the slogan Bhod Gyalo in question.
It is now upon the Utsang voters to publicly align with her or disown her. This is the democratic process.
Wait she asked a quesrion.she didn’t make a statement. Asking question is not a statement. Let’s debate it
Dolma Tsering has contradicted herself by saying, “our exile community is a democratic society, wherein one has the power (right) to assert ones own opinion on different ideologies, be it Umaylam or Rangzen” but in the same breath she scorns those who shouted Bho Gyalo and sang the Long shok National Uprising anthem! What a hypocrite!!!!
If she really believed in what she said, she should have never spoken such sacrilegious garbage in the first place. She should have minded her own business and respect those who chose to say what they believe is there right and sing the song which compiles the historic evolution of China’s occupation of Tibet. This song was sung for three generations until it was banned in order to cozy up to communist China. But it never paid any dividend.
This goes to show the impending peril in exile where the forces of autocracy and religious zealotry is going to determine the rights of people rather than the universal intrinsic rights of every citizen to believe what they want to believe and do what they want to do rather than dictated by narrow religious autocracy driven by blind religious orthodoxy.
I fully agree with MP Dolma la, that ours is a democratic society and there is freedom of expression for every person. But this right, which is enshrined in our constitution should be used judiciously and for the greater interest of the people. It is not nice when a sitting senior MP, raises such technical issues, making unnecessary controversies at a time when many other important matters are left unattended by the parliament.
The slogan like “Bhod Gyalo” and singing the patriotic songs are part of our freedom struggle, and they will be continued as long as it is required. Her remarks have other hidden meanings and she owes us an explanation of this sensitive matter. Is she trying to say something else? Let her explain it!
Middle Way Approach is definitely a terrorist proposition to our Independence fighters for Tibet. This double standard solutions have created confusion and vague political path to all the innocent Tibetans. As per general consensus, 80% of Tibetans in exile have voted to take path in the Independence movement in 1997. But our leader and his bunch of opportunist sycophants have suggested MWP. As a result, like our current Sikyong, MP Dolma Tsering etc. are taking full opportunity to promote their leadership without reasoning and using rationality and manage to convince our stigmatized Tibetans to belief in a conventional manner under the guidance of authoritarian. Middle Way Approach is a petty politics in exchange for Buddhist Pope position around the world because there are 400 millions Chinese Buddhist in China itself, not including Southeast Asian countries. I think MP Dolma Tsering should step down and seek a counseling class for the remark she made in the presence of all members.
I am someone who considers the middle as a very achievable goal for ensuring freedom for Tibet to determining what is good for it as a people and a nation. This is not the right venue for me to back up my support for the middle way with my arguments considering all the factors that go against us for working for independence. Who would not want it? But, I do not agree with those who advocate pleasing China for it to respond to our middle way proposal. So long as Tibet issue is not settled in accordance with the middle way aspirations, it will be an affront to our sense of dignity as a people avoiding to say and do anything to hurt to Chinese leaders. We have tonpoint out what China has done to us, what it is plotting to wipe out Tibet, how it has turned once an independent country into slavery to its sham of communist ideology and how it is dismissing us as backward people. We have sing to sing the uprising song, we have to raise our national flag, we have to sing our national anthem and we have to wish to Bhod Gyalo to ourselves to bring China to see reason in the middle way. Bod Gyalo.