[Reader-list] Tibet

[S. Jabbar]

My views on Tibet and my long support for the Dalai Lama and his peaceful
'middle path' (autonomy not independence with full religious and cultural
rights) on Tibet are well known, as is my support to the right of return of
the exiled Tibetans, Palestinians and Kashmiri Pandits.

Have to clarify though that I did not write the petition in support of the
Tibetans but merely forwarded the message sent out by the organisation,
Avaaz, which I fully endorse.

Peerzada Arshad rightly questioned the efficacy of these online petitions.
Of course I don't believe that me or you taking a few seconds out to sign a
petition is going to change anything in China or anywhere else in the world
where there is injustice.  But even for a few seconds, it has brought an
issue into our consciousness.  Perhaps we will think about it today, perhaps
we will talk about it with a few friends and colleagues, and make common
cause with young Tibetans who are struggling to make sense of a world that
supports China because of its economic and military clout while ignoring and
making irrelevant a struggle that has remained non-violent for over 60
years.

What does one do? How can one creatively respond to situations like these
that seem huge, powerful, insurmountable?

The easiest thing in the world is to remain cynical or fall into despair.
The hardest is to keep faith, optimism and cheerfulness alive.  What works
for me each time unerringly is to focus on two things:

One, change is the nature of the universe.  Whether we like it or not the
universe is in flux.  Time flows, things happen. Seemingly unrelated things
sometimes coalesce to bring down the whole house of cards: the assassination
of Archduke Franz Ferdinand caused the First World War and the break up of
two empires.  Notwithstanding the Vietnamese military pressures on the US,
the protests in America against Vietnam in the '60's forced the US
government to rethink its large-scale  interventionist policies for 30 years
until Iraq.  

And two, ideas.  The end to slavery, the sun setting on the British Empire,
the fall of the Berlin Wall all happened because someone first imagined it
was possible.

My act of clicking on that petition, (though I'll admit is the worst form of
armchair activism) is because I can imagine that another China, which is
more humane, more inclusive, more democratic is not only desirable but
possible.



On 3/19/08 6:41 PM, "Aditya Raj Kaul" <kauladityaraj at gmail.com> wrote:

> Yeah. Unlike the other "elite class" of Sarai, Sonia did write something
about
> the Tibetans here. I appreciate her. And, on similar lines Pandits
continue
> their protest against terrorist and conscienceless killer Yasin
Malik. You can
> add your voice by signing here
http://www.petitiononline.com/ymalik8/

For
> more details on Malik, visit -
> www.kashmiris-in-exile.blogspot.com/

Thanks
Aditya Raj Kaul


On 3/19/08, S.
> Jabbar <sonia.jabbar at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> A Million Strong for Tibet: End the
> violence
>
> THE TIBETANS ARE SENDING OUT A GLOBAL CRY FOR CHANGE.
>
> After
> decades of repression, Tibetans are crying out to the world for
> change. The
> Tibetan spiritual leader, His Holiness The Dalai Lama, has
> called for
> restraint and dialogs: he needs the world's people to support
> him. But
> violence is spreading across Tibet and the world, and the Chinese
> regime is
> right now considering a choice between increasing brutality or
> dialogs, that
> could determine the future of Tibet and China.
>
> We can affect this historic
> choice - China Œdoes¹ care about its
> international reputation. Its economy
> is totally dependent on "Made in
> China" exports that we all buy, and it is
> keen to make the Olympics in
> Beijing this summer a celebration of a new
> China that is a respected world
> power. The Chinese President Hu Jintao needs
> to hear that 'Brand China'
> and
> the Olympics can succeed only if he makes
> the right choice. But it will
> take
> an avalanche of global people power to
> get the government's attention.
>
> "I find hope in the darkest of days, and
> focus in the brightest. I do not
> judge the universe."
> - The Dalai
> Lama
>
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>
> IMMEDIATE ACTION
> `````````````````
>
> Sign a
> petition.
>
> Click below to sign a petition to President Hu calling for
> restraint in
> Tibet and dialogue with the Dalai Lama -- and tell absolutely
> everyone you
> can right away. The petition is organized by Avaaz, and they
> are urgently
> aiming to reach 1 million signatures to deliver directly to
> Chinese
> officials:
>
>
> http://www.avaaz.org/en/tibet_end_the_violence/98.php/?CLICK_TF_TRACK
>
>
> Thank you so much for your help!
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