When China consolidated its grip in Tibet

Photo taken in Gyantse probably at the end of the 1950s

I posting today extracts from the Monthly Report for October 1960 sent by the Political Officer (PO) in Sikkim (Apa Pant) to the Ministry of External Affairs in Delhi.
We can see that the Chinese are fast consolidating their presence on the plateau ("the programme of mass settlement of Chinese in Tibet has started. There are rumours in Lhasa that about 2.1/2 lakhs Chinese civilians are to be brought in and settled in Tibet in the very near future. Even at the moment the Chinese population both at Lhasa and Gyantse has increased considerably").
At the same time, communications to the Indian borders are built on war-footing, while the trade with India is progressively stopped.
Two years later, an armed conflict would erupt between India and China.
We know the outcome.
Nobody had seen the writing on the wall, though in November 1960, the PO wrote: "It has also been reported that roads have been constructed from Chusal to Bhutan border via Nagartse, Nalung, Talung and Ling. All these roads lead towards Tawang in NEFA."
Here is the report:

Gangtok (Sikkim)
November 5, 1960

Infrastructure and Migration
Except for reports that there have been sporadic dislocations of traffic on Lhasa-Chamdo-Sining-Sinkiang [Xining-Xinjiang] highway due to guerilla action of the Khampas and of resistance by isolated pockets on the Nepal-Tibet border region, the resistance of the rebels in the regions round about the big towns of Tibet appears to have been not considerable. Chinese cadres continue to pour into Tibet in increasing numbers.
The programme of mass settlement of Chinese in Tibet has started. There are rumours in Lhasa that about 2.1/2 lakhs [2,50,00] Chinese civilians are to be brought in and settled in Tibet in the very near future. Even at the moment the Chinese population both at Lhasa and Gyantse has increased considerably.
Women cadres have also been brought in.
Lhasa now looks like a Chinese city where the Tibetans form only an insignificant minority. The lamas have been taken out of the monasteries and put to work as labourers and the monasteries are being used as public offices by the Chinese.
The Ramoche Monastery in Lhasa is now the head quarters of the traffic police while the Kundeling Monastery which had been damaged in March 1959 struggle, is after repairs being utilised to house the Chinese cadres. The houses vacated by the Kashmiri Muslims have also been occupied by the Chinese cadres.
The Chinese now appear to be in complete control of the administration.
The members of the former Tibetan nobility are in concentration camps except for those who had cast their lot with the Chinese Communists prior to the March 1959 conflagration, who have been given official positions and can be seen moving about in motor vehicles in Lhasa.
The Tibetans in Lhasa are being made to adopt the Chinese dress – the close collar coat and trousers while the traditional Baku is being discarded.
This sartorial reform is being ushered on grounds that it is more economical on clothing material.
Tibetan children above the age of 12 are being sent in large numbers for education and training to China which is to last for a period of between 3 to 5 years.
Apart from the general education imparted these Tibetan children would be systematically indoctrinated. There are reports that the younger generations of Tibetans appear to be quite enthusiastic over the reforms introduced by the Chinese authorities and opportunities offered to them.

Construction all-around
2. There are reports of all round construction activities being carried on by the Chinese in Tibet which is one more evidence of the consolidation of their hold over Tibet. A steel factory is coming up at Dode – a place near Lhasa. Cement though of an inferior quality is being produced in substantial quantities locally and is being utilised in the construction of important buildings.
At the foot of the Potala a four storey building is going up which is to be used as a Radio Station. This Radio Station will have special services beamed towards NEFA, Bhutan, Nepal etc.
A new building for housing the Chinese Foreign Bureau office is going up at Gyantse. Apart from construction of these administrative buildings residential quarters for Chinese settlers are also being constructed.
Telegraph and Telephone lines have been installed between Tsechen and Gyantse and telephone Telegraph poles are also being installed on the new Gyantse-Lhasa road. It is expected that the telephone and telegraph links between Gyantse and Lhasa will be completed by the end of November 1960.
A large number of new schools have been opened all over Tibet, there are eight schools in Lhasa alone. While Tibetan is taught in the lower classes in these schools, Chinese is taught to the students in the higher classes.

Trade being Stopped
3. Trade which was formerly in the hands of Indian and Nepalese traders and Kashmiri Muslims is gradually being taken over by the Chinese who have by their restrictive policies and heavy taxation driven out the non-Chinese traders.
A large number of Kashmiri Muslims have already left Tibet or are on the way out. Many Nepalese traders are also closing their establishments in Lhasa.
Most of the Indian shops at Phari have already closed down while those at Yatung are also in the process of closing down and within a month or two there will be only just a couple of shops left there.
There are only three Nepali shops left in Gyantse which are also likely to be closed shortly. The position on Gartok side is also no better. Chinese authorities have opened a number of shops in the towns where Chinese goods are sold, and as they do not look favourably upon the Tibetans and Chinese cadres patronising private shops the private shops have very little business left to them. Salt, borax and wool trade has already been taken over by the Chinese authorities.
It is only a question of time before the entire trade becomes a State monopoly to be directed and controlled according to the plan policies of the Communist authorities.

Communication with Mainland and to the Indian Border
4. About 60 vehicles ply each way daily between Lhasa and the Chinese mainland. There are reports of considerable movement of troops on the new Lhasa-Gyantse road. All these troops appear to be fresh arrivals from the mainland.
About 10,000 of them have passed through Gyantse during the course of a few days. It is suspected that this movement is towards Bhutan.
Reports have been received that Chinese have constructed a road connecting Nyiru with Ramto and Ramto with Yatung, this road has also been connected to Khangma.
It has also been reported that roads have been constructed from Chusal to Bhutan border via Nagartse, Nalung, Talung and Ling. All these roads lead towards Tawang in NEFA.
Reports have also been received that the Chinese have also constructed an aerodrome near Talung from where aircraft can very easily cover Bhutan and Kameng Frontier Division of NEFA.
Reports from Bhutan however indicate that there is no immediate concentration of troops on Bhutan border and possibly the Chinese troops have been proceeding towards Guru which is two days journey from Rhamtoi and Rham me and that probably the Chinese are moving towards Toi.

The Situation in Gartok
5. It is reported that there were very few Indian traders in Gartok this year. The Chinese authorities are not issuing certificates to local Tibetans traders to enable them to go for trade to the Indian side of the border thus reducing their contacts with Indians. Although the Indian traders have been allowed this year to visit the interior they have been informed that from next year they would not be allowed to proceed beyond the recognised trade marts.
Even otherwise it has become impossible for traders to function there as the Chinese authorities have banned export of live-stock as beasts of burden to India and as the Tibetans are discouraged from transporting goods across the Indo-Tibetan border and as there is lack of adequate transport facilities on Indian side of the border.
The 3% export and import taxes imposed on the traders is being realised in kind as traders in Gartok side are not in possession of local Chinese currency.
The goods are under-valued for purpose of taxes realised in kind but are over-valued for purposes of imposing the export taxes thus both ways the traders are being penalised and squeezed out. Trade Agent Gartok could not visit Tashigang trade mart this year because Chinese authorities failed to provide transport facilities and it was not possible for him to visit the other trade marts as winter was already advanced and it was late for him to go there.
Thus the Chinese have succeeded in preventing him from discharging his functions effectively. During his stay at Gartok the Trade Agent brought up for discussion with the local Chinese authorities the question of settlement of debts owed by local Tibetans to Indian traders but no solution could be found as the Chinese authorities were not prepared to permit export of live-stock – the only commodity in which the Tibetans could make their payment nor was it possible for him to get restored to the Indian traders their goods which they had stored at Tharchen in the house of the Bhutanese Officer in the previous year, since the Chinese insisted that the Bhutanese officer should come there personally to hand over the goods and this was obviously not possible.

The Kashmiri Muslims
6. Most of the Kashmiri Muslims have already crossed over into India from Tibet. The Chinese, however, have not so far released the nine Kashmiri Muslims whom they still continue to hold in custody and have indicated that they would be dealt with as Chinese nationals.

Miscellaneous
7. The Panchen Lama accompanied by his parents and tutor Nbulchu Rimpoche proceeded to Peking to attend the [his] 11th anniversary celebration.

8. Floods in Gyantse this year have caused some damage to the [Indian Trade] Agency premises.

9. About 25 Russians have been seen in the month of September in Gyantse.

A life completely devoted to Ladakh

Nehru and Kushok Bakula receive the Dalai Lama in December 1956 at Palam Airport

My article A life completely devoted to Ladakh appeared in the Edit Page of The Pioneer


Here is the link...

It is a pity for Ladakh and India that there is none to succeed Kushok Bakula Rinpoche who led the frontier region politically and spiritually for years. Let’s hope that a new Ladakhi leadership emerges

The mountainous ‘Land of the Passes’, as Ladakh is known, is celebrating the centenary of one of most illustrious sons, the 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche. Born on May 27, 1918, at the Royal Palace of Matho near Leh, Bakula was the youngest child of Nangwa Thayas, the King of Matho. His mother was Princess Yeshes Wangmo of the Royal House of Zangla. At a young age, he was recognised by the 13th Dalai Lama as a reincarnation of Bakula Arhat, one of the legendary 16 Arhats who were direct disciples of Gautama Buddha.
In the course of his life, Bakula had a most distinguished political and diplomatic career; ending up serving as India’s Ambassador to Mongolia where he was instrumental in reviving Buddhism. Bakula was also a member of the fourth and fifth Lok Sabha. In the early 1950s, Bakula was part of the Jammu & Kashmir Constituent Assembly representing the Ladakh region. He would often speak in favour of the integration of Jammu & Kashmir. He was proud that Jammu & Kashmir was an integral part of India: “That great country of high ideals and glorious traditions to which the nations of the world look for guidance and which is one of the potent factors for the maintenance of world peace.”
I recently came across an episode of his life which is not well-known: The Rinpoche’s visit to Tibet in 1955/56. It is particularly interesting because India faced a difficult situation after the Chinese takeover of the country, at a time when Delhi was dreaming of an eternal Hindi-Chini brotherhood. Bakula, who was then Deputy Minister for Ladakh Affairs in the Jammu & Kashmir Government, soon understood the political implications of his visit.
On November 16, 1955, Fu, the Councilor in the Chinese Embassy in Delhi walked into the South Block to discuss the Lama’s visit. He immediately asserted that China welcomed Bakula’s visit as ‘a private pilgrim’ “…therefore the Lama did not need to carry a passport or have a visa.” Fu cited the 1954 Sino-Indian agreement: “Pilgrims need not carry such documents,” he said. Fu’s interlocutor, TN Kaul, immediately saw the trick: China was not keen to acknowledge that a ‘Kashmiri’ carried an Indian passport. After a long discussion during which Kaul insisted that the trip was officially sponsored by the Indian and Jammu & Kashmir Governments, Fu had to reluctantly accept to put a stamp on Bakula’s diplomatic passport. It was the first indication of the changed situation in Tibet.
The Rinpoche was accompanied by Durga Das Khosla, an official of the Jammu & Kashmir political department, Nirmal Sinha, a scholar attached to the political officer in Sikkim and four Ladakhis, attending to the Rinpoche. At that time, India was preparing for the celebrations of Buddha Jayanti to be held the following year; it was an opportunity for Bakula to talk to Vice President Radhakrishnan, who was also the Chairman of the celebrations Committee for the Dalai Lama’s participation in the functions.
After an uneventful journey to Gangtok, the party crossed into Tibet at Nathu La on January 8, 1956. Their first encounter with the Chinese was near Chumpithang in the Chumbi Valley. Khosla, who wrote the report of their visit, complained of a ‘very surprising experience’: “When I presented my passport to the Chinese officer in charge, an interpreter who was also a Chinese, enquired from me why was I going to Lhasa. I told him that I was on duty with Kushok Bakula. He was surprised to hear this and at once retorted that Kushok Bakula was a Ladakhi, and that Ladakh being a part of Tibet, an Indian Officer could not be connected with him.” Poor Khosla had to argue at length that Ladakh was a part of Jammu & Kashmir State, to be finally allowed to proceed.
Later the sharp Jammu & Kashmir official noted: “The Chinese Government has secretly circulated a new map of Tibet among their official organisations and the pro-Chinese Institutions — in which they have shown the whole of Aksai Chin (Soda Plains) hump as a part of Tibet. Kashmir’s northern border as illustrated in this map shows some daring incursions into our Karakoram area of northern Ladakh and Baltistan.”
It was three years before the Aksai Chin issue came to Parliament and the then Prime Minister Nehru admitted that a road had been built by China on Indian soil. Khosla’s note would subsequently be dismissed, as Beijing assured Delhi that those were old maps. Bakula stayed for the next three months in Tibet; he had the opportunity to have long talks with the Panchen Lama in Shigatse, an audience with the Dalai Lama in Lhasa and could meet the who’s who in the Tibetan Capital. For the Rinpoche, who had earlier studied at Drepung, Tibet’s largest monastery, it was an opportunity to see Lhasa again after 15 years in vastly different circumstances.
On January 26, the party participated in the Republic Day celebrations at the Indian Consulate General and Bakula hoisted the National Flag: “The Maharaj Kumar of Sikkim, who was present on the occasion, also spoke a few words,” Bakula recalled.
On his way back in Delhi, the Lama was received by the Prime Minister for 90 minutes and he gave Nehru a report of his tour to Tibet: “There are about 20,000 Chinese troops at present working all over the country. They build roads and buildings. A few schools for teaching Chinese and Tibetan languages have been opened at Lhasa and Shigatse. One hospital equipped with an X-Ray plant is said to have been opened at Lhasa. The Chinese at present do not interfere with the normal activities of the monasteries,” he said.
According to the Ladakhi Lama, the Chinese were going around “declaring that they will not be interested with the religious affairs of the Tibetans for times to come.” But Bakula commented: “Yet the deep-seated suspicion of the Tibetans — both lamas and laymen — against the bonafides of the Chinese people is all common and contiguous.” The Chinese did not keep their words and Delhi did not pay heed to Bakula’s warnings.
It is a pity for Ladakh and for India, that today there is no one of Bakula’s vision and capacities to politically and spiritually lead the frontier region. Even though the Dalai Lama visits Ladakh every year, it is difficult for him to defend the rights of the Ladakhis. Let us hope that a new Ladakhi leader emerges soon.

No guest could remain in the house if the host did not want him to be there...

I am posting some extracts of the 'Monthly Report for the month of August 1955' prepared by Apa Pant, the Political Officer in Sikkim, Gangtok.
It corresponds to the time the Dalai Lama returned to Lhasa after months spent in China and several meetings with Mao and the Chinese Communist leaders.
The Dalai Lama said that "no guest could remain in the house if the host did not want him to be there", with the reference to the Chinese presence in Tibet.
The Dalai Lama urged the Tibetans "to work hard to make Tibet an independent progressive, peaceful, spiritual country".
All this seems very far today.


The Residency, Gangtok.
Sikkim.
September 14, 1955.

During the absence of the Dalai Lama in China the people of Tibet were in a more or less bewildered state regarding the recent political and economic developments in Tibet and were unable to make up their minds as to whether they should cooperate or disassociate themselves with these changes.
After the return of the Dalai Lama over 50,000 people came from all parts of Tibet with the intent of welcoming the Dalai Lama and offering prayers for his safe return but also desiring to present him with a petition expressing their reactions to the new economic administrative and political changes envisaged.
After many deliberations between the monk and the lay officials and the representatives of the peoples’ party, the Mimang, it was decided to request the Dalai Lama to give some sermons in which he would indicate his own advice to the people of Tibet regarding these changes.
The Dalai Lama has now given a few sermons and the general impression created in Tibet seems to be of great happiness and of even elation because of his forthright advice. Some had feared that the Dalai Lama would perhaps be won over by the Chinese and would not take any strong action.
During his sermons the Dalai Lama spoke very harshly and plainly about “past mistakes” of the Tibetan people. He also spoke openly about the corruption, nepotism, idleness and the attraction of the Tibetan officials to pursuits of leisure, luxury and near enjoyments. He urged in these sermons upon the people of Tibet to take united action for the advancement of the country and asked them to work hard to make Tibet “an independent progressive, peaceful, spiritual country”. It is reported that the Dalai Lama also in categorical terms stated that the Chinese have come to Tibet only to help the Tibetans and that they would “return back to their country” after the Tibetans were fully instructed in the arts of running a modern government. He said “no guest could remain in the house if the host did not want him to be there”.
It seems that these references to the Chinese leaving Tibet and the references to “independence of Tibet” have satisfied the people of Tibet that the Dalai Lama stands for free and progressive Tibet. The Dalai Lama is also reported to have stated that the Tibetans should not take to Chinese dress, customs or food and that they should not leave their own way of life. It remains to be seen how the scheme of the Preparatory Committee drafted in China would now be put into effect or as to whether some new machinery would be created to bring about change and progress in Tibet.
It is apparent that the Chinese are becoming more and more aware of this growing feeling for “independence and self-help” amongst the Tibetans and that they would try to accommodate themselves with this new spirit.
Simultaneously with this rising tide of nationalism the Chinese are bringing in many new developments into Tibet. Development of roads, hospitals, schools in proceeding apace. The Chinese army is also participating in various schemes of agricultural and other developments. Troops in the Chumbi valley, in Tsang and other areas, have been instructed to actively help the people in their farm work and it has been reported that in Yatung a few of the army personnel are deputed to serve water to the bazaar people!!
All these acts of cooperation and kindness are bound to have some effect upon the Tibetan mind.

Tibet Political & General
…4. Of late the number of patients taking advantage of the Indian Consulate Hospital at Lhasa is reported to be increasing. Mostly monks and Tibetan soldiers who are said to be “fanatically loyal” to the Dalai Lama seek the medical aid. Such “fanatically loyal” people who visit our Consulate General call our officials their “Dekylingka” people, i.e., “our office”.

5. Some senior Tibetan members of the Youth League are reported to have given out after a meeting of this organisation held in the Yuthok house that Tibetan should work hard to become capable of shouldering the responsibility of the administration of their country. At the same meeting the Chinese are reported to have said that they had withdrawn Chinese personnel from Inner Mongolia as the people of that country were now capable of running their own administration in an efficient way. And that it was the policy of the Government of the Chinese People’s Republic to withdraw all Chinese personnel from Tibet after imparting the necessary training etc., to the Tibetans themselves in these fields.

6. Chinese are said to be concentrating mainly on the Shugu La pass portion of the Shigatse – Lhasa road as this portion is said to be the most difficult portion of the entire project. Nearly 4,000 Chinese labour and personnel of the Peoples Liberation Army are said to be working on this portion. Due to the very high altitude of this pass, about 17,000 ft., a good number of Chinese are reported to have fallen ill. Although the progress is very very slow the Tibetans generally believe that once this portion is completed the remaining portion of the road would be comparatively much easier.

7. In his two day long sermon which were attended by nearly 60,000 people including monk and lay Tibetan officials, the Dalai Lama is reported to have admonished officials and monks for their lethargy and corruption. He held them responsible for bringing Tibet to the “present state of affairs”. He called on them to wake up and work in a united manner and give up all their vices. He is reported to have declared that if the Tibetan worked hard they would be able to improve their country by their own efforts. In that case the help of the Chinese people will not be necessary.

7. In the huge gathering which the Dalai Lama addressed on his return from Peking he asked the people to welcome the formation of “Rang Kyong Sishang”, i.e., the New Autonomous Status, saying that it would be beneficial to Tibet. The audience which had assembled there to welcome him home kept quiet perhaps signifying their disapproval to the proposed administrative changes.

8. [word missing] Lekhung (Deptt. of Improvement of Tibetan Affairs) was set up last year by the Chinese with representatives from all ranks of Tibetan officials and the three great monasteries. With the tactful support of the Tibetan Government the monasteries have now become very powerful in the Lekhung. There are even rumours that this has become more powerful than the Kashag itself and the Kashag refers to this body many a complicated problem like matters on which there is a difference of opinion between the Kashag and the Chinese and owing to the predominant influence of the monasteries the decision is generally against the Chinese.

9. About ten thousand arms of different kinds and large quantities of ammunition belonging to the Tibetan Govt., which has been lying in the Potala compound have now been removed to a strong room inside Potala in order to keep them safe from the Chinese.

10. The Dalai Lama is said to have very much liked the film on the Indian Republic Day celebrations in 1954 and our Prime Minister’s visit to China last year. These films were recently loaned out by our Consulate at the request of the Dalai Lama conveyed through his brother-in-law Kusung Depon Phuntso Tashi.

11. All the differences between the Tibetan Government and the Tashi Lhumpo administration are said to have been amicably settled while they were in China. Sewang Ngapho Shape acting on behalf of the Tibetan Government stood against the demand put forward by the Panchen Lama of an independent province of Tsang. It is reported that both Mao Tse-Tung [Zedong] and Chu-The [Marshal Zhu De] were also not in favour of Tsang becoming a separate independent province. This incident has increased the prestige of Ngapho Shape.

…13. Chinese are reported to have presented the Dalai Lama with six cars built on the jeep model in Russia. These cars are garaged in Norbu Lingka. The drivers for these cars are reported to be Chinese and paid by Chinese Government.
14. 26 boys and girls from Chumbi valley and 26 from Shigatse on their way for schooling to Chengtu [Chengdu, Sichuan] in China halted for a few days in Lhasa where they were put up in houses belonging to Tibetans. These boys and girls had to do their own cooking. These children although at present still wearing their own Tibetan dresses will have to discard these after Chamdo and wear the Chinese school uniforms. It is reported that while schooling at Chengtu they would be provided with free board and lodging and 10 silver dollars as pocket money per month.

…18. The general mass of people in Tibet are reported to be very skeptical about the results of the new administrative reforms. They feel that the members of the Preparatory Committee should either be nominated by the Dalai Lama or elected instead of its present proposed composition of 75% nominated by the Chinese and the rest being representatives of various religious institutions. These representatives will not be able to make their voice felt as they would always in a very small minority.

19. It is said that after the return from China most servants of Tibetan officials who had accompanied them to China have a completely different outlook. They no longer believe in utter submissiveness to their masters. The reaction of their masters (Tibetan officials) is reported to be that they just “ignore” this altitude of their servants.

21. Seven packages said to be containing ammunition which were being transported from India to Bhutan were seized by the Chinese at Tinchengang, a village four miles from Yatung in the Lower Chumbi valley. There were 20 packages in all but 18 packages had been taken through earlier. The Bhutanese in charge of the loads when questioned about the contents of the packages said that they contained horse shoes. Not being satisfied with the answer the Chinese broke open one of the cases and found that they contained .12 cartridges. It is learnt that the Chinese not knowing about the effectiveness of these cartridges enquire of the village leading men whether these could kill human beings. On being told that these were generally used for killing birds etc., and not human beings the packages were allowed to pass through by the Chinese. The Bhutanese in charge of these loads however were warned that such goods were not allowed to pass through Tibet. The Bhutanese Government have told us that this was a mistake on part of one of their servants has been punished and that it will not occur again.

Tibetan Democracy: random thoughts

Democracy: something one may not see in Tibet soon

Some thoughts about the recent Tibetan elections

Elections for the post of Sikyong (Prime Minister of the CTA) as well for Assembly of Tibetan People’s Deputies were recently held.
As someone who has been following ‘Tibetan affairs’ for the last 45 years, I wish put down in writing some my thoughts on the recent election of the Sikyong, which has attracted a lot of ink in the media (and keyboarding on the Net).
Let us start by a small telling observation: the social networks have played a role like never before in the election process. This can have negative or positive features, but, overall, it should be seen as a sign of growing awareness and active involvement of the Tibetan society in their leader’s election. As Tibet-in-exile is a free society, this should be encouraged, with self-restraint, of course.
Looking back, since 1959, His Holiness the Dalai Lama (HHDL) can claim, in my opinion, three great achievements in the political field:

• HHDL reunited the different parts of Tibet (let us not forget that in October 1950, when the Communist troops entered ‘Tibet’, they crossed the Upper Yangtze (Drichu). It means that, territories east of the Drichu were not de facto under the control of Lhasa). Today, the map of Tibet with the 3 provinces of U-Tsang, Kham and Amdo is accepted by all Tibetans; it was not the case in the 1950s. It is a historic achievement.
• HHDL reunited the different schools of Buddhism. Historically, Tibet has witnessed a lot of conflicts between the different religious schools. HHDL has given a voice to all the schools (including the Bon faith). This is an important progress.
• In March 2011, HHDL offered full democracy to the People of Tibet. This is an earth-shaking change for the Tibetan nation.

The recent elections are the result of this gift from HHDL.

Democracy as a system
Democracy cannot be said to be a perfect system, but it has good features as well as not so good ones. It is however far superior to the one-party system prevalent in Modern China.
Beijing is often pointing to the failures of the Western democracies, but its own system is today on the brink of collapsing; as a result, more and more repressions have to be applied to keep it going.
Democracy is sometimes chaotic (we can see this every day in India), but it ultimately brings a sort of stability in the society and the possibility for what Communist China calls ‘the masses’, to express themselves and change their leaders when they are unhappy or deceived. In other words, the voice of the ‘common men and women’ can be heard.
The system of rule by reincarnations was a poor system of governance:

• It left a gap of 20 odd years between two reincarnations/political leaders
• It was subject to manipulation by external forces (eg: the cases of the 10th and 11th Panchen Lama)
• In the interregnum, Tibet has often had mediocre regents, unable to give a lead to the nation (during the interregnum of the 14th Dalai Lama, the power struggle between 2 regents was so bad that it nearly lead Tibet to a civil war).
• Just take the 19th century, the Manchus fully used the fact that the 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th Dalai Lamas passed away too early to rule, to ‘return’ to Tibet.

A modern nation can't afford such an antiquated system.
Therefore ‘democracy’, though imperfect, is the best system until the human society reaches the level of a Gnostic or Spiritual Society, where the ‘wisest’ will automatically come to the fore to organize the public life. It may take some time.

Present Sikyong Elections

• Tibet had the good luck to have a remarkable man elected as the first Kalon Tripa. It was Tibet’s good karma.
• It is important to keep in mind that this does not mean that the ‘best man’ is automatically and always taking the right decision for his people (remember the Greek Gods who often led their people to their doom).
• On the other hand, even if an elected leader is not perfect, it does not mean that the system is not good and in this particular case, that Tibet should not continue with this system of governance.
• Usually, in other societies (for example in India), anti-incumbency plays an important role to bring fresh blood into the system.
• Things are different in the Tibetan society where there is an immense respect for the established hierarchy. In fact, many believe that the Dalai Lama had to ‘force democracy’ down reluctant Tibetan throats; everybody was quite happy to depend on their wise leader to guide and tell them what to do with their lives; ultimately, it does not empower the ‘people’.
• It is true that even in exile, a deep veneration for the leader/lamas has remained ingrained in the Tibetan psyche. It should not stop people to have an independent thinking of their own.
• At the beginning of the campaign of this election, it is interesting to note that there was no anti-incumbency vote; this partially explains Lobsang Sangay’s high score in the first round.
• During the campaign for the second round, it is regrettable that the debate did not reach the expected level; however, on the positive side, it has been one of the few opportunities for the Tibetan society to debate the functioning of its administration and point a finger at what was considered wrong or unacceptable.
• At the same time, the election process should not be an excuse for ‘regionalism’ to return as a plague for the Tibetan nation. Regionalism apparently played an important role in the recent election. There is nothing wrong in regional representation, but regional favoritism should be avoided at all cost by the new leadership. It has not always been the case. I believe HHDL said this to the 2 candidates in no uncertain terms.
• To an outsider, the CTA seems to be a very opaque organization. Instead of openly debating serious (and sometimes negative) issues facing the society in general, these problems are often kept under wraps (I remember the case of a Tibetan who had raped a girl in a Tibetan settlement; the first ‘official’ reaction was to hush up the incident, because “it is not good for the cause”. But a rape is a rape, whether committed by a French, a Chinese or a Tibetan and it should be denounced with full vigour). One could give many other such cases.
• It is true that some of the arguments/points mentioned during the campaign should have come out earlier during the term of the Sikyong (particularly the issues raised by Kasur Dicki Chhoyang). However, apart from the debate at the Assembly, there are very few opportunities for the ‘common man’ to express himself or know what is happening behind the opaque curtains of Gangkyi.
• In this context, it is interesting to note that the incumbent Sikyong did not fare well in Gangkyi area. There is obviously a trust issue which needs to be looked at and ironed out.
• In the future the press should take a more active role and openly speak of the thorny political issues facing the society. For example, the problem of ‘health services’ recently brought up by HHDL should have been raised long ago by a vibrant media.
• Old Tibet had ‘street songs’ making fun or criticizing the leaders/lamas, what is replacing this today?
• Personally, I feel that it is wrong for the gods or the ‘protectors’ to interfere in the ‘common man’s elections. Without judging the former’s competence and knowledge of geopolitics (or just in politics), the time has come for ‘common men’ to think for themselves; keeping in mind that in some cases they may take the wrong decisions, the ‘masses’ should be empowered (even if that means having different perspectives than HHDL). It is what China will never be able to do; the present regime can built beautiful modern airports, safe highways or comfortable five-star hotels, but people are not allowed to think on their own.
• More important than to take the right or wrong decisions, it is essential to learn from past errors and avoid the same mistakes in the future.
• The Buddha taught his disciples: 'As the wise test gold by burning, cutting and rubbing it on a piece of touchstone, so are you to accept my words only after examining them and not merely out of regard for me."
• Democracy likewise should be burnt, cut, rubbed and tested again and again and ultimately perfected. External interference cannot help much the empowerment of the Tibetan society.

It may be possible to avoid the ‘boxing’ encounters during the campaign; it is happening in most democracies: just look at the present US Presidential Elections campaign. It is part of the ‘imperfection’ of the system, simply because our societies (and the human composing them) are imperfect.
One has to make with it, and just get the best of it.

How to make the Tibetan Administration more transparent?

• The Tibetans should have a vibrant, independent and fearless press (including investigative journalism). For this, the Tibetan mindset has to change; criticism should be taken as an occasion to ‘change’. The society does need to wait to receive ‘critics’ from HHDL or other religious leaders; the Tibetan should become more ‘positively’ critical.
• Take the example of the recently released ‘Panama Papers’, it is ‘positive’ criticism, which will hopefully help the world to be more just.
• Implement an RTI Act for the CTA. It would go a long way to better understand the opaque functioning of the CTA. Once again, cases such as the one mentioned by HHDL for the health facilities in the Tibetan settlements could have been raised much earlier and taken care of.
• Women should play a more important role in the Sikyong elections (why not have 50% female Kalons?). In a modern society, women are often able to give a lead that a man is unable to provide.

Tasks in front of the new Sikyong

• Hopefully the new Sikyong will be able to fit the description given by Kasur Dicki Chhoyang at the time of her resignation. The Kasur also raised the issue of regionalism vs unity of Tibet; this should be taken seriously.
• The new Sikyiong’s choice for the next Kalons should be dictated only by what is the best for the Tibetans in exile and the Tibetans inside Tibet and not by personal acquaintances or personal preferences.
• The new Kalons should be role models for the Tibetans inside Tibet (and the Chinese government).
• The new Sikyong should establish a close connection and understanding with the Government of India at all levels, in all domains.
• He should be in touch with what is happening in Tibet and China and provide an alternative to the Chinese schemes or at least comment on it (for example when the Chinese provide a database of the ‘Living Buddhas’ or when the Chinese invade Tibet bringing tens of millions of tourists on the plateau).
• Why not have a Department headed by a Kalon for ‘Inside Tibet’ Affairs?
• And if the Chinese do something good, why not say it!
• Since several years, the Chinese have always been a few steps in advance on Dharamsala in terms of information/propaganda. It is sad.
• The new Sikyong should take more responsibilities; since HHDL has delegated his political power, the new elected leader should act as a leader on his own (always keeping the general good in mind).
• Human resources should not vanish under the US/European sky, but remain in India and work for the general good of the Tibetan community.
• The CTA needs to have a think-tank which ‘thinks’ of solutions for the future of the Tibetan nation
• The CTA also needs a good professional spokesperson who will be able to articulate the policies of the CTA (after these policies are decided); particularly the policies vis-à-vis China. He should also be able to tackle difficult questions on the life of the society in exile.

These are some of my thoughts.
Tibetan democracy is clearly going through a period of apprenticeship; overall it is doing fairly well.
The most important task is to empower the ‘common man/woman’.

India Offering Tea to the Liberation Army

Trying to grow rice in Tibet

I am posting today a chapter of my book, Born in Sin - the Panchsheel Agreement.
This is one of the most extraordinary episodes of the occupation of the Roof of the World by the People's Liberation Army: India had to feed the Chinese troops stationed in Tibet.
Before the Qinghai-Tibet and the Sichuan-Tibet highway were completed in December 1954, most of the food supplies had to come from India.
I mentioned this earlier on this blog
Until I came across the telegram reproduced below, I had not realized that the Chinese wanted also tea to be supplied from India.
The telegram was sent by the Indian Embassy in Beijing on December 25, 1952; it was addressed to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in New Delhi.
It refers to a telegram sent two days earlier by the MEA to the Indian Ministry of Food and Agriculture in Delhi.

The Chinese Vice-Minister tells the Indian Ambassador in China (Raghavan) that because "the economic condition has now improved [after the arrival of the PLA], people want more tea"; the truth was that the tea was for the Chinese troops occupying Lhasa and other places in Tibet.

Indian tea?

December 25, 1952
Top Secret Telegram from the Indian Embassy in Beijing
Addressed to the Ministry if External Affairs (Foreign) in New Delhi.

Reference our telegram No. 434 dated December 23 to Ministry of Food and Agriculture (Food).
Vice Minister of Trade during talks on December 22 for further supply of food grains to India expressed deep concern over slow rate of transportation of Chinese rice and mentioned that only 1000 tons been transported till end of November. He requested speeding up transportation of remaining 2500 tons and suggested completing it by April 1953 positively.
We explained difficulty of transport bottleneck but said would report matter to you. On December 23 on Ambassador’s instructions Vice Minister was informally asked to explain his complaint and whether there was insinuation of intentional neglect or delay on our part. It was impressed on him that grain transport to Tibet was undertaken as gesture of friendship and NOT matter of obligation. Vice Minister was apologetic and mentioned that he wanted our help because himself being taken to task in the party for delay in transport.
We were again asked about transportation of tea into Tibet.
We mentioned figures given in your telegram No. 25027 November 8 and explained difficulty of transport bottleneck.
Vice Minister quoted from International Tea Commission’s statistics showing export of Chinese tea to India for Tibet as follows:

Year    Short tons

1932    1270
1933    1580
1935    1500
1943 & 44    figures NOT known
1945    75
1946    1570
1947    220
1948    72

Economic condition had now improved and people want more tea.
He therefore requested us to intimate early definite quantity possible. We promised to refer to you again expressing doubt about possibility of carrying any appreciable quantity in view of bottleneck and our own requirement in area. In view of allegation of delay even in grain transport Ambassador feels that we shall continue stress on our inability till present bottleneck eased; however may consider in view of figures supplied by Chinese whether we can allow some reasonable quantity later. If Chinese make gesture by agreeing supply us appreciable quantity of rice for 1953, we may reciprocate then by agreeing to transport some tea even at considerable difficulty. In such eventuality please let us know quantity we can agree to.


Excerpts from Born in Sin - The Panchsheel Agreement

Feeding the Liberation Army
The invasion of Tibet and the signing of the ‘17-Point Agreement’ were the two first steps taken by Mao to consolidate the Empire and protect China’s newly acquired borders.
As mentioned earlier, in September 1951, several thousands Communist troops entered Lhasa. During the next months, they were followed by 20,000 PLA soldiers who started occupying strategic points on the Tibetan Plateau. For the first time, troops were transported by motor-vehicles and some were even air-lifted to reach their destinations.
The planned strategy of the Chinese was clear: since the matter had been ‘legalized’ and as there had been no strong objection from the Government of India, the supremacy of the PLA had to be established on the ground and Tibet’s occupation stabilized. With the construction of motorable access roads to China’s new ‘borders’, more military personnel moved into Tibet. The influx of fresh troops brought with it the first real test for the implementation of the 17-Point Agreement and the peaceful co-existence between the Chinese occupants and the Lhasa government. The test was the availability of food. It soon resulted in an unprecedented breakdown of the Tibetan economy. How could the Tibetan (and the Chinese) Government deal with the problem?
This brought one of strangest upshots of Tibet’s ‘liberation’ and the nascent friendship between India and China. Delhi began supplying rice to the Chinese troops stationed in Tibet!  There could have been no doubt that the rice was intended to help sustain the Chinese Liberation Army troops. Before the arrival of the Chinese army on the Roof of the World in the early 50’s, very few Tibetans had ever eaten rice, roast barley (known as tsampa), being their staple food for centuries.
During the first months on the Roof of the World, the Chinese army commanders acted like Younghusband had done a few decades earlier. They paid for everything they requisitioned and even drafted very strict rules for their men: “You must obey orders. You cannot take even one needle from the masses, you must turn over to the government things acquired from the enemy.” The young Chinese soldiers had “The Eight Things to Keep in Mind” which included advice such as: “You must speak gently, you must buy and sell honestly, you must return the things you borrow, you must not tease or bother females, you may not abuse prisoners of war.”
But this did not solve the food problem. For centuries Tibet had practiced sustainable development and been self-sufficient in food grain. Starvation was unheard of. But the new requisitions of grain created a breakdown in the Tibetan economy which became difficult for the Tibetan (and the Chinese) Government to deal with.
Lukhangwa, the courageous Tibetan Prime Minister attempted to raise the matter with the Chinese authorities several times; he argued that it was unfair to put such a burden on the Tibetan poor and that it was not necessary to station so many troops around Lhasa. After some time, the Chinese General Chang became so furious that he requested the Dalai Lama to immediately remove Lukhangwa from Office since he "was obstructing their welfare program”.
Chang told the Dalai Lama that the Tibetans had signed an agreement which mentioned that "Chinese forces should be stationed in Tibet”. He added that the Tibetan Government was “therefore obliged to provide them [the Chinese] with accommodation and supplies”. {The Chinese]... had only come to help Tibet ... to protect her against imperialist domination and that they would go back to China…. when you can stand on your feet, we will not stay here even if you ask us to.”
The Dalai Lama had no alternative but to dismiss Lukhangwa. He wrote in his autobiography:
… to oppose and anger the Chinese authorities could only lead us further along the vicious circle of repression and popular resentment...Our only hope was to persuade the Chinese peaceably to fulfil the promises they had made in their agreement. Non-violence was the only course which might win us back a degree of freedom in the end, perhaps after years of patience. That meant co-operation whenever it was possible and passive resistance whenever it was not.
The pressure to sack Lukhangwa was the first breach of the Agreement, which stipulated that the Chinese would maintain the existing political system, including the status and powers of the Dalai Lama. Removing the Prime Minister as an intermediary between the Dalai Lama and the Cabinet resulted in the young Dalai Lama having to deal directly with the Cabinet and the Chinese.
Subsequently, China had to request food from India. At that time, India had very serious problems of food grain supply and Nehru’s government had no alternative but to import food grain. China readily agreed to supply grain to India, but in return, Beijing wanted rice to be supplied to the Liberation Army in Tibet.
On April 5, 1952, Panikkar, the Indian Ambassador to China, called on Zhou Enlai, the Chinese Prime Minister, who clearly told him that in his view “for many years Tibet would have to depend on India for several daily necessities and desired facilities for transportation of food supplies to Tibet via Calcutta”.
It was ironic that India immediately succumbed to the argument. The government should have known (they probably did know) that Tibet had always been self-sustained in food and the extra demand was only for the Chinese troops. But it was not hard to persuade the Indian Ambassador.
Zhou Enlai went a step further: he wanted to know “India’s attitude to the construction of a road connecting India with Lhasa”. The clever Chinese Prime Minister added that China had “agreed to continued supply of foodgrains to India for the whole year in exchange for certain commodities”.
The ‘commodities’ were the supply of food to the Chinese soldiers in Tibet.
On 22 March, 1952, a controversy erupted: at a meeting of the Food Ministers, Roche Victoria, the Food Minister of Madras State declared that he had heard that China had refused to send any more food grain to India.
One month later, Dr. K.M. Munshi, the Union Food Minister explained that the government had only said that unlike the previous year, when the Chinese had helped India by sending food grains, this year they might not be able to send any rice due to their own difficult food position. Here again, the question of grain supply seems to have been linked to the transit of food to Tibet (through Natu-la Pass in Sikkim).
A few days later, Nehru replied in detail to Panikkar’s telegram:
Rice supplies. Government of India are grateful to the Chinese Government for offer of 100,000 tons of rice. Food Ministry is communicating with you on this subject directly. This question should be kept entirely separate from provision of transit facilities to Tibet through India.
The Indian Prime Minister was clearer than his ambassador, and immediately saw the difficulties. But did he realize that the grain needed by China was for the troops who were building strategic roads to the Indian border?
Nehru also knew that logistically it was not an easy proposition to transport food grains or any other merchandise from India through the Sikkim road to Lhasa and then eventually to China. Nehru told his ambassador:
We should distinguish between continuance of old border trade between India and Tibet and new proposals of trade in bulk between China and Tibet passing through India. Latter raises important problems of transit which have to be considered by several Ministries. Burden on our transport system is already heavy and we have to consider carefully any additional burden. It must be remembered also that direct route from Calcutta to Darjeeling now passes through Pakistan territory [now Bangladesh], and this leads to political complications and is causing us continuous trouble. Any other route is a roundabout one. Indeed it has only recently become feasible by opening of narrow Assam railway link which is not enough even for our present requirements.
In the same telegram, the political implications were pointed out. In fact, when the deal was finally concluded, a senior Chinese officer had to be posted in Gangtok to oversee the trans-shipment through the Chumbi valley. In view of the strategic importance of the place , it was certainly an added advantage for Chinese intelligence. With one stone, Beijing killed many birds: they were feeding their troops which were building roads leading to India; they were releasing the pressure on the Tibetan population which was becoming restive due to the shortage of commodities; and at the same time they could post an intelligence officer to keep an eye on the gateway of Tibet. Nehru quite rightly wrote:
… Apart from this it has certain political implications. It would probably involve Chinese agencies operating transit and other arrangements at several points inside India. It means modifying existing patterns of trade and grant of transit facilities on a large and continuous scale. We are prepared to examine this matter but this would be a concession which we should retain as a bargaining counter for negotiations for an overall settlement between China and us. It is not advantageous to us to accept such proposals piecemeal and yet have no general settlement.
Here again, as in the case of the downgrading of the Lhasa Mission to a Consulate General, Nehru spoke about a bargaining counter. But eventually everything would be given away without a counterpart during the negotiations for the Panchsheel Agreement in 1953-54.
But Nehru was not altogether unaware of the situation; he clearly knew the destination of the rice bags. In his letter, he clearly said that the food supplies are “presumably meant for Chinese army in Tibet” and he even concluded: “We are not particularly anxious to facilitate movement and retention of large numbers of Chinese troops in Tibet.”
Panikkar informed Nehru that it had been made clear to the Chinese that India could guarantee transit of only a limited quantity of food grains, though he promised that the Indian government would try its best to transport five hundred tons per month. This was of course subject to weather conditions and availability of mules from Tibet. The transportation would be done at the Chinese government’s risk.
Panikkar suggested that India might offer to transport 3,500 tons of rice by the end of 1952. On May 24, Nehru replied:
We see little prospect, however, of achieving this, since first shipment is not likely to reach India before some time next month and bad weather may interrupt transit for a month on land journey. Two thousand five hundred tons is, therefore, the probable attainable target and it might be worthwhile explaining this to the Chinese so as to avoid future misunderstanding.
Further, Nehru could see the advantages of India’s position and was keen to preserve them: “Any permanent or semi-permanent arrangements can be discussed only as a part of general settlement of our interests in Tibet. (These interests, as you know, are not confined to trade relations but involve political interests such as affirmation of the Frontier).
The Chinese were becoming greedier, they now wanted the rice to be delivered at Phari  instead of Yatung. John Lall, a former Dewan of Sikkim, was posted in Gangtok when the supply of rice was in transit; he could witness the long caravan of mules leaving in the direction of Nathu-la. In his book on Aksai Chin, he recalled:
But suddenly all was sweetness and light. The reason became apparent when a request was made for shipment of Chinese rice through India and Sikkim to their troops in Tibet. This could, and indeed should, have been made the occasion for a settlement of the major problems with China as a prelude to the altogether unprecedented help requested from the Government of India. It simply did not occur to anyone in Delhi, and which caution as I advised was brushed aside. Released from anxiety on accounts of supplies, the Chinese and local Tibetan labour were able to press ahead with the vitally important task of creating a network of communications to defend frontiers of China with India.
Soon the matter became public. Nehru had to explain how India could supply rice to the Chinese occupying Tibet. During a press conference in New Delhi, he was asked: “Is it a fact that you allowed rice to be sent to Tibet?”
Nehru explained his policy.
We did allow a small quantity of rice, relatively small quantity, as an exceptional case… It is not an easy matter, but because of their great need, we have allowed some quantity of rice to go through. And, as you know, China sent us one lakh tons of rice.  That is not a very great figure, but it merely was a generous gesture of the Chinese Government especially as this year has been a difficult year for them from the point of view of food. It was not easy for them to spare even this for us, nevertheless they did it.
When asked if the arrangement was on an ad hoc basis, he answered “completely”.
But it would not be a one-time affair: negotiations continued for the supply of more rice during the following years. On 12 April 1953, during a meeting with N. Raghavan, the new Indian Ambassador to China, Zhou Enlai said that he was “anxious for friendly relations with India and had offered help in transport  of various articles to Tibet via India”.
On April 19, Nehru cabled his Ambassador that India was prepared to allow the 1,000 tons of Chinese rice already in India to be sent to Tibet. He added that “it must not be taken for granted that this is a normal procedure. This transport business gives us a lot of trouble. ”

India needs pragmatic leaders not ‘visionaries’

My article India needs pragmatic leaders not ‘visionaries’ appeared in Niti Central yesterday. 

Here is the link...

A Prime Ministerial ‘candidate’ and his family have, recently, been telling the media that the ongoing elections are a choice between 2 visions of India. The history of India’s foreign affairs shows something different. Since independence, India had two choices, the so-called visionaries and the pragmatic leaders like Sardar Patel, who cared for India’s interests on the ground.
I recently came across a bunch of old ‘personal’ letters written by some Indian officers posted on the frontiers in the early 1950s. These missives are telling. In December 1950, a few weeks after the PLA entered Tibet, Harishwar Dayal, a senior ICS officer and distinguished diplomat, then posted in Gangtok as Political Officer responsible for Tibet, Sikkim and Bhutan, while discussing the Chinese advance towards the McMahon Line with his Indian Trade Agent (ITA) in Gyantse, informed the latter of Sardar Patel’s death, “It is a heavy blow. He was the one person in this Government who had strong realistic view of things, including on foreign relations. Now, we are left at the mercy of the visionaries.”
This remark came back to my mind a few days back, when I read in The Republica, a Nepali newspaper: “China has turned down India’s proposal to establish its Consulate General Office in Lhasa of Tibet.” The proposal was presented by Sujatha Singh, the Indian Foreign Secretary during the 6th India-China strategic dialogue held in Beijing.
According to The Republica, after meeting her Chinese counterpart, Deputy Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin, Singh told the reporters, “India will now plan a decisive talk with China in this regard.” It probably signifies that the outgoing Government is ready to drop the idea of reopening the Lhasa Consulate (Nepal, today, is the only country to have a Consulate General Office in Lhasa).
Why? Simply because the idea of having an Indian Consulate General irritates the Chinese!
Otherwise, the bilateral situation is rosy. Mister Liu affirmed that China is ready to work with India to advance the partnership to a new level, while Singh explained “all political parties in India share a common ground on advancing India-China strategic cooperative partnership.”
Xinhua added: “He [Sujatha Singh!!!] reiterated the Indian Government’s view of attaching high priority to its relations with China. He [sic] said that the Indian Government is working to consolidate the strategic cooperative partnership that is oriented to peace and prosperity.”
It appears that Delhi is now backing down on its earlier demand of re-opening the Lhasa Consulate and would be satisfied with another Consulate General in Chengdu (Sichuan) or Kunming (Yunnan province) instead of Lhasa. This remains to be confirmed.
While Beijing is extremely keen to open an office in Chennai, Delhi thought that it made sense to re-open the old mission in Tibet (today, India has two Consulate General Offices in Shanghai and Guangzou).

The history of the Consulate in Lhasa is truly the story of blind ‘visionaries’. India had a full-fledged Mission in Tibet till the end of 1952. Apart from the Mission in Lhasa, there were three Trade Agencies managed by ITAs in Gyantse and Yatung (in Chumbi Valley, near the Sikkim border) and a seasonal one in Gartok (Western Tibet). Till 1954, the ITAs in Gyantse and Yatung were entitled to a military escort. The Post and Telegraph Service, a chain of rest-houses and the principality of Minsar (near Mt Kailash) were also under the Indian Government’s control. Over the years, all this was ‘offered’ to the Chinese, without any compensation or even an attempt to obtain a fair settlement on the border issue.
Soon after Tibet’s invasion, the Indian Government found it increasingly difficult to retain these facilities on the ground. Visitors, traders and officials from India began to be unnecessarily and regularly harassed or put to hardship. The visionary Prime Minister was ideologically not comfortable with what he called ‘imperialist sequels’, though he knew that these ‘privileges’ were useful for trade, as was the McMahon Line which was a proper delineated agreed border between India and Tibet.
In summer of 1951, KM Panikkar, the Indian Ambassador to China, another great ‘visionary’, came to Delhi for consultations. By that time, he was already fully in love with the Communist regime in Beijing. Jawahar Lal Nehru, too, was convinced that the future of India lay with the East, “For the first time, China possesses a strong Central Government whose decrees run even to Sinkiang and Tibet. Our own relations with China are definitively friendly.”
A few months later, when questioned again on the Indian Mission in Lhasa, Nehru vaguely answered that it was dealing “with certain trade and cultural matters more or less [sic!]”. He also declared that he was not aware of “any infiltration of Chinese troops in India.”
Reports had already begun about Chinese incursions through the UP-Tibet border (today’s Uttarakhand) as well as through the Ladakh-Tibet border. The first Chinese surveys for the Sinkiang-Tibet highway cutting through the Aksai Chin occurred at that time. Though, Nehru was informed by LS Jangpangi, the ITA in Gartok, he chose to ignore it.
In June 1952, Nehru became more prudent; he explained the ‘changed circumstances’: Tibet was no longer an independent country, therefore, it was better to downgrade the diplomatic relations between Tibet and India. The Indian Representative in Lhasa was re-designated as a Consul-General.
During the same month, the smart and suave Zhou Enlai told the gullible Indian Ambassador in China that he “presumed that India had no intention of claiming special rights arising from the unequal treaties of the past and was prepared to negotiate a new and permanent relationship safeguarding legitimate interests.”
Not only did the Chinese offer nothing to India in exchange for her generosity, but Delhi accepted to open a Chinese Consulate in Bombay. Can you believe it!
A few months later, Panikkar who had been transferred to Egypt wrote: “the main issue of our representation at Lhasa was satisfactorily settled… there was no outstanding issue between us and the Chinese”.
Well, the ‘visionary’ had merely forgotten the unsettled issue of border. In April 1954, the ‘born-in-sin’ Panchsheel Agreement was signed. Though, the status of the Consulate General and the Trade Marts was confirmed, all the other privileges enjoyed by India were surrendered. Over the years, the situation became more and more untenable for the Indian officials. After Dalai Lama took refuge in India in 1959; the Chinese authorities constantly harassed the staff of the Consulate and Trade Marts. When the Panchsheel Agreement lapsed in April 1962, there was no point in renewing it. The Trade Marts were closed and China asked the officials to vacate the premises. As the building in Yatung belonged to the Government of India, the Chinese even asked India to take the building away.
Since then, there has been no Indian representation in Tibet. It is a great pity for the Himalayan areas which, for centuries, had close economic and cultural ties with Tibet.

The Mustache of the Dalai Lama

At the Sera monastery

Worshiping the Dalai Lama

The translation of this post on Tsering Woeser's blog proves the seriousness of the situation in Tibet, more particularly in Lhasa.
The Chinese authorities have to paint a mustache to the present Dalai Lama to avoid that the Tibetans recognize him. 
Tibetans are not fooled by the subterfuge. 
These photos have been taken in Sera monastery at the outskirt of Lhasa.
Sixty years after the official 'Liberation of Tibet', the Tibetan masses' love and respect for their leader has remained unchanged.
Why can't Beijing accept this fact and deal with it in a civilized manner, instead of using more and more repressive measures.
The Chinese leadership would earned more respect from the world, if they could understand that the Dalai Lama is their ONLY chance to solve the Tibetan issue.
Perhaps, with the change of guard in Beijing next year, some leaders will be able to grasp this basic principle.

"Lhasa? Lhasa!"
By Woeser
December 7, 2011

Tsering Woeser

High Peaks Pure Earth presents the English translation of a blogpost by Woeser written on October 13, 2011 for the Tibetan service of Radio Free Asia and posted on her blog on October 22, 2011.

During the era of China’s reform and opening up, Lhasa was generally where the Tibetan elites wanted to be. I met many young Tibetans who could have stayed in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai after graduation but they preferred to go and live and work in Lhasa, which at the time was very far from any hustle and bustle. In the Spring of 1990, I returned from Kham to my birthplace Lhasa, where I had colleagues from Amdo at the Tibet Autonomous Region Literature Association.

The Dalai Lama with a mustache

Lhasa at the time drew Tibetans from all over like a magnet. Businessmen from Kham and Amdo flooded into Lhasa to do business and monks came to Lhasa’s holy sites and, in accordance with tradition, to study at the Three Great Monasteries. Lhasa, as before, continues to be regarded by Tibetans as a centre where people want to buy a house and to where people want to transfer their hukou (household registration). But even though there were many problems in Lhasa in those days, and even though protests over three consecutive years were suppressed, compared to now there was more space and more possibilities, and it was relatively free and relaxed.
It is not the same now. A Khampa mother and father came to see their daughter who had married a Lhasan and were extremely sad about their daughter when they left because she would be living in a city under the muzzle of a gun. The streets are lined with soldiers and Buddhist monks are being desecrated; Lhasa has changed from being a holy city to a fallen place of dirt and danger.
Monks from outside Lhasa must have documents and permits to go to Lhasa otherwise there is no way they can get past all the checkpoints along the roads. Rinpoches from elsewhere avoid Lhasa and transfer instead to Han areas. Monks from Lhasa itself are cautious and wary and wear plain clothes as much as possible when they are out, and in the old city with the Jokhang Temple at its centre, one often sees police arbitrarily stopping monks in robes or youths in Tibetan dress, checking and registering them. Rinpoches in Lhasa go out as little as possible, as though they live behind closed doors. And there is even mutual wariness between Tibetans, family members don’t even dare speak openly with each other, fearing the possibility that someone might be a snitch or would sell them out. The number of foreigners is unprecedentedly low, tourists are restricted in what they can see and the majority of foreign foundations and NGOs have been driven out.
Tibetan entrepreneurs have either seen their business shrink or they have had to transfer to Tibetan areas in other provinces or to cities in China in order to develop. Even though they don’t adapt too well to the climate, language or lifestyle in Han areas, at least there’s a little less fear in those places. Ever since 2008, many successful Tibetans have been sentenced to imprisonment and there is a general sense of fear among businessmen and entrepreneurs in Tibetan areas. No one knows what tomorrow will bring and no one can say that the wealth people have accrued over the decades will not disappear overnight under trumped-up charges. One businessman used the Buddhist concept of impermanence to describe the situation: like ants, people bit by bit transport and accumulate but the wealth they build with such difficulty can be destroyed in an instant by a bear’s paw; and never mind one’s personal wealth – the wealth that we as a people have accumulated over hundreds and thousands of years, all of it amounted to nothing when the Chinese Communist Party came!
The centripetal forces drawing Tibetans to Lhasa seems to be weakening because the hardships there in all aspects of life are so much worse than elsewhere. Getting a passport, for example, has simply become a fantasy for the majority of Tibetans. Even getting a border travel permit to go on pilgrimage to Mount Kailash is hard. And even though many new communities and new homes have been built in Lhasa, many of them are vacant. Previously, people from Kham and Amdo would have bought a house in Lhasa but now, Tibetans from Lhasa and elsewhere in U-Tsang are buying houses in Chengdu. It’s said that 20,000 Tibetans have bought homes in Chengdu, and of those people a number were probably home owners first in Lhasa but who now refuse to live in the shadow of fear.
Of course, Tibetans are oppressed in other provinces, but less so than in Lhasa. This can be seen from one small detail: from late July to early August I travelled from the Tibetan areas of Qinghai to the Tibetan areas of Sichuan province, and in monasteries and private homes all along the way, portraits of His Holiness the Dalai Lama were openly displayed. Having strictly forbidden them previously, local governments are now turning a blind eye because they not only don’t have the ability to stop it happening, they also fear they would provoke greater protests if they did. But such compromises are nowhere to be seen in Lhasa. On portraits of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in some monasteries, work teams have painted on a mustache to try and stop pilgrims and tourists from recognising the Dalai Lama.
October 13, 2011, Lhasa