Sinister: Where is my home again?

[Stuart Gardiner]

I heard B&S on the radio while I was having my breakfast yesterday morning. 
Not much special about that, you might think. But I was a bit surprised to 
hear an obscure album track - Family Tree - on daytime radio. But what's 
really surprising is that I was hearing it while having my breakfast in 
Lhasa, capital of Tibet. Truly, the band's reach is worldwide.

Of course, one thing about travelling in Tibet is that you have to address 
'The Tibet Question'. Namely, whether the Chinese occupation is a good or 
bad thing. Now if you listen to most people in the West, you wouldn't think 
there was a question. It's a simple answer, right? The Tibetan culture is 
being destroyed by the evil and oppresive Chinese government. Simple. Well, 
actually, no...

It seems there's lots of well-meaning but ultimately ill-informed people in 
the West when it comes to Tibet. They view this place as some kind of 
paradise, ruined by the Chinese. It's simply not true. For starters, they 
conveniently forget that until the Chinese took over, Tibet was actually a 
dictatorship run by the Dalai Lamas and their advisors - just because 
they're religious doesn't make it any better. And that Tibet was actually 
only an independent country for about 40 years. And that before then, the 
Tibetan army regularly invaded China, at one point occupying and sacking the 
old Chinese capital of Xian. So much for a peaceful serene nation. These 
same Westerners seem to think it's a tragedy that Lhasa and the other towns 
have changed - well, hate to break it to you, but London's changed in the 
last 50 years too. The Chinese have brought (and paid for - Tibet wouldn't 
have them otherwise) electricity, running water, even paved roads. Do we 
really have the right todeprive the people of these things just because it 
would make a better photograph??? The people are much better off, much 
wealthier, better sanitation and living conditions etc. And they know it. To 
mis-quote Full Metal Jacket, it seems they would rather be alive than 
free...

On the flipside, of course they don't have freedom of speech here. But then, 
nobody in China does. A lot of monasteries and religious items were 
destroyed in the cultural revolution 40 years ago. Same as in the rest of 
China. But they're being repaired and rebuilt at a startling rate; they're 
open to anyone again; and even the Chinese government officially regret the 
cultural revolution (the people behind it were executed years ago).

So what's my point? That there are two sides to any story, and in this case 
in particular, what you hear in the West is horrendously biased. Personally, 
when I look at both sides, I conclude that Tibet is better off being ruled 
by China, it's just that (as with all of China) it would be even better off 
if the government changed. Independence would not be good for the people 
here. If you look at the facts and conclude differently, fair enough; the 
important thing is to consider both sides of the sotry first before jumping 
to conclusions.

That's one of the biggest thing that all this backpacking has taught me - 
there's always two sides to the story. To Western eyes, it would make sense 
to prosecute the Khmer Rouge for what they did in Cambodia (killing one 
third of the country's population in just four years). But the Cambodians 
have decided not to dig up the past in the interests of reconciliation. 
Whatever you conclude, yoj have to take that opinion into account.

Another example - in February I met a man in Vietnam who used to be a 
teacher, before he fought with the Americans for the South Vietnamese army. 
After the US left, he was forced to become a farmer; only twenty years later 
was he able to set himself up as a motorcycle guide. He said that he doesn't 
like America, because the US deserted them when they had enough money to 
keep on fighting and decided not to. Now, you might not agree with him - I 
don't myself - but it's a view you never hear in the West, that needs to be 
considered.

Why am I saying all this? Why break the habit of several months by actually 
posting something, only to talk about politics? Because I think it's 
important. And because pretty much everyone I meet at home - and so probably 
most people on here - completely misunderstand what's happening in Tibet. 
And it causes resentment of the Chinese, which is unfair. And also, maybe 
some people back home put a little bit too much trust in the liberal 
media...


You want some more content to go with the rant? Erm... Well I did have a 
picnic on the roof of the Potala Palace last week, does that count? I've not 
even seen the I'm A Cuckoo single yet, and I don't know if I'll be back in 
the UK in time to go to the gigs. Sorry...


As if the politics in Tibet wasn't complicated enough, I'm headingback to 
Nepal in a few days time, where things are much worse... When I was there 
last month, there were people killed every day, up to 500 people in one 
battle, street protests, national strikes every week...


Big Stu


PS Let's see how easy it is to send an email which mentions politics out of 
China!

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