Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Uighurs vs Tibetan

The news of deadly "riots" in Xingjiang has splashed across the front pages of the world media. It is an irony that some U.S politician including Hillary Clinton says" we don't know all the facts, urged both sides to restrain". Whereas U.S speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi condemned the "brutal crackdown against peaceful protesters, and expressed concern for those detained during protest". Is US, the world's most powerful nation sending a right signal to China with such contradictory statements on the same issues and events unfolded in the China -occupied far western region of Xingjiang. What do the advocate of human rights make of Clinton's spineless statements?
Scholars and experts on China flatly rejected the notion that "quiet diplomacy" will not work with China. But still the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is too timid when making comments on China's policy against minorities. In her most rest trip to China, Clinton said human rights issue will not supersede trade and other priorities that US would like to engage with China. Ones deemed as a "hero" for standing up for the rights of voiceless, has now stabbed on their back. Is Clinton worthy of our respect?
amateur video images posted on social networks such as twitters and others shows the initial protest were peaceful and as crowd of hundreds of people marching through a thoroughfare avenue. Yet in another video, it is apparent who is charging against who. The peaceful protesters refused to disperse, that is when the Chinese riot police beat and chased them away, as seen in this clip http://http//www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1mOTG11KE4&feature=related

News analysts and commentator started to draw a parallel of 2008 Tibetan uprisings and the current Uighur protest in Urumqi. Both the protest started in a peaceful way, and turned into deadly riots resulting lost of innocent lives. Trace of identical elements in this mass protest are :
ethnics clashes between the Han majorities and Uigher minorities, protesters went on rampage. Chinese official media describes the protest in the same manner "looting, smashing, killing and burning", and then again Chinese government accused the exiled Uigher woman leader Rabeya Kadee for orchestrating and masterminding the protest in Uramqi. Official Chinese media failed to investigate the root cause of this resentment, which was not difficult to figure out. Instead protesters were labeled as "sparatists" with "outside influnce". As some analyts were quick to point out , the mas protest in Xingjaing were influenced by the Tibetan uprising in 2008. There is some truth in this. The Uigher minorities have for the first time in their history of struggle against the communist invasion, lauched a mass peaceful protest. In the past there were sporadic incidents of "violent attack", which the Chinese government claimed as an "act of terrorists". But a protest of this scale is unseen before nor such mass rally. The Uigher exile leader Rabeya Kadeer condemened voilence and urged protest to be peaceful. Thanks to the christmatic leadership of the Dalai Lama, Tibetan movement has remained nonviolent. Year 2008 was a Tibet year, when the brave people of Tibetan made their aspiration and hope explicitly known to the world. Year 2009, is a year for the Uigher. If protest is well planned and organized, leaving no room for violence, then the Uighers could make their case heard on the world stage. China is a rising super power, but at the snap of a finger the instability of Chinese society is exposed. The Chinese president Hu's call for a harmonious society sound very hollow. Giving the 60th anniversary of the founding of Communist China, there could be no better opportunities for the unhappy people to express their grievances. An opportunity too good to pass up... China is rising and the world is watching..
What lessons Tibetan learn from this historical moment:
Communist leaders have studied thoroughly the fall of soviet unions, and they would not repeat the mistake. Chinese leaders would not compromise on Xingjing, they would handle the protest in the same heavy handed manner, as they did to the Tibetans. But can brutal force conquer the spirit of human beings for ever? it might sound true that power comes from the barrel of a gun. But it is also true as Chairman Mao himself said, "whereever there is a suppression, there is a revolt".
In Today's post modern world, violence is condemned in any forms. Peaceful expression of universal rights were regarded as a essential fundamental rights of the people, which earn support from peace loving people of the free world.
The lessons Tibetans learn from the Xijiang protest is violence breed violence and it leads to a vicious circle. Han Chinese mobs were brandishing sticks and lethal objects roaming the streets of Uramqi, in retaliation of the killing and beaten by the Uighers. A section of Tibetan still have not given up violence as a means of regaining Tibetan Independence. But the Dalai Lama's vision and wisdom bars this raw emotion to surface from the Tibetan people in exile. As His Holiness put it taking up arms againts China is "suicidal". It can be not proved more starkling than the recents events of ethnic clashes in China and Xijing.
We should never abandon the path of peace, and mass protest is the way of highlighting Tibetan plights on international arena.