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Rob_Hugo@PortNWIn the March 2008 National Geographic there is an article on "Bhutan's Enlightened Experiment."
This piqued my interest in Bhutan as I had once seen a Nature show on TV that explored its national park system as being a model country since almost 25% (?) of the land was dedicated to preservation.
The article discussed how it is now a constitutional monarchy with a government whose focus is on the Gross National Happiness. The question is whether it can maintain its society and culture in the face of globalization and modernization. Some things have improved: roads, electricity, literacy is at 60% (1982 10%), life expectancy is 66 years (1982 43 yrs) and infant mortality 40/1000 (163 in 1982) but the culture has and is already suffering.
Buddhism in Bhutan takes a unique form and is the last bastion of Himalayan Buddhism will also no doubt be affected.
AnonymousI read an article this morning about protests that were going on during the torch-lighting ceremony. These protests were done by migrant workers and they were ant-Chinese government. The government was horrified because they have been trying to avoid public relations disasters such as this. Anyhow, the protests were shown on the news in many countries, but not in China of course.
AnonymousI came across an article, today, as to whether or not the U.S. should boycott the Olympics.
Bloodshed in Tibet is leading human-rights activists and some politicians to boycott the Olympics. The debate---Is the harsh treatment of Tibet by China reason to withdraw from the Olympics? Or should the Olympics continue with the spirit of brotherhood? The article expresses the opinions of Ben Boychuk and Joel Mathis, the moderators of redblueamerica.com. Anyone can join the debate. Log in.
Jewell Lee Toombs
AnonymousI just came across another article about boycotting the Beijing opening of the Olympics. Pelosi says President Bush should boycott the Olympics' opening to protest China's response to Tibet protests. However, she does not think that the United States should boycott the Games entirely. What do the rest of you think? I think that all events should proceed. Let the individual athletes decide if they want to be part of the ceremony and leave the politicians out of it.
Jewell Lee Toombs
AnonymousIt is very scary to me that China has cut off outgoing news from Tibet. It is reminiscent of the old days of China in which they lived in something of a bubble. With human rights being in question as it is, this should strike a new blow to the global community of questionable actions committed by the Chinese government on its people. Of course, in my cynical perspective, the gravity of the actions the global community is willing to take in support of the Tibetan people when we are all so economically intertwined is, I'm afraid to say, light.
AnonymousThis past week's Newsweek magazine's article entitled "The Next Saffron Revolution" talks about how China has demonized the Dalai Lama as "exploiting the anti-Tibetan prejudices of the country's Han ethnic majority against him." Beijing is trying to convince the Chinese majority through propoganda of what they want them to think so that they will support their quelching of the uprisings and other, further, actions they may take. However, does Beijing thing the global community is just as impressionable? Or, perhaps they don't care? Or, perhaps they believe we won't do anything substantial... and maybe we won't. Javascript:insertsmilie('%20:-(%20')
AnonymousAccording to Newsweek's article, the Dalai Lama is aware that younger, more militant Tibetan leaders are frustrated with the lack of results from peaceful methods. The Han majority is capitalizing on the recent uprisings of some Tibetan people in order to substantiate their methods of control.... see below...
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/28/world/asia/28victims.html?_r=1&ref=asia&oref=slogin
Putting Faces on 5 Victims of Tibetan Riots
SHANGHAI — In life, the five young women who burned to death in a Chinese clothing store during rioting in Tibet on March 14 were not the types who would make headlines.
One received permission from her family to follow her fiancé to Lhasa; another sent home most of her wages to support 13 relatives; several sent text messages in the minutes before they died warning loved ones to stay indoors as violence erupted.
In death, though, the women are being treated as martyrs. The Chinese government has been using their deaths to support its version of what happened on “3/14,” when Tibet saw its worst day of violence in 20 years. In that version, broadcast by state-controlled media, ethnic Tibetans took to Lhasa’s streets, unprovoked, burning and looting shops that were owned by Han Chinese.
AnonymousI don't know who the poster is of these videos, but there are a lot of videos proclaiming to be of the recent Tibetan incidences. Here is one: http://youtube.com/watch?v=IgNOBetYUpU&feature=user
AnonymousI try to look at various, global news sources to see how non-Americans are reporting global events. Here is a website from Austrailia (albeit ABC) on the goings-on in Tibet.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/04/02/2206457.htm?section=world
Police arrest 53 in pro-Tibet protest in Nepal
Police arrest 53 in pro-Tibet protest in Nepal
Posted 6 hours 41 minutes ago
At least 53 Tibetan exiles, including monks and nuns, have been dragged away from the Chinese embassy in Nepal's capital and detained, police said.
The protesters had briefly gathered outside the gate of the embassy compound shouting, "Stop the killing in Tibet" and "Free Tibet now," a witness said.
"We have detained 53 people for protesting outside the embassy," police official Babukaji Karka said, adding that 200 officers were on duty to quell the protests.
Kathmandu has seen daily protests since unrest in Lhasa began on March 10, the anniversary of a failed Tibetan uprising against the Chinese in 1959.
AnonymousI was quite surprised to open this week's Newsweek and discover that the Chinese citizens feel that the Tibetan revolt is an anti-Han movement lead by the Dalali Lama. With the rising nationalism, ordinary citizens are very angry at Tibetan protesters. Naturally this slant on the story has been encouraged by the government. However, the article suggests that thisi"rampaging genie of racism" may cause incrreasing problems for the government.
Last year, my special project for the trip was to report on minoirities in China. Ironically the Chinese government has seemingly made peace with the vast majority of minorities such as the Bai and Dai. The Newsweek article suggest the increasing polarization between the militant Tibetan youth and the Chinese citizenry could increase an already serious situation.
AnonymousI guess it comes as no surprise that citizens of any coountry with enough wealth or official connections can circumvent any law. However, it's fairly shocking to read that large numbers of affluent Chinese have flouted the country's family-planning regulations. Some use the loopholes that allow nine specific categories to be exempt. Others use surrogate mothers, pay huge fines (or have them officially "forgiven"), or travel to Hong Kong or a foreign country for the birth. In Hunan provence alone over 1,968 officials defied family planning. One senior parlimentarian had four mistress and four children. Now that ordinary citizens have more access to internal news, there is definitely a backlash to these special privileges. The article was aptly named "Sex, Lies and Family Planning."
AnonymousWhile the entire March issue of the Economist is devoted to China, the lead article is "The Ravous Dragon." The writer Edward McBride argues that China's "hunger for natural resources has set off a global commodity boom." Certainly the Chinese authorities are driven to obtain enough raw minerals and materials to sustain their country's remarkable economic growth. The repercussions for the West, and developing countries are not totally clear thus causing great anxiety. Is the West "losing" Africia and other resource-rich regions? Will the Chinese ignore basic legal, environmental and labor stantdards? The authohr's thesis is that these worries are overblown. He believes there are checks and balances iin this new global economy. In fact, he suggests that the most negative repercussions might fall on the Chinese themselves with polluted water and air, two resources the Chinese cannot import.
Anonymous"The Lucky Country" covered in the March Economist is Australia because they are exportini to China an ever increasing supply of raw materials. Possibly the most stagering figure is the $8. 5 billion worth of iron ore being exported to China alone making Australia the higgest exporter of iron ore in the world. By 2013 they hope to at least double, and maybe triple, this amount. Australia is also the biggest exporter of coal, another hot commodiy for China. Australians feel very positive about this relationship witih China as it has greatly helped the country's economy. Prime Minister Rudd even speaks fluent Mandarin. Australia has great enthusiasm for China's economic development as well they should.
clay dubeHi Folks,
It's great to see the enthusiasm for current events. Please consider sharing your views with others in the Asia in My Classroom forum.
I appreciate the efforts some are making to collect a diversity of views on what's happening in and around Tibet. The daily updates and voices section of US-China Today http://uschina.usc.edu may be helpful.
AnonymousIn Sunday’s (4/13) Travel section of the LA Times, the lead article was “The World of Mao.” Susan Spano followed Mao’s Long March locations to get a better understanding of Mao. The Chinese government recently opened up many tourist locations encouraging their countrymen and visitors to follow Mao’s footsteps. I was genuinely shocked to learn that Mao did not come dirt poor peasants, but from a affluent farming family in south-central China. The family’s farmhouse in Shaoshan consisted of 13 rooms. It was interesting to learn that his mother practiced Buddhism and had bound feet. Later he attended Hunan Fourth Provincial Normal School described as a “European-style compound devoted to teacher training.” He enjoyed writing poetry and studying history. It’s here he met his wife who was later executed after a failed Communist uprising. The journalist’s tour then headed for Luding Bridge which has been the source of some myth making. Finally the Times reporter arrives in Yunan, a small Northern city that the Communist occupied for over a decade building up their party. It is here that Mao wrote his “little red book. ” Interestingly Mao’s and his comrades lived in caves and presently there is even a cave hotel. Along this historic route, the US journalist asked various official guides their evaluation of Mao. The reported surmised that he was being given the party line for each guide’s answer was “30% negative/ 70% positive.” However the final guide altered the negative to 40%. “Things are a-changing” even in China.