TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Tibetan activist Chemi Lhamo was born “stateless” in neighboring India as the 1959 Tibetan Uprising led to the mass migration of 100,000 people at the hands of Chinese authorities.
In the years since, this beautiful land, once dubbed Shangri-la, has been billed as the “least free place on earth” on four separate occasions by Freedom House. The exile of Tibet’s former political and spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, has caused undue suffering for many Tibetans living both outside and inside the country, Lhamo said.
Religious persecution is not the only reason China has an interest in controlling Tibet. Lhamo said, “2 billion people depend upon water, which originates in Tibet. The Chinese government has already built dams and controlled the supply of water downstream. In the future, it could impose taxes and tariffs, even causing famine for those who do not comply.”
For centuries, Tibet has been the “roof of the world,” a country that has been protected by mountainous terrain. “Planes don’t fly over the Himalayas. This meant we were very remote, with few foreign visitors. And when they came, they had very unique stories to tell the rest of the world," Lhamo added.
Lhamo said only two countries in the world can enter Tibet, making it more protected than other countries. However, one neighbor has a deep-seated interest in controlling the country.
“China wants control over the people. They didn’t think that the Dalai Lama had much power, but he has been the spiritual and political leader of Tibet for 14 lifetimes," she added.
Lhamo said his power was demonstrated once in the mid-1980s when he suddenly decided that practicing Buddhists should not wear fur or the skins of animals. This news quickly spread through Tibet, and almost immediately people began discarding and even burning fur, even though fur provided warmth in the winter.
While Tibetan Buddhism can still be practiced in Tibet, it is strictly monitored. “I think they are allowing them to practice Buddhism, but many monasteries have been destroyed," Lhamo said. Others, as it turns out, have become tourist locations.
"If you look at older maps, Tibet used to cover about one-third of China. Now it is much smaller and generally referred to as an autonomous region. In fact, many Tibetans reside overseas—about 2% of the population or around 150,000 people," Lhamo said. The strong sense of community amongst the Tibetan diaspora is one of the reasons Lhamo has been committed to her activism.
Another reason is the determination and strength of those continuing to live in Tibet. For example, she referred to a YouTube video filmed in Tibet in September where an estimated 100,000 people ventured to a remote area to attend a Kalachakra—Buddhist talk—the first of which was done by the 7th Kungthan Rinpoche, the reincarnation of a monk thought to be Panchen Lama’s most trusted assistant.
This outpouring of support is what keeps her going, and she believes that “Free Tibet” can one day become a reality.
