Peaceful Protests or Riot in Tibet?

CCTV released photos and footage showing Tibetans attacking Chinese and Chinese businesses last Friday. This is what Beijing wants us to see and believe – a bloody protest which needs to be controlled by force. But I wonder, what happened before the riot took place on Friday? The monks are said to have peaceful protests between Monday and Thursday, but some protesters were arrested. Some witnesses reported monks being beaten up by the local and military police. Is this why the Tibetans turned into violence in the end?

The scene reminds me of June 4 massacre when thousands of people are believed to be killed in Beijing in 1989. Tibet government claimed that they did not open fire at the protesters but witnesses heard gunshots. In 1989, Beijing also claimed that no one died in Tiananmen Square… Kind of make you wonder, has Beijing really changed over the past 20 years? Now Beijing even asks all foreigners and reporters to leave Lhasa, are they ready for bloodshed there?

The resentment of Tibetans against Beijing did not start on Monday. Dalai Lama said what Beijing did to Tibet is cultural genocide, Beijing denied. In fact, the communist appointed Tibetan government has implemented many policies that affect Tibetan life. For examples, Tibetan government employees and the monks have to denounce Dalai Lama; Tibetan students and government workers are prohibited from visiting monasteries or participating in religious ceremonies; and the monks are forced to receive “patriotic education”.

Zhang Qingli (the Communist Party secretary of Tibet) said last year: "The Communist Party is like the parent to the Tibetans; and it is always considerate about what the children need" "The Central Party Committee is the real Buddha for Tibetans." Does it sound very familiar? “The Chinese government is like the parent to Hong Kong people……whatever we do and decide is for the interests of HK”. But Tibetans are not Hong Kong people, they have their own culture and spiritual lives, whereas most Hong Kong people are materialistic, they are content as long as you give them some monetary gains. In addition, why do the Chinese government always consider themselves the parent and everyone else their children? Unless they think we are all retarded and can’t decide what is good for us, or they are super intelligent, but history has proven that they are not.

If Beijing really wants stability in Tibet, they have to do something more than the old tricks. Ruling with a firm hand, crushing protests, brainwashing people with so called “patriotic education” are not enough to pacify the Tibetans. And I bet the Tibetans don’t want a “parent’ who is controlling, violent and autocratic!