With uncharacteristic fervour, the Dalai Lama in front of his palace temple in Dharamsala, condemned the suppression of his people in Tibet by the Chinese. On the 50th anniversary of the uprising by the Tibetan people against the occupiers which caused the DL to flee his country, he called for real autonomy for his people. The Chinese, he announced, had created "hell on earth" and had killed thousands of Tibetans.There is as little meaning in using the synedochical term "the Chinese" as there is in apportioning blame for the "war" in Afghanistan on the insurgents, whoever they are. With a people as heterogeneous as the Chinese comprising a diverse ethnicity of Han, Manchu, Uyghur and many others as well as Tibetans, we would have to consider the blame for the government's inhumane treatment of minority ethnics (55-separate groups) and the subsequent diaspora of the people of Tibet to be placed on the government.
China is a communist state, and as such has denounced what it calls subversive groups such as the Chinese Democracy Party, the Falun Gong spiritual movement as well as declaiming against the Tibetans' recognition of the Dalai Lama as the spiritual leader. Thus, there are no substantial political opposition groups.
Consider their treatment of their own nationals on the pretext that they are undermining the security of the state. Following an "anti-superstition" campaign, the Falun Gong along with various other "heretical" groups such as The Disciples' Association, The Holistic Church and the Qui Gong based groups, were purged and banned.
Although the DL has made it clear that he wants only autonomy for the country, the Chinese government consider him to be a "splittest" in demanding independence. This stubbornness in not differentiating between "autonomy" and "independence" defines their determination to dismiss any claims of the Tibetan people for a self-governing entity.
Now the Chinese have declared that they will choose the next reincarnation of the next DL, a preposterous notion that is obvious in its intent to further suppress the Tibetans. Exiled Tibetans say that this will not affect the recognition of the next reincarnation of the DL who himself says that he will be reborn outside of the country. That the Chinese government can assume spiritual powers is contrary to the tenets of a communist government. The 11th Panchen Lama, the second most important monk in Tibet, chosen by the DL, has been in detention since 1995 and replaced with a PL reinstated by the government. The same situation may exist in the future if the Chinese government carries out its threat.
