Dharamshala: The people of Jodha county in Chamdo, eastern Tibet still refuse to plant crops, preferring instead to go hungry as a form of peaceful demonstration against violence enacted by the Chinese throughout Tibet since March of 2008. On the 30 of May 60 trucks carrying Chinese soldiers arrived in Jodha county, soldiers conducted a lottery and determined that Nguldharuwa village in Trankang region would be responsible for planting crops. Monks and old people from nearby monasteries and villages attempted to broker a peace, but Chinese police forces persecuted the holy men also.
Dharamshala: The people of Jodha county in Chamdo, eastern Tibet still refuse to plant crops, preferring instead to go hungry as a form of peaceful demonstration against violence enacted by the Chinese throughout Tibet since March of 2008. On the 30 of May 60 trucks carrying Chinese soldiers arrived in Jodha county, soldiers conducted a lottery and determined that Nguldharuwa village in Trankang region would be responsible for planting crops. Monks and old people from nearby monasteries and villages attempted to broker a peace, but Chinese police forces persecuted the holy men also.The lottery winners, unhappy with the result, broke the windows of a Chinese officer’s house. Chinese authorities are well practiced at using excessive force on unarmed Tibetan demonstrators, an additional 300 Chinese soldiers came from nearby Jodha county to quell the demonstrations, many Tibetans injured when the police forces opened fire, used tear gas, and cattle prods on the crowd of unarmed citizens. Tsering, was shot by Chinese fire arms and wounded on his arm, he was not taken to the hospital to receive proper medical treatment. Paga and Lhadhar were seriously injured by crowbars that the Chinese forces welded, they were taken into Chinese custody and their whereabouts are still unknown. Police forces put a loaded pistol into Samga’s mouth and beat him with a crowbar, there is little hope that he is alive.
The authorities arrested all Tibetans involved in the protests monks from Wara and Jophu monastery intervened and negotiated a peace, all but the three Tibetans who organized the protest were released from Chinese custody. The three organizers are Sonam Palmo, Lobsang Palden, and Yeshe Dorjee. The morning after the protests the Chinese authorities changed their minds and again exerted totalitarian control over the people of the village and again arrested all of the men they could find in the village. The remaining old men and women who have the Buddhist ordinations were forced to work in the fields.
After the recent demonstration the Chinese police forces again took action against the monks and raided Gyane and Palchen monasteries looking for dissidents, 8 lamas were beaten. Since March of last year "Patriotic re-education" has been instated in monasteries throughout Tibet, is a Chinese campaign that promotes neither the country of Tibet or the religion of Tibet as Tibetans themselves imagine their homeland. Gonsar monastery, Kyase, Chache, Terton, Dhengphur, Drurum, Palchen, Gyane monasteries were the main target of the campaign in which monks were forced to renounce His Holiness the Dalai Lama the rightful spiritual and political leader of Tibet. Monks who did not renounce His Holiness were forced out of the monastery.
The treat of brutal Chinese crackdown looms in the immediate future, and starvation is certain in the months ahead; still fields throughout the region remain fallow and the future uncertain. Tibetans from upper and lower Takzig villages and Lhotoma village remained loyal and let their fields grow wild.
Report provided by Geshe Monlam Tharchin, member of Tibetan Parliament in exile
