London, UK: - In what looked like a desperate attempt to keep the Tibetan opinion from being heard inside mainland china, television screens in Beijing and possibly beyond went blank on Wednesday, November 30th.
The blackout happened seconds into a broadcast of the live BBC TV interview of the Kalon Tripa (political leader) of Tibet, Dr. Lobsang Sangay by presenter Mishal Husain for the show titled ‘Impact Asia.'
Broadcast at prime time in Beijing, the viewers got to see a brief glimpse of Dr. Sangay during the introduction to the interview before their screens were blacked out.
In the interview that was made unavailable for the Chinese citizens to hear, Dr. Sangay addressed issues like the transfer of power, the current situation in Tibet, the likelihood of the resolution of the Tibetan situation and much more.
"It is a sad situation. 12 self immolations of which 6 have died shows how desperate people resort to desperate measures," said the Kalon Tripa addressing the current situation inside Tibet.
"People are choosing death over life inside Tibet. This proves how repressive the policies of the Chinese government are," he lamented.
In a wide array of questions fired by Ms. Husain, Dr. Sangay accused china of lacking moral power. "The way the Chinese government is treating Tibetans, it will never gain the respect of the international community," he said. "If it wants to become a super power, respect from the international community is what it needs most," he added.
On being asked about the increased presence of good infrastructure in Tibet due to Chinese presence, Dr. Sangay stated that it isn't what is present that matters but what matters is the who it benefits.
Quoting statistics he stated were from 2002, he said "70 % of private sector jobs are controlled by Chinese, 50 % government sector jobs are communist party jobs, which are again given to Chinese. 40% of Tibetan graduates are unemployed."
He stressed that despite infrastructure provided, if studying barely benefits them, and Tibetans within Tibet are being left unemployed, there is no morale left to continue.
When asked about how different his way of functioning will be from that of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Dr. Sangay quickly responded saying "I will be more forthright and active in speaking about the situation in Tibet. I will also be maintaining the basic principles of non violence and democracy as I do so."
He stressed that even though being outright about the situation in Tibet might affect the dialogue with the Chinese government; he would prefer a dialogue based on reality and that he does not have any grudge against China.
He maintained that the Tibetan leadership-in-exile is demanding genuine autonomy within the framework of the Chinese constitution and that they do not challenge the Chinese sovereignty or integrity.
When contacted over the broadcast blackout incident that took place in China, Dr. Lobsang Sangay remarked that "This action is an indication of the fear that the Chinese authorities have about the truth of the Tibetan issue, truth that they are prepared to go to any length to hide from their own people."
