THIS MAKES ME ANGRY...

... and I hope it makes you angry, too.

I am, most of the times, a peaceful person. I try to be fair and honest as much as I can. I am not perfect. In fact, far from it. I live comfortably, I eat more than I should and I have everything I need. This could be said of many other people and it is not necessarily a negative thing.

I am aware that many people aren't as lucky as I am and I know I could do more.

The recent news about the political situation in Tibet awoke feelings of sadness, guilt and anger within myself.

I have listed a few facts here and I hope these will make a few bells ring within your souls as well.

• Since 1950, an estimated 1.2 million Tibetans have been killed by the Chinese. China has ratified a number of UN conventions, including those related to torture and racial discrimination, and yet has repeatedly violated these in China and Tibet.
• Chinese has replaced Tibetan as the official language. Young Tibetans are being re-educated about their cultural past, with references to an independent Tibet being omitted.
• The 1982 Constitution of the People's Republic of China guarantees freedom of religious belief, but China seeks to restrict the numbers of monks and nuns entering monasteries and to discredit the religious authority of Dalai Lama. The child recognised as the reincarnation of the Panchen Lama was rejected and the Chinese installed their own candidate. Read more about the real Panchen Lama here: http://www.freetibet.org/campaigns/panchen/index.html (It is terrible. I suggest you read this)
• China's predominant interest in Tibet is no longer ideological, but is based on resource extraction and land for Chinese colonists. Mining and mineral extraction is the largest economic activity in both U'Tsang and Amdo and at least one-half of Tibet's natural forest has gone since Chinese occupation.
• Long-term Chinese settlement in Tibet has been deliberately encouraged, with the result that Tibetans are in the minority in many areas. Independent research puts the number of Chinese in the TAR at 5 ­ 5.5 million versus 4.5 million Tibetans; in Kham and Amdo, Chinese outnumber Tibetans many times over. Chinese traders are favoured by lower tax assessments and the dominant position of Chinese in government administration.