The Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama recently visited Taiwan to pray for the victims of Typhoon Morakot. In the face of constant pressure from Beijing and international media coverage of the visit, the Dalai Lama, in his profound wisdom and benevolence, turned the visit into a display of passive resistance and peace in the spirit of Indian independence leader Mohandas Gandhi.
The Buddhist leader’s visit to Taiwan was not a big matter. As a US Department of State official said, Washington did not believe it would “result in increased tension in the region.” But Beijing did all it could to add fuel to the flames and even enlisted the help of Taiwanese gangsters in China to organize protests against the spiritual leader in Taiwan, while Taiwan’s pro-China media outlets became mouthpieces of the Chinese government. In doing so, they sacrificed their credibility and lost more than they gained.
During his visit, the Dalai Lama remained composed while being interviewed by media outlets and said he was not disappointed about not meeting President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
In response to speculation that the spiritual leader’s visit would have an adverse impact on cross-strait relations, Ma said it was premature to jump to that conclusion.
Some critics said the visit was a result of political scheming, but the Dalai Lama said he was here purely on a religious mission, although some “specialists” in Taiwan tried to second-guess his motives. He also suggested that the protesters could visit China to promote democracy. There is no doubt that all these were directed at Ma and his Chinese counterpart, Hu Jintao (胡錦濤).
Every place the Dalai Lama visited, people could feel the warmth he brought. When typhoon survivors from Siaolin Village (小林) in Kaohsiung County, which was washed away by floods, told him their family members were buried under mud and rubble, he immediately spread a waterproof mat on the ground and began a ritual of blessing. Such behavior moved the hearts of numerous disaster victims.
When he heard someone crying out loud: “Someone has cancer. She needs your help” as he walked out of the venue for a ritual, he performed a forehead-to-forehead blessing service and gave the patient medication. This scene is in stark contrast to the hypocrisy of politicians and their empty words.
In 1959, dictator Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) recognized the temporary government of the Dalai Lama as the legitimate Tibetan government in accordance with Article 120 of the Constitution and said the Republic of China would continue to work to achieve the goal of self-determination together with the Tibetan people.
Whether Tibet should be separated from China is mentioned in both Taiwan’s and China’s constitutions. As such, if Taiwan were to cooperate with Beijing and take a harsher approach toward the matter, it would not reflect well on Taiwan.
The Dalai Lama’s nephew, Khedroob Thondup, once said: “This is not communist Taiwan; it’s democratic Taiwan.” The question is, can Taiwan hold up to its democratic ideals.
Lu I-ming is the former publisher and president of Taiwan Shin Sheng Daily News.
TRANSLATED BY TED YANG
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