With joy, sorrow and a few surprises, a Taiwan Friends of Tibet (TFOT) student delegation yesterday shared their experiences and discoveries from a two-week trip to Dharamsala, India, the seat of the Tibetan government-in-exile.
Sitting in a room at a coffee shop near the MRT Zhongshan Station in Taipei, members of the student delegation and their friends shared pictures, video clips and new discoveries from their trip last month.
The room was sometimes filled with laughter, cheers and applause, and sometimes with a more serious atmosphere when discussions were focused on issues relating to the political situation in the exiled community.
“The most interesting finding was that, in the past, we’ve always viewed the Tibetans as a whole, we see the structural problems, and we know that they are being repressed by the Chinese Communist Party [CCP] regime,” said Hsiao Hui-chung (蕭惠中), an Academia Sinica research fellow who accompanied the delegation of mostly college and graduate students on the trip.
“However, when we were there and talked to individual Tibetans, we found that they are not a people as a collective, but rather individuals with different stories, backgrounds, ideas and expectations,” he said.
Hsiao said that for most people who are concerned about the Tibet issue, it is the voice of the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama that stands out most, “but once we were in Dharamsala, we heard different voices and there are also voices critical of the government-in-exile.”
Wu Ju-mei (吳如媚), a graduate student from National Taitung University’s Graduate Institute of Regional Policy and Development Research who has interviewed several Tibetan public figures in Dharamsala, said she was also surprised by the different views expressed by different people.
“Former political prisoner Lukar Jam is very critical of the exiled government and believes that all governments will eventually become interest-driven groups. He even went so far as to remind the exiled government not to become a new problem for Tibetans,” she said. “On the other hand, Gang Lhamo, a member of the exiled parliament and also a former political prisoner, believes a government could serve as a symbol of legitimacy and the struggle for the Tibetan cause may be harder without the exiled government.”
Wu said that while the Dalai Lama is a much-respected figure among Tibetans, “there are also Tibetans who think that the status the Dalai Lama enjoys is not positive for the development of democracy in the exiled Tibetan community.”
While Tibetans may hold different views about their government and on current events, the delegation found that independence for Tibet is a shared objective for all exiled Tibetans, despite the government-in-exile’s insistence on gaining genial autonomy under Chinese rule in recent years.
“The living conditions and the environment in Dharamsala are much harsher than I have expected, but no matter how challenging life is for the Tibetans, most of them are very positive-minded and optimistic,” Nanhua University student Peter Hu (胡家銘) said.
“I think this is a lesson we should learn from them when we face so many social injustices in Taiwan,” he added.
The TFOT organizes trips to Dharamsala every year, hoping to promote exchanges between Taiwanese and exiled Tibetans, as well as to help Taiwanese understand the Tibetan issue better.
The Ministry of Finance this afternoon announced the winning numbers for the March-April uniform invoice lottery. The winning number for the NT$10 million (US$318,060) special prize is 19531471, and the winning number for the NT$2 million grand prize is 85941329. Three numbers were drawn for the NT$200,000 first prize: 07225810, 20231230 and 83518781. Those with receipts matching the last seven digits of any of the first-prize numbers will win the NT$40,000 second prize, while those matching the last six digits will win the NT$10,000 third prize. Those whose receipts match the last five digits of the first-prize numbers can claim the NT$4,000 fourth prize,
SIX SUBSIDIES: The monthly allowance for older farmers is to increase to NT$10,000, and NT$5,000 is to be given to homemakers under the national pension system, Lai said The government is to implement major welfare policies for disadvantaged groups, including raising the monthly allowance for older farmers to NT$10,000 and providing homemakers with NT$5,000 per month, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday. Lai made the remarks during a visit to Wangling Temple in Chiayi County, saying that the planned increases were being introduced amid economic growth and an increase in tax revenue. Touting a policy, in which the government plans to provide a monthly allowance of NT$5,000 for every child under the age of 18 in a bid to address Taiwan’s low birthrate, Lai said that if received for the
STAY COOL: The HPA recommended that people stay hydrated, use air-conditioning or fans while indoors, wear loose-fitting clothes and walk in the shade while outdoors Employers must implement measures such as installing cooling equipment, and providing drinking water and rest breaks for outdoor workers starting from Monday next week, the Taipei Department of Labor said on Sunday. Employers who fail to comply could face fines of NT$30,000 to NT$300,000 under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (職業安全衛生法), the department said. Businesses in Taipei employing fewer than 100 workers, as well as registered self-employed workers with labor insurance coverage, could receive on-site assessments and guidance from occupational safety consultants to help them apply for central government subsidies to implement or improve heat-protection measures, it said. Under the Ministry of
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
RSS