Demi Tour of the World

As leader of all Tibetans, when the Dalai Lama celebrates his birthday, that’s on a festival day, his people sing his name and cry their disappeared and tortured souls. Under a burning blue sky it sent symbols. The holly Tibetan man is moved with ceremony and set above the even most important guests. Talking of the latter, he’s a representative of the government but he is not a representative of the government’s policy.

I note because the guy shake hands with a Tibetan group that just been arrested at the border with TAR, furthermore, nearly all the Tibetans in front of him have been arrested by Nepali police, even further the government doesn’t provide anymore refugee cards to the new-comer nor it grants Tibetan born in Nepal of a Nepali nationality –which is unlawful. Nevertheless, as The important man of the Government for the refugee topic he’s a guest who declared Tibetans brethren of Nepal.

What’s worrying is that new measures rejecting a bit more Tibetans took place before the assembly election where Maoists were the winners. Maoist who may be said nothing about the question – that’s already not really reassuring- but as the new power they already criticized journalists and an official photo happened to be photoshopped…

As the Tibetans demonstrates their attachment to their native land, this guest can indeed underlined his love for their host because patriotism is a very important data of Asian Identity as well as one’s ethnicity.

Such facts help the Nepali double-faced talk, especially if you know that the Nepali people of Humla, Dolpo, Mustang etc. are of Tibetan culture and their dialects is nearer from Tibetan than Nepali.

Of course this contradicted situation is in part the result of a very active Chinese lobby at the same time as Beijing

scolds the West not to intervene in its policy over TAR or Death Penalty. Do what I say, not I do…

To frame this, no better than the Dharamsala/Beijing talks which would have never happened without pressure from the West but where the Chinese side decided to hold the negotiations until the end of the Olympics, such an hypocrite way to avoid its promise to accept journalists in TAR during the International Event that it reveal the passivity of the Occidental Nations. That’s because photos and article from nowadays Chinese policy in Tar would go against the beautiful picture of clean Olympics.

In Kathmandu, the Dalai Lama’s birthday took place at the Srongtsen Bhrikuti Academy. Unavoidable was the Tibetan hymn, or the balloons holding the Tibetan flag in the sky with some pigeons and doves (same family), plus the communal rice meal and… sufferance.
While they heard the speech ladies started to cry. Later on they asked a photo with them and I. With the children’s translation we learnt that the lady on my side had her leg broken by a Chineses soldier.
It’s just like the doves, some of them stayed on top of the tents, not because they longed for their cage but in direct consequence of the overpopulation of the cage, those birds had their wing or leg badly injured. That’s what could be called broken symbols.

Sir James, whose wife works for the UN charity wing, noted.

After ceremony all teachers and volunteers headed for the restaurant.

Teachers on one side, on another the volunteers and the end of the long table the two headmasters, a settings which describes a certain hierarchy as well as the volunteers seen as guests – and parenthesis.

To be here since several month now I can specify that the teachers don’t mix much nor with the volunteers, nor the direction, two populations that make them uncomfortable.

As I go on with this, the lack of solidarity between schools reemerged this day.

But understand, It is not so much a non-willing that to protect its network. As Tibetan schools have no government help, they need not only kids’ sponsors but also sponsors for themselves. Those NGOs usually focus on one school. Up to the school to get a rich enough NGO to help with the building of the school, with the sport ground, the computer, internet etc.

In Other words this egoistic Tibetan behaviour is in reaction of a social structure in disarray, in Tibet, in Nepal

and internationally. As though the cruelty of China amplify the Tibetan patriotism while being a refugee, following UNHCR or a split Asia, just curse Tibetans (as well as all refugees in the world), an eternal curse. And there is also the whole world who sees Tibet only as a Shangrila, far from reality.

Somehow the Tibetan community try to say no like did the children by avoid superposing themselves with sufferance, but for the grown up the curse is already in progress.
China chews Tibetans on their soil that the all-powerful unique communist party sees as another piece of Africa. On this territory there is a mean of isolation by pauperism, to frame it, it is just like taking out original shoots and seeding GM instead. Imperialism goes on. And outside this territory the Tibetan refugees are trapped in a parallel world, without official country or I.D., trapped between a western vortex and the rejection of Asia.

Exile is a heart far from its stolen body…
As trapped the government in exile is in peril, a boat ashore. Via Second World War we know that such governments are re-conquest mechanisms, but in this case, neither is war nor any efficiency of UNO. While the whole world, 50 years ago just gave Tibet to China - That was an imperialistic share of the world which is still active today - Tibetan people should reinvents Tibet outside its boundaries, creates little Tibets and push the people to reactivate non-alignment and work to change UN for a real peace structure and not a controlled machine for a still unbalanced world.

21st June, longest day of the year…

… So I woke up at 6a.m.. On its own, Saturday is Nepal’s week-end, so it is a washing and cleaning day for all families, mine included. But first I needed to get the water from downstairs as the tap answer my calls… of necessity.
Maybe the time sounds early but the kids from the HCS hostel woke up between 4 and 5 and developed the habit to ring at my door around 8 with the excitement provided by the idea of a walk on top of the fresh hills.
This Saturday they right at the door at 8 sharp. They went to play with the kittens while I knocked at Lisa’s door to wake her up. She’s a franco-brit, 22, whose master’s about the identity of exiled Tibetans in Dharamsala.
(e)Lisa(beth) is in Nepal to renew her Indian visa and we met two days ago on a protest where she benevolently took some photos, between solidarity and CPE protests’ nostalgia. 8.30 we were gone. We passed by 5 monasteries, have seen peasants working hard in their paddy field, a leech met with Pema Diki’s ankle, a hint of salt and it was gone (she was the one who reminded me to take some salt!). At Kopan there were nice flowers in the beautiful and peaceful Buddhist garden and we met with… Tsering and his sister arrived from Pokhara.
On our way back we ate green apricot (ripe it was), big chips and pokaras with the ubiquitous chilly.

On the way to Buddhanath we said bye-bye to the kids and went for lunch. After that we met Kelsang at the back of a motorbike heading to the consulate. He told us that everybody was already hiding in the streets around.
This day the protest answered to the Olympic shame approaching Lhasa. To go to the Chinese consulate we had to walk because it was banda. Banda is Nepali word which mean ‘closed’ and also define a strike (more like a block-us). Last Friday it was because a maoist MP locked a parliament colleague in the toilets. This Saturday (and for seven days) it is because the students demand 50% off their bus ticket as the companies announced a hike in the prices (the last in long list of announcement).

After half an hour walk, with Lisa we reached the side walls of the consulate of the badly behaved and authoritarian state. Tibetans were already shouting slogans and being sent to the police pickups and small trucks which limited capacity allowed the protesters to organize themselves in small groups and to make the standing up last.
It was a very hot day. We’ve seen red faced police men, not cool police women, laughing cops. The sun and their only day off suppressed drove them mad. There one slammed in a group, here one slapped a Tibetan face. Even one young police guy punched a Tibetan girl. I shouted at him and he looked furiously at me. On the ground they use the UN passivity, happily there are always some journalists. But last Thursday Miss T said, “a child’s father has been badly beaten”. In front of two UN staff the Nepali police put a young girl in their truck. She was obviously under 18 and even for Nepal it is unlawful… the UN staff told me afterwards. Meanwhile Tibetans don’t play a game, they put all their heart each time. Each time at least two women faint. This day a young adult had an epilepsy crisis. Last Saturday Police arrested 600, this Saturday they arrested nearly 700 following Miss P. statement. On the day, from the jail she sent me a SMS saying “I’m at zoo. We are animals at the police station zoo.”

Once Police swept all Tibetans from the consulate’s street, we headed towards Durbar Square eating a chilly cucumber on the way. At the Royal Place he had tea behind one of the temple, between a willing-to-be-photographed saddhu (against hundred of Rupees) and the village madman.
There we met Peshal, 22 too, student at Alliance Francaise, “which organized Fete de la Musique” he said. Among few things he told us that he’s got nearly no more friend in Nepal, two remains but one’s just received his American visa while the other applied for an Australian student visa. So, Peshal wants to migrate to France.

On his fete de la musique program it was written “scene rock, Durbar Marg, 2p.m. to 9pm.”. To get an idea have look to the photos and videos

At night, around 7.30!!! I headed back home. Lisa found a young guy and a bike. Actually I was still willing to walk a bit more. I stopped for diner in a Nepali restaurant and had Chulo-alu (flat rice and spiced potatoes = 15 NRs).
Not far from Bouddha Gate I passed by a bunch of dancing and singing taxi drivers. The overjoyed guys ignored the 21st was international music celebration, to set loudly their music from one of the taxi was motivated by the earnings of the day, bandas are auspicious for them.
I reached the stupa at 8.30. there were still few monks on the kora and the security guards pushed away the last beggar, a completely broken body, as well as the street kids in their dirty and old clothes. They were scared but I asked them to stay with me. Together we shared of chocolate biscuit I bought with the remaining 10 rupees in my pockets. Then they set themselves under a a tin roof for the night. Lisa was waiting in the dark of the stair case. End of a very long day.Subara tri.