Copyright 1997 Federal Information Systems Corporation

Federal News Service

MAY 13, 1997, TUESDAY

PREPARED TESTIMONY OF LODI G. GYARI
SPECIAL ENVOY OF HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA
AND PRESIDENT, INTERNATIONAL CAMPAIGN FOR TIBET
BEFORE THE SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE
SUBJECT - HEARING ON TIBET

BODY: Thank you Senator Helms for scheduling this timely hearing on Tibet, so soon after the Dalai Lama's visit to Washington barely three weeks ago. It is an honor to appear before this distinguished Committee and in the company of Senator Pell, Ambassador Kirkpatrick and your other guests. My name is Lodi Gyari. I am the Special Envoy of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and President of the International Campaign for Tibet, a Washington-based organization dedicated to the promotion of human rights and democratic freedoms for the people of Tibet. I have served in both the Tibetan Parliament and Cabinet in Exile in Dharamsala, India. Mr. Chairman, I would like once again to convey my deep appreciation to the Committee on Foreign Relations for the leadership it continues to take in the careful examination of the situation in Tibet. As a result, the Congress and the American people have gained a better understanding of the impact of China's occupation of Tibet and the Dalai Lama's efforts to halt the obliteration of the Tibetan identity. This in turn has resulted in the United States providing the Tibetan people with important programs that benefit in real ways Tibetans inside Tibet and living in exile, such as: -- The Voice of America and Radio Free Asia Tibetan language programs broadcast into Tibet for two precious hours every day. We are looking forward to longer broadcasts and broadcasts in the Kham and Amdo dialects. -- Fulbright scholarships for Tibetans have assured that at least in exile some Tibetans have a chance for higher education in the United States. To date, more than 100 young Tibetans have had the great privilege of studying at American universities.

-- Humanitarian assistance to Tibetan refugees has provided temporary shelter, needed medicines and emergency care for new arrivals. Senator Feinstein, as well as several Committee staffers, recently visited the transit center in Katmandu and can attest to the appalling conditions of the new arrivals from Tibet.

-- The UNHCR Tibet program in Katmandu is completely funded by U.S. dollars. Without it, many Tibetans would not be able to escape into freedom as they would receive little or no assistance in their passage through Nepal to safety in India. Mr. Chairman, while I am grateful to the Nepalese government and people for a tradition of hospitality extended to the Tibetan refugees, of late we have become increasingly concerned about Beijing's influence with the Nepalese authorities.

Situation in Tibet

Nearly 50 years after the People's Liberation Army began its so-called peaceful liberation of Tibet, China continues to forcibly occupy Tibet; the situation inside Tibet continues to deteriorate, despite repeated claims that the Chinese are in Tibet only to help the Tibetan people; human rights are severely curtailed; and thousands of Tibetans continue to leave their homeland each year.

Chinese authorities have renewed attacks against the Tibetan Buddhist culture, reminiscent of practices during the Cultural Revolution. Their interference in the religious process of choosing the reincarnation of the Panchen Lama is symbolic of China's contempt for the deep religiosity of the Tibetan people. Political "re-education" campaigns imposed on monks and nuns have resulted in mass expulsions, imprisonments and even some deaths. Just last week, China sentenced Chadrel Rinpoche, an elderly Tibetan monk who led the original search committee for the Panchen Lama, to six years for communicating with the Dalai Lama during the search process. After four decades of Chinese rule, the education of Tibetans is inadequate and discriminatory, although there is some "lip service" given to the protection of Tibetan language and literature. In fact, Tibetan children are taught in the Tibetan language only through the 4th, sometimes 6th grade. Because most schools are unheated, the cost of buying blankets has overcome any limited resources dedicated to buying food. Most Tibetan children drop out of school around 2nd grade and go home where they can be fed and can lend a hand to families increasingly living in deep poverty. Those Tibetan children who reach 6th grade are faced with the added obstacle of the middle school exam which is administered in the Chinese language only. Experimental Tibetan language programs in upper schools, including Tibet University in Lhasa, have been severely curtailed, even though they have been very successful. Even in those programs, however, Tibetans are most often taught orally in the Tibetan language, but with Chinese language text books.

Tibetan parents must send their children out to the Tibetan-run schools in India to receive a traditional Tibetan education -- to learn their mother tongue, their history, and to live freely in their culture. Monks and nuns must leave Tibet to practice their religion freely and fully. But the underlying motivation of every Tibetan who undertakes the dangerous trip out of Tibet -- or the more than 700 Tibetan political prisoners languishing in Chinese prisons -- is the sense of Tibetan national identity which is increasingly threatened each year as Tibetans are forced to live under the conditions of foreign conquest. As the Dalai Lama has said, there is a growing desperation in Tibet, a desperation matched only by that of the Chinese themselves who have failed at every effort to eradicate the Tibetan identity.

Status of Tibet

Tibet is a land mass of 2.5 million square kilometers with a population of about 6 million Tibetans. In 1949 and 1950 the independent nation of Tibet was invaded by troops of the People's Liberation Army, who claimed to be "peacefully liberating" the Tibetan people. China's unprovoked aggression violated Tibet's national integrity, killed thousands of innocent people, and deposed a legitimate government, most certainly not "a peaceful liberation."

After unsuccessfully appealing to the United Nations, the Tibetan Government in 1951 was compelled to sign a "17-Point Agreement" devised by the Chinese government. Even the autonomy guaranteed under the agreement was soon violated as China moved quickly to consolidate its control over Tibet.

Despite a wholly inadequate and unprepared military force, the Tibetans' defiance of the Chinese invaders erupted into a massive revolt by 1956. According to China's own statistics, 87,000 Tibetans were killed just in Lhasa and the adjoining areas alone during the 16- month period following the uprising in Lhasa in March 1959. His Holiness the Dalai Lama was forced into exile and 80,000 Tibetans followed. The international response to these events was muted by world events, geopolitical realities, and Tibet's own isolationism. Although the international community did not actively become involved in Tibet, in 1959, 1961 and 1965, the United Nations Generally Assembly passed three resolutions that strongly condemned China for its actions and recognized the Tibetan people's right to self-determination.

The Chinese not only illegally invaded and occupied independent Tibet, they also divided up the country. Most of Kham was annexed into the neighboring Chinese provinces of Sichuan and Yunnan by the Chinese, while a part of Amdo was incorporated into the Chinese province of Gansu. A major portion of Amdo was renamed Qinghai and turned into a Chinese province. This has been an attempt to weaken the unity of the Tibetan people, and to divide and rule, an endeavor that has not succeeded.

We hear time and time again from China about its historical claim to Tibet. These claims are simply not true. Prior to the Chinese invasion, Tibet was a fully functioning independent state. In its 1959 and 1960 reports on Tibet, the International Commission of Jurists concluded that at the time of China's invasion, Tibet demonstrated all the necessary conditions of statehood. The 1960 report states:

"In 1950, there was a people and a territory, and a government which functioned in that territory, conducting its own domestic affairs free from any outside authority...Foreign relations of Tibet were conducted exclusively by the Government of Tibet and countries with whom Tibet had foreign relations are shown by official documents to have treated Tibet in practice as an independent State."

China bases its early claim of sovereignty over Tibet on the understanding that both Tibet and China formed part of the same empire during the Mongol and Manchu dynasties. However, unlike China, Tibet was never completely absorbed into the empire by the Mongols or the Manchus, even though both the Mongols and later the Manchus periodically exercised strong political influence in Tibet.

What China chooses to ignore in its arguments on Tibet is that the Mongols and the Manchus were foreign powers that conquered and ruled China, a fact clearly accepted by Dr. Sun Yat-sen the "founder of modem China" when he called for an overthrow of Manchu foreign domination of China. China's claim to Tibet then is somewhat akin to the United States claiming sovereignty over Canada based on the logic that Canada, like the United States, was at one time part of the British empire. One of the other problems that has confused the historical status of Tibet is the Euro-centric legalistic interpretation of Tibet's relation with China. For example, Great Britain incorrectly used the term "suzerainty" to describe the relationship between China and Tibet beginning in the early 20th century. At that time, competition between the British and Russian empires over influence in inner Asia began to heat up. Britain would learn fairly quickly that China was powerless to assert its so- called "suzerainty." It is regrettable that the United States administration is prone to sweeping statements about Tibet's status without qualifying its remarks. There is no need for me to inform this Committee that the U.S. position on Tibet was never based on the premise that Tibet was a part of China. It is an open secret that successive U.S. administrations publicly and covertly opposed China's annexation of Tibet and made vigorous efforts to support the Tibetan government to resist the Chinese occupation and refute the "17-Point Agreement," and to seek international support for the legitimate rights of the Tibetan people.

Let me cite just one topical example. It is taken from a CRS Issue Brief on China's MFN Status dated August 12, 1996. "The United States has applied most-favored-nation (MFN) treatment in trade as a matter of statutory policy, enacted in 1934, generally to all of its trading partners. This policy was modified with the enactment of section 5 of the Trade Agreements Extension Act of 1951 (P.L. 82-50), which required the President to suspend MFN status of the Soviet Union and all countries of the then Sino-Soviet bloc. Under this statutory mandate, President Truman suspended China's most- favored-nation status as of September 1, 1951. After China's occupation of Tibet, that country's MFN status was suspended as of July 14, 1952."

This reference, in compendium with all the basic principles of customary international law, the Charter of the United Nations and other agreements to which China is a party, make clear that the invasion of Tibet by the People's Liberation Army was an illegal act. And I commend the United States Congress for stating as much in the State Department Authorization Act (P.L. 102-138) signed into law by President Bush in 1991. I appeal to the Clinton administration which has voiced strong support for a negotiated settlement of the Tibet issue, and especially to our friends at the State Department, to refrain from categorical statements on Tibet's political relationship with China.

Negotiations

Just three weeks ago, in the House International Relations Committee room, the Dalai Lama addressed the World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet and once again explicitly stated his commitment to the Tibetan issue within the framework of "one country, two systems." Mr. Chairman, I have appended his remarks to my written testimony.

The Dalai Lama is looking to the future to define Tibet's relationship with China, for it is the next generation of Tibetan and Chinese peoples who must live within that relationship. Up until now, the Chinese leadership has stubbornly talked only of the past. Maybe a new Chinese leadership will see that the road to peace lies ahead, not behind us.

The Dalai Lama's just-concluded, historic visit to Taiwan is bound to have far-reaching and positive implications for Tibet's relations with Taiwan and with China. The enormous success of the visit demonstrated that there is no need for animosity between the Tibetan and Chinese peoples. Beijing must now own up to the fact that they cannot credibly project the Dalai Lama and his message as sinister and anti-Chinese. The very fact that the Dalai Lama has reached out in friendship to Taiwan, even as it lays political claim to Tibet, corroborates his sincerity in finding a solution to the Tibetan issue that sets aside the issue of independence.

A new leadership in Beijing can take advantage of the moral leadership of the Dalai Lama and the international support for his middle way approach, to bring an end to the ongoing conflict in Tibet. Similarly, many Chinese people -- those inside China and out --scholars, entrepreneurs, and even government officials -- have come to understand that their national dignity and individual decency is diminished by the continued repression of the Tibetan people.

China's own internal stability is put at risk as unrest in Eastern Turkistan (Xinjiang), Inner Mongolia and Tibet continue to be handled with increased repression rather than political solutions. The uncompromised integrity of the Dalai Lama, and the historic veneration of the Dalai Lama by the Mongols, should suggest to the Chinese leadership that he could be key in bringing peace and stability to these border areas. The new generation of "Tibetans, Uygurs and Mongols have come to understand that they do not have to endure the tremendous persecution and discrimination they have suffered, and continue to suffer. They are now emerging ideologically sharpened, conscious of their own rights and eager, like the Chinese, for the rule of law.

In recent times, some members of China's Politburo have begun to talk about the supremacy of the Constitution which, at one time, would have been seen as a blasphemous attack against the Communist Party. It seems the Chinese are quite comfortable talking about the rule of law, but as the saying goes, "seeing is believing." The Chinese government can show its commitment to the rule of law by adhering to its own legal formulation for Hong Kong. But I should caution that China's commitment to Hong Kongis eerily similar to the promise of national regional autonomy made to Tibet in 1951. Mr. Chairman, China has demonstrated with the abduction of the young Panchen Lama, the naming of the pretender Panchen Lama, and the recent sentence of the Chadrel Rinpoche, that they are turning their back on international sentiment in support of a negotiated settlement. Instead, China's current policy seems to be to await the death of the Dalai Lama and then force a successor upon the Tibetan people.

Fundamentally, China's abduction of the Panchen Lama is not simply a matter of reincarnation politics. Rather, it is an act of retribution by an atheistic socialist state against the free practice of religious freedoms by the people of Tibet.

Suggested Actions Mr. Mr.

Chairman, the Chinese conquest of Tibet in 1949-50 and the history of Chinese rule of Tibet since that time has been a tragedy for Tibetan and world civilization and a crime of cultural genocide against the Tibetan people. If current Chinese policies continue, the tense situation that already exists inside Tibet could erupt and spread to other regions and would present China and the international community with a far bigger and dangerous problem. This grave situation can only be ameliorated by the international community in which the United States must take the lead in supporting the Dalai Lama's far-sighted and conciliatory initiative. Therefore, we urge the United States to take the following steps:

1. Elevate the issue of Tibet to an important factor in bilateral relations with the People's Republic of China;

2. Use economic and political leverage to pressure China to respect Tibet's distinct religion and culture and to begin Tibet negotiations with the Dalai Lama on solving the Tibet problem;

3. Establish a senior position within the administration, to be filled in consultation with the Congress, for the purpose of coordinating U.S. policy towards Tibet and, in particular, to help initiate the process of negotiations between the Dalai Lama or his representatives and the Chinese leadership;

4. Work with the European Union and other countries to formulate a multilateral approach to the Tibet issue. Raise Tibet in appropriate international fora, including U.N. organs;

5. Continue humanitarian assistance to Tibetan refugees who flee repression in Tibet and consider additional assistance until such a time as a congenial environment for the Tibetan identity exists again in Tibet;

6. Urge China to release immediately the 11th Panehen Lama, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, and the several hundred other political prisoners in Tibet;

7. Support, monitor, and where necessary, expand and improve the Tibetan language programs of Voice of America and Radio Free Asia; and

8. Urge China to provide free access to representatives of human rights monitoring organizations, as well as the international media, to Tibet. Thank you again, Mr. Chairman, for this opportunity to testify before your Committee.

THE DALAI LAMA

Address to the World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet by His Holiness the Dalai Lama April 23, 1997 It is my great pleasure to address this gathering of distinguished parliamentarians. I know that some of you have come from very far away to discuss the issues affecting Tibet and how best to promote a peaceful resolution to the situation in my country. The people of Tibet are always encouraged by the support shown by parliaments around the world, and on behalf of the Tibetan people, I want to thank each of you for joining us here today.

I would like to particularly thank the Co-Chair of the Congressional Host Committee, Congressman Benjamin Gilman, who has been so committed to the Tibetan people for many years, as well as the International Campaign for Tibet, for hosting this convention here in Washington, DC. I would also like to thank the Tibetan parliament, the Assembly of Tibetan People's Deputies, who is co-hosting this Convention.

Bemuse we are honored to hold this convention in the great halls of the U.S. Congress, I would also like to express the sincere gratitude of all the Tibetan people to the U.S. Congress for its leadership on the issue of Tibet. From its historic resolution of 1991 declaring Tibet to be an occupied country, to the annual provision of humanitarian assistance to Tibetan refugees, to the establishment of the Tibetan language Voice of America program and Radio Free Asia, the Congress has been at the forefront of international efforts to pressure the Chinese government to change its policies towards Tibet.

It has now been 48 years since the Chinese government first occupied my country. During this period the Tibetan people have endured great hardships and they continue to be denied the many basic freedoms which we in the free world take for g .ranted, such as freedom of speech, of association and of religion.

I am deeply concerned for the well-being of my people. In recent years, the local Chinese authorities in Tibet have dropped all pretense of respecting Tibet's unique cultural and religious traditions and is now engaged in a systematic effort to destroy 'all that remains Tibetan in Tibet through a host of repressive regulations and practices. This, coupled with the continuing influx of Chinese settlers who now outnumber Tibetans, has led my people to become more and more marginalized in all spheres of life. The situation inside Tibet brings me tremendous sorrow and my most urgent objective has always been to end the suffering of the Tibetan people. My top priority is to protect and save the Tibetan people's cultural identity.

Accordingly, I have tried to adopt a pragmatic approach to find a negotiated solution which is mutually agreeable to the Tibetan and Chinese people. At the same time, I have counseled my people to pursue a path of non-violence even though I understand their frustrations at the lack of any positive developments.

My hope is that the Chinese leadership will appreciate the importance of a peaceful settlement to the Tibetan situation, for no matter what the outcome, the Tibetan and Chinese 'people will have to live side by side. That is why the many proposals I have put forward over the years to peacefully resolve the situation in Tibet have been made in the spirit of reconciliation and compromise.

It is my belief that in order to have constructive negotiations we should concentrate on the future, and let history be history. Of course, as I have said consistently, Tibet was not a part of China before 1949. Even Chinese leaders such as the Republic's founder, Sun Yat Sen and Mao Tse Tung, acknowledged that Tibetans were a distinct nation, culturally, ethnically, linguistically, geographically, but also politically. Thus Mao talked of China' "foreign debt" to Tibet.

Let us leave the past aside and agree to start negotiations, without preconditions, about the future. For it is the future of our people that is at stake. In 1979 Mr. Deng Xiaoping stated that "everything except independence can be discussed and resolved." I responded positively to this statement. I have categorically stated that I am not insisting on independence for Tibet and my proposal is for genuine self-rule for the Tibetan people.

In fact, it was ten years ago that I announced my Five Point Peace Plan here in the Congress of the United States. In that plan I laid out my thoughts on a possible solution to the Tibetan situation and expressed my willingness to take into consideration the legitimate needs of China. The plan called for Tibet to be transformed into a Zone of Ahimsa or non-violence and for the Chinese government to abandon its population transfer of Chinese settlers into Tibet; to respect the Tibetan people's fundamental human rights; to restore and protect Tibet's environment; and to begin earnest negotiations on the issue of Tibet.

The Chinese leadership did not respond positively to this proposal and instead indicated that it was not specific enough. Therefore, in 1988 at the European Parliament in Strasbourg in 1988, I came out with a detailed framework for a negotiated solution. In recent years I have made further overtures by reiterating my interest in negotiations time and time again, each time expressing a willingness not to raise the issue of independence. I had sincerely hoped that Mr. Deng Xiaoping would be able to find a solution to the situation in Tibet during his lifetime. In many ways he was a great leader who brought new prosperity to the Chinese people. But he seemed unable to follow through with his promise to enter into substantive negotiations on the issue of Tibet.

I would therefore like to take this opportunity to say to the new leadership in China that I remain ready to enter into honest negotiations so that we can end the turmoil in Tibet. This is not just a critical issue for the Tibetan people, but it is also in the long- term good of China.

Peace and stability of the region depends on a solution to the Tibetan situation because Tibet occupies a strategic location in Asia and has historically played a role in maintaining peace in Central and South Asia. I am hopeful that a forward-looking and sincere leadership will emerge in Beijing who will understand the benefit of peacefully resolving the situation in Tibet.

At this critical juncture in China's history, the international community should encourage China to develop to its full potential by supporting the democratic forces in China. In order to do so the leaders of the world should have the farsighted wisdom to point out China's weaknesses to enable it to become a fully-respected and equal member of the international community. Economic and democratic developments should be addressed jointly, as they are intricately linked.

It is my sincere belief that it would be unproductive to isolate China. Therefore, I have always called for a policy of engagement with China. But at the same time, the international community should be proactive in its dedication to the principles of human rights and democracy that the free men and women everywhere hold so dear. As we are here in Washington, I would also add that because of America's moral and economic leadership around the world, the U.S. has a critical role to play in encouraging China to develop in the right direction.

An important development currently underway which deserves serious attention by the international community is Hong Kong's impending reversion to Chinese rule. There are tremendous similarities between the system of "one country, two systems" China has agreed to uphold with Hong Kong and the system of rule that the Chinese leadership imposed on Tibet shortly after the occupation of Tibet began. Even the details are hauntingly similar, right down to the establishment of a Preparatory Committee which in Tibet, gradually became the de facto government of Tibet, even though I remained the titular head.

I hope that the international community will learn from the bitter experiences we were forced to endure during that painful period in Tibet's history. I also hope that China will honor the wishes of the people of Hong Kong, as they failed to do in Tibet. It is certainly true that the Chinese government will gain invaluable experience during the process of Hong Kong's reversion to Chinese rule that could provide them with a new perspective. The Chinese leadership should see that the U.S. and international support for Tibet or for Hong Kong is not "anti-Chinese". Rather, it represents an outpouring of concern for the suffering of the Tibetan people and an appreciation for our just cause. This gathering today of parliamentarians from around the world is an example of this support. Clearly those of you here today do not hold any ill will towards China. You have come here because of your genuine concern for Tibet and China. In recent years an increasing number of Chinese individuals, some still living in China, have expressed sympathy for the plight of the Tibetan people. I believe this is because they are gradually becoming aware that there is more to the issue of Tibet than Chinese propaganda would suggest. I am a strong believer in the strength and power of human relationships and have taken the opportunity to interact as much as possible with my Chinese brothers and sisters. These meetings have enabled us to understand our mutual concerns and interests and I believe they are the key to a resolution in Tibet.

My recent visit to Taiwan illustrates this growing understanding and concern by Chinese-speaking people for the culture of Tibet. I believe that in the long run this will help establish mutual understanding and respect between the Tibetan and Chinese people. During my visit I was greatly impressed by the openness and frankness with which the Taiwanese people were able to discuss issues which concerned them. The democratic developments in Taiwan can certainly become a role model for China where the people continue to be denied a role in the political decision making process.

In closing, I would like to thank the representatives from around the world who are gathered here today for your outstanding efforts on behalf of the Tibetan people. The Tibetan people's cultural and religious identity is slowly disappearing in the face of China's continued repression in Tibet. We cannot succeed in our efforts to save the Tibetan culture without your support.

Thank you.

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