Racial Discrimination in Tibet (2000)
Discrimination in Public Representation
General Intimidation and Oppression
There are generally two ways for governments to ensure the
loyalty and respect of its citizens - one is to hold true
to political promises and put the welfare of the people
first. The other is to use large contingents of armed
forces to impose its rule upon the people, and thereby
subdue resistance through intimidation and fear. The
structure of Communist Party rule undeniably owes a
great deal to the latter, particularly in "politically
volatile" regions such as the "TAR". The tri-partite
security collective of the Public Security Bureau (PSB),
the People's Armed Police (PAP) and the People's Liberation
Army (PLA), exist in contingents strongly disproportionate
to the local population, and function primarily to suppress
any form of dissidence against the Party rule. This is
evident from the way they conduct themselves in public:
"Their intimidatory posture is never relaxed, giving a
more accurate insight into their real purpose. Their daily
training is a noisy affair and is often carried out in
public areas. Ranks of PAP troops jog daily through local
streets, assault rifles slung over their shoulders. Karate
kicks and punches, accompanied by fierce howls, are usually
practiced in their own exercise grounds but occasionally in
public parks or the local sports ground. Even the slashing,
goring combat techniques for fixed bayonets are sometimes
drilled in full view of citizens. Locals know the PAP's
task is not defence against foreign invasion, but to deal
with internal problems."
It is hardly surprising that in this climate of fear
cultivated by the Communist Party, Tibetans think
twice before protesting against their ill-treatment and
discrimination.
Another method designed to silence dissidence against the
Party regime has been to divide, disperse and thus weaken
the Tibetan population where possible. In a classified
document obtained by the International Campaign for
Tibet from a Beijing Propaganda Conference in 1993,
the following methods were outlined for "eradicating the
Tibetan Opposition":
"In the whole of the 1990s, it will not be possible to
eradicate splittist forces, yet it may be possible to
divide them and tear them apart" Different strategies
must be adopted to use their differences, to deal with
them differently in order to divide and destroy them."
Indeed, the very act of dividing old Tibet into five
separate provinces has seriously affected the unity
of Tibetan citizens. The varied laws and regulations
applicable in different areas of the country, even within
provinces, has led to inequality within the Tibetan race
as a whole, which is already struggling under the weight
of heavy discrimination at the hands of the Chinese. The
division of the country was therefore a shrewd decision
on the part of the Communist Party, and has undoubtedly
reduced Tibetan representation and power to protest. As
the Alliance for Research for Tibet concluded,
"Parcelling Tibetan land among five provincial
administrations created a firm foundation upon which to
create obstacles for Tibetan solidarity. In four out of
those five, Tibetans have been made into minorities. In
three their share of representation is so miniscule as
to be effectively non-existent. That provincial bosses
would be attuned to the voices of a 1% minority would be
a ludicrous expectation even under the most fundamental
democratic system."
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