Sun, Sep 06, 2009 page8

• Dalai Lama rose above the hacks

  • By Cao Changqing 曹長青
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  The Dalai Lama arrived in Taiwan late last Sunday night on his third visit to Taiwan. This visit differed from past visits because the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) had worked together to defame him. Pan-blue legislators said his visit was nothing but a political show, while the Chinese-language, pro-unification United Daily News said he was using the bones of those who died in Typhoon Morakot to build a political stage for himself.

  Ye Xiaowen (葉小文), head of China’s State Administration for Religious Affairs, said the Dalai Lama’s decision to come at this time proved even more unruly; he described the religious leader as a “human calamity.”

  President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and senior KMT officials fell over themselves promising that they would not meet with him. In this way, Ma, who has been proven incompetent in the aftermath of Typhoon Morakot, curried favor with China’s dictators and showcased his ability to beg and grovel before Beijing.

  The way the CCP vilified the Dalai Lama was to be expected, since this is how these communist ruffians have always behaved. They do not understand the human language and have even less understanding of civilized values such as friendliness, sympathy and humane treatment.

  Ma and his pan-blue legislator cronies, however, have been exposed for the pack of liars that they are. The way they kowtowed to China’s Taiwan Affairs Office is an embarrassment to Taiwan’s democratically elected president and the legislature.

  For 20 years, the Dalai Lama has advocated abandoning Tibetan independence and accepting that Tibet is part of China, merely asking that Tibet in return be given a high degree of autonomy. He can’t possibly go further than that.

  The Dalai Lama once said that Tibetans have already given up everything they once had and have nothing left to give China.

  Some dissidents voiced doubts over the usefulness of the Tibetan government-in-exile’s strategy toward Beijing three weeks ago at the International Sino-Tibetan Conference in Geneva, Switzerland, but the Dalai Lama once again made it clear that he will stick to his “middle way” in handling relations with China.

  It was this middle way that he had in mind when he visited Taiwan, so what sort of political activities could he possibly have taken part in?

  He has already been forced into agreeing that Tibet is a part of China and keeps repeating that he does not and will not seek independence for Tibet. What do Ma and the other proponents of eventual unification want the Dalai Lama to do? The 6 million people of Tibet remain colonized and the Dalai Lama has been in exile for five decades. Are pan-blue political hacks totally devoid of sympathy and human emotion?

  The Dalai Lama is a religious leader who has always stressed peace and non-violence. So, are pan-blue politicians really the same as those in the CCP, who view the Dalai Lama as an enemy?

  The Ma administration leans entirely toward China and fears the CCP. The Dalai Lama knew very well that he would face unfriendliness and even enmity from the pan-blue camp by coming to Taiwan, with Ma’s aides even saying they would dictate exactly where the Dalai Lama could go and what he could do during his short visit.

  Despite this, the Dalai Lama came, and he comforted disaster victims. This clearly shows he is more concerned with human life than politics.

  Despite being attacked by the KMT and the CCP, he refused to give in. Taiwanese should welcome and be grateful for his visit.

  The Dalai Lama is the only religious leader in Asia who enjoys a good reputation around the globe, and leaders of many democratic nations feel a deep sense of pride when they meet him.

  Two years ago, the US Congress awarded the Dalai Lama the Congressional Gold Medal, with congressional leaders and then-president George W. Bush attending the ceremony. It is unbelievable and infuriating that a group of lowly political hacks in Taiwan attacked and tried to defame this spiritual leader.

  Supporters were asked to welcome the Dalai Lama by making a T-shaped gesture with their hands to represent Taiwan and Tibet and as a gesture of thanks for the love he has shown and as a form of protest against the pan-blue camp’s abuse of power.

  The public is becoming more aware of the government’s approach. Its officials are incompetent and are becoming increasingly adept at collaborating with the CCP. Their actions prove the KMT is not a political opponent, but a political enemy of Taiwan.

  Cao Changqing is a writer based in the US.

  TRANSLATED BY DREW CAMERON
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