Tibet Issue in China

Tibet’s government and the Chinese government have been dealing with political issues ever since the beginning of the independence of the Republic of China. Tibet, a province of China, tried to claim its independence a few times. It all comes down to religion. Tibet, where many of the monks live, doesn’t get along with the rest of the mainland.

The Olympics are coming in about 4 months. All the Chinese government wants is peace and quite and positive publicity. Unfortunately, the Chinese government has been sending troops to Lhasa, Tibet to crack down on the protesters. The secret forces were also sent to SiChuan, YunNan and GanSu provinces to arrest the protestors there. Some rioters have been wounded and shot by the police according to the Chinese news agencies. The Chinese government has forced out all the foreign journalists in Tibet around the middle of March of 2008.

The U.S. government has asked China to use restraint against the protestors. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged the Chinese party to talk to the spiritual leader Dalai Lama. The Chinese President agreed to talk to Dalai Lama under the condition that he not support Tibet’s independence. The phone call is still being scheduled.

This is a challenging subject for the Chinese government to handle, especially at this moment when the entire world is watching. Hopefully, there will be a welcoming environment before the Olympics start.




http://voanews.com/english/2008-03-20-voa79.cfm

http://voanews.com/english/2008-03-20-voa67.cfm