Tenzin Tsomo, Grade 11
UWC Red Cross Nordic
Every human deserves freedom. Every human has undeniable rights. Rights that no one should take away. But still, injustice remains. And still, monstrosity lurks in the shadows of plain daylight. My country Tibet was invaded in 1959 by the Communist Party of China. They disguised themselves as angels sent to help. They formed relations with the Tibetan, made them trust them, and kept at it for ten years. And one day they attacked at the crack of dawn. The unassuming Tibetans who had considered them their saviours were forced to come to terms with the betrayal. And even before coming to terms, they were slaughtered.
It’s been sixty-one years since Tibet lost its independence. Sixty-one years of repression, torture, and injustice. Beijing called this occupation a “peaceful liberation”. A peaceful liberation where more than 1.2 million unarmed monks and nomads were massacred, over 6,000 religious institutes were destroyed and thousands of innocents imprisoned. This so-called liberation exiled and caged the people they sought to liberate; this occupation never was done with liberation in mind. It was merely a desperate seize for power.
The Tibetans that were exiled came with nothing to a foreign land with no knowledge of the language, food, weather, and culture. India was entirely different from Tibet. The cold breeze of the mountains was replaced with hot, humid air of the lowlands. The clothes made from the fur of the Yaks were replaced with flimsy cotton whites. In a blink of an eye, the entire lives of the Tibetans were overthrown. Many died of depression for not being able to come to terms with reality. My grandfather said that some Tibetans spent their entire lives near the Himalayan borders waiting for someone to call them back. For someone to say: “Come back home!!” For someone to say: “Everything is alright now”. But no one said anything; it has been sixty-one years since then. Since the time when everything the Tibetans knew got uprooted in front of their eyes. Since the time their whole lives and dreams were thrown away because of someone else’s greed for power. Since the time they lost their independence.
The Tibetans survived through this battle, and it could not have been possible if it were not for His Holiness, the Dalai Lama. He was faced with a global superpower, slowly eating his country away. The whole country’s fate depended on him, and he was only thirteen. The Chinese government presented him as a tyrant to the world. A thirteen-year-old monk whose religion only allowed him to foster compassion for all beings was shown as an oppressor and made to flee from his own country. For the assassination attempts wouldn’t stop and he was the only hope left for the Tibetans. Having lost everything they held dear, The Dalai Lama was their last string. And we are truly grateful that he survived and has spread awareness of our situation to the world. He is what holds our community together.
Our religion encourages love and peace, but the unjust reality frequently arouses hatred. Our patriotism and faith contradict greatly. But Tibetans choose peace over hatred every time. After all, it would be a lost cause to go to war with China; a massacre bound to happen. So instead of letting the anger fester and infect us, we save our religion, our culture, and our language. Ultimately, the land does not make a country by itself; we still haven’t lost all of Tibet, and it will be so until the very end of time. The roof of the world, the third pole, the forbidden country. Tibet nevertheless lives on.
It’s been sixty-one years since Tibet lost its independence. Sixty-one years of repression, torture, and injustice. Beijing called this occupation a “peaceful liberation”. A peaceful liberation where more than 1.2 million unarmed monks and nomads were massacred, over 6,000 religious institutes were destroyed and thousands of innocents imprisoned. This so-called liberation exiled and caged the people they sought to liberate; this occupation never was done with liberation in mind. It was merely a desperate seize for power.
The Tibetans that were exiled came with nothing to a foreign land with no knowledge of the language, food, weather, and culture. India was entirely different from Tibet. The cold breeze of the mountains was replaced with hot, humid air of the lowlands. The clothes made from the fur of the Yaks were replaced with flimsy cotton whites. In a blink of an eye, the entire lives of the Tibetans were overthrown. Many died of depression for not being able to come to terms with reality. My grandfather said that some Tibetans spent their entire lives near the Himalayan borders waiting for someone to call them back. For someone to say: “Come back home!!” For someone to say: “Everything is alright now”. But no one said anything; it has been sixty-one years since then. Since the time when everything the Tibetans knew got uprooted in front of their eyes. Since the time their whole lives and dreams were thrown away because of someone else’s greed for power. Since the time they lost their independence.
The Tibetans survived through this battle, and it could not have been possible if it were not for His Holiness, the Dalai Lama. He was faced with a global superpower, slowly eating his country away. The whole country’s fate depended on him, and he was only thirteen. The Chinese government presented him as a tyrant to the world. A thirteen-year-old monk whose religion only allowed him to foster compassion for all beings was shown as an oppressor and made to flee from his own country. For the assassination attempts wouldn’t stop and he was the only hope left for the Tibetans. Having lost everything they held dear, The Dalai Lama was their last string. And we are truly grateful that he survived and has spread awareness of our situation to the world. He is what holds our community together.
Our religion encourages love and peace, but the unjust reality frequently arouses hatred. Our patriotism and faith contradict greatly. But Tibetans choose peace over hatred every time. After all, it would be a lost cause to go to war with China; a massacre bound to happen. So instead of letting the anger fester and infect us, we save our religion, our culture, and our language. Ultimately, the land does not make a country by itself; we still haven’t lost all of Tibet, and it will be so until the very end of time. The roof of the world, the third pole, the forbidden country. Tibet nevertheless lives on.
www.unitedworldwide.co