Tsering Woeser is the foremost Tibetan writer in Tibet or China today. She published these entries in her blog ( http://woeser.middle-way.net/?action=show&id=403 ) to record the incident in Tibet. According to RFA, she has been under house arrest in Beijing since March 10.
March 26
It was reported that at the Panchen Lama's main temple, the Tashilhunpo Monastery in Shigatse, monks staged a protest that lasted a few days. However, because of strict control by armed police, these monks were not able to walk out of the temple. The current situation is not clear yet. Over a dozen ordinary Tibetan people held a protest at Tashilhunpo Square. However they were only able to walk a few steps before they were all were arrested immediately.
At the Sagya Monastery, the main temple in Sagya County, Xigaze Prefecture, monks also held continuous protests for a few days. Currently the temple is under the surveillance of the armed police.
It was also reported that in Luohuo, Ganzi Tibetan Prefecture monks and ordinary citizens staged a protest on March 24, and the next day, 90 nuns from Ege Temple also staged a protest. The head of Jueri Temple and over 30 monks were arrested. On the same day, the regime also robbed the bodies of the Tibetans shot on March 24, and burned their bodies next to the local lake. This caused even more anger. On March 25, over a hundred monks from Sau Ling Monastery held a peaceful demonstration in that county. The local police dispersed the parade. Currently, there are protests occurring at Jueri Temple, Ege Temple and Sau Ling Monastery.
Reporters from 17 media organizations from outside China, including some from Hong Kong and Taiwan, arrived in Lhasa on the afternoon of March 25, and then the number of soldiers on the streets of Lhasa dramatically decreased, as the check stations set up on the streets withdrew. The arrest warrants that were continuously issued from March 19 to 24 were no longer in effect, as a demonstration of a "harmonious society" to show to the overseas reporters.
In fact, in the Tibetan residential areas, over 20 army tents that had been set up for a few days were not withdrawn. Fully armed soldiers are still on high alert there, ready to take orders. The reporters from outside China can only see what the Chinese regime demonstrates to them; they cannot see the truth of the events.
March 27
Taiwan media reported that a group of monks shouted "No freedom of religion", they also expressed that the "Dalai Lama shouldn't be blamed for the recent unrest." After the unrest on March 14, the Beijing regime escalated its control over Tibet, for a while forbidding any reporters to enter for reporting. After that arrangement, the Beijing regime allowed reporters from outside China to interview some people at Jokhang Temple (Tibet's largest temple).
As a result, nearly 30 monks shouted "Tibet has no freedom" to these reporters. They also told these reporters that the Dalai Lama had nothing to do with the recent anti-regime movement in Tibet.
In order to create an impression of "Freedom of Religion", while foreign media reporters were visiting the Sera monastery in Lhasa at 12:30pm on March 14, the local authorities ordered the monks at the Sera monastery to hold an "experience sharing conference." There are about 700 monks attending this activity during normal days, but the call for this one—arranged by the local authorities—was resisted by most of the monks and only a dozen monks attended.
In fact, the Sera monastery has been surrounded by the local police and military since March 11, all the Buddhist services and education classes have been forced to stop, only a small amount of food is provided to the monks by the monastery, the telephone line is on and off all the time, and there are also monks who are missing.
Drepung monastery in Lhasa has also been surrounded by the local police and military since March 10. The streets around the temple are full of policemen and military, and they scream and shoot guns in the direction of the temple, deterring the monks. It is reported that over a hundred monks from Drepung monastery have been arrested or are missing, all the Buddhist services and education classes have been forced to stop, and only a small amount of food is provided to the monks by the monastery. Also, the telephone and other communication facilities are switched on and off all the time.
China's state run media has reported on the Internet that the Lhasa People's Procuratorate has so far issued 30 arrest warrants for people alleged to have been involved in Lhasa's "3·14 riots." The Lhasa Public Security Bureau has issued eight "wanted circulars" with a list of 53 people in connection with the protests, with four of them having turned themselves in to the police and another four of them having been arrested. As of now, 289 people have turned themselves in to the police and 111 of them have been released. Lhasa local officials said, "At present, 414 "suspicious people" have been detained, most of them Tibetans but also some Han people."
The Tibetans who have been arrested mostly in Lhasa are those from the Kham and Amdo areas or those who have studied in India previously, as well as those who were former "political offenders." People have seen those arrested taken into trucks and deposited downtown. There was one witness who said that he had seen a couple of hundred Tibetans taken to a train, by armed policemen, which stopped at Lhasa's new train station. He said many of those Tibetans were monks and some were not wearing any shoes.
There is reliable information from a Tibetan refugee that many families in the Amdo area have been warned of serious consequences if their relatives or children attend any protest activities.
The official regimes of Gansu and Sichuan provinces are taking strict "security precautions" against all Tibetans. As long as you are a Tibetan, you are checked out and your phone is monitored, and so the local people all avoid talking about the "riot" in their phone calls. Phone calls from outside China to Tibet are disconnected right away if "riot" is mentioned.
As the protests in Tibet are still going on right now, the local authorities are sending military forces and policemen continuously. There have been witnesses who say that they have seen large amounts of military trucks carrying at least several thousand soldiers passing by Maqu County of Gansu Province and driving toward Tibet. Even in Shangri La, which is located in the north of Yunnan Province, there are tourists who have seen several thousand soldiers massed at the Tibetan border.
March 28, 2008
At noon, the Dalai Lama held a press conference in New Deli, India attended by members of the international media. Responding to the protests in Tibet, the Dalai Lama appealed to Chinese people around the world: "I call to leaders in China to re-evaluate your opinion of me and solve existing problems with practical approaches. I also hope that they will use their wisdom to have a meaningful dialogue with Tibetans."
The Dalai Lama added, "No matter how sincerely I have tried to prevent alienation between the Han and the Tibetan people, some Chinese leaders continue to make groundless accusations and criticisms. Especially since the Tibetan people's protests that started on March 10 in three regions of Tibet, mainly Lhasa, to express long-term grievances and grudges, the Chinese government immediately accused me of masterminding these incidents. In response, I urge the most authoritative and independent international organizations to thoroughly investigate the incidents to bring forward the truth."
Finally, the Dalai Lama said, "I would like to appeal to all the Han people around the world. Wherever you are, please pay attention to the problems existing between our two ethnic groups and to do your best to eliminate unnecessary doubt and distrust. Please make contributions to solve the problems in Tibet on the basis of tolerance and understanding."
In Amdo, Weizang, Ü-Tsang and other Tibetan regions, the Chinese authorities have started many activities and held many kinds of meetings to "reveal and condemn the acts of iniquity by the Dalai Lama group."
At such meetings, the Chinese communist regime's political puppets in Tibet, such as Pagbalha Geleg Namgyai (Vice-chairman of 11th Committee of the 11th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC)) and Tudeng Kezhu (member of the CPPCC national committee), were very quick to slander and condemn Dalai Lama. The so-called Tibetan scholars from China's Tibetology Research Institute, such as Zhen Dui, Lhakpa Phuntsogs and Da Tenzin, made public statements to help the Chinese communist regime to cover up the truth.
Apparently, vice Chairmen of Tibet Autonomous Region were most eager to ingratiate themselves with the Chinese communist regime because they have been most outspoken on TV to slander and condemn Dalai Lama than other government officials. The Tibetan people are very disgusted with them.
On the other hand, 75 internationally renowned Tibet experts have sent a joint letter to the Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party Hu Jintao, urging him to solve the problems in Tibet appropriately while severely condemning China's Tibet policy. Over 200 people worldwide have co-signed the letter so far. The letter is available on-line at http://www.tibetopenletter.org/. Soon the letter will be available in Tibetan and Mandarin as well.
Due to a large-scale protest initiated by monks and civilians in No.3 Region of Luhuo County, Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, more than 30 monks from Jueri Monastery, including its abbot, were arrested. Next two geshes (a gesh is monastic degree or rank) were arrested as well. Because the two geshes resisted arrest, they were wounded by the policemen. Presently only a few elderly monks remain in the monastery.
Over 200 people have been arrested in Luohuo's No.3 Region, including monks, nuns and civilians. It is alleged that the local authorities are prepared to start anti-Dalai Lama campaigns that require every resident to participate. But farmers allegedly are determined to boycott the campaign, which is likely to lead to bloodshed again.
It is alleged that the Secretary of Chonggu Township government in Luohuo County was stabbed several times while he was making house calls to demand every resident to condemn Dalai Lama in the near future. When an elderly woman complained, the secretary scolded her and beat her. Her son was provoked to stab the secretary and fled from the scene.
In Aba County, Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, the fully-armored military police entered Kirti Monastery at noon of March 28. Groups of three to four policemen and a fully-armored military policeman entered the monks' rooms to search for portraits of the Dalai Lama. The police locked the monks in their rooms and cordoned off the monastery. A military troop even dug out a defense line to prepare for a full-scale suppression. So far over 100 monks from Kirti Monastery have been arrested.
According to a report on March 27 by Wenhui Newspaper (established by China's Ministry of Propaganda), Vice Chairman of Tibet Autonomous Region, responding at a press conference in Lhasa on the evening of March 27 to the public protest of the monks from Jokhang Monastery who spoke to foreign media about their situation, confirmed that China did deprive monks of their the freedom at Jokhang Monastery.
But he added that it was justified by the incident caused by a small number of monks on March 14 and monks from Jokhang Monastery have not been ruled out as suspects. Following the "riots" in Lhasa, the Public Security Bureau is now collecting evidence and conducting investigation on possible suspects, including monks. The Vice Chairman also condemned the monks of telling lies in front of foreign reporters for the purpose of inverting the truth and misleading the nation.
According to observers of Tibet, his statement might have been designed to justify the likely suppression of the protesting monks. According to a report by Xu Po from Voice of America, the Vice Chairman said, "The authorities have found leads that will prove the Dalai Lama group's connection to the March 14 incident. We are now collecting evidence and will publish results of our investigation as soon as possible."
However, the head of the Tibetan Autonomous Region told the press on March 14, "We have enough evidence to prove that the Dalai Lama group planned, plotted and designed the incident."
The two conflicting versions of statements have raised doubts about China's credibility.
March 29
Chinese authorities organized a Lhasa tour for foreign diplomats from 15 countries on Saturday. The group consisted of 17 Beijing-based diplomats from countries including Britain, the United States, Australia, and Japan. The diplomats were allowed to stay one day in Lhasa to investigate the "real facts." This is the first opportunity for foreign governments to visit Tibet since the protests two weeks ago.
It has been reported that a new wave of protests broke out at 2:00 P.M. on Saturday near Middle Beijing Road (other reports say the event was near the Jokhang Temple). In the streets of Lhasa, frightened passers-by quickly ran away. Stores closed in the main streets and the city outskirts where Han people live. Male and female Han people guarded their stores with iron rods and clubs in their hands. The army and police who hid in government office buildings during the previous few days when foreign media visited Lhasa were now unleashed. They surrounded some Tibetan residential areas. Checkpoints that were closed to avoid foreign cameras were reopened and filled with soldiers. The protest was said to last for a few hours, but no further detail is available.
After the protest, the Lhasa police sent the following text message to all cell phones in Lhasa:
"On March 29 afternoon, Lhasa law enforcement departments made a regular check-up. The check-up caused panic among street vendors and some residents who did not know what had happened, and they ran around in fear. Now there is no unstable situation in Lhasa. Residents should not believe in rumors. Instead, everyone should live and work without worry, distinguish what's right and what's wrong, abide by the law and discipline, and refrain from making, believing, and spreading rumors. Those who create and spread rumors to cheat people, disturb social order and undermine social stability will be held as criminals and will be punished severely. (Lhasa Municipal Public Security Bureau)"
It is not yet confirmed whether the text message was telling the truth. But according to informants in Lhasa, the local authorities called every government office, including the police, on March 15 and warned that the tap water was poisoned and told people not to drink it. But the same night the authorities made a TV statement announcing it was a rumor. So Lhasa people are reluctant to say whether there was a protest on March 29, because they do not know what to believe.
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