Dalai Lama should focus on Buddhism

By Shen Dingli

BEIJING, March 2 -- With his New Year message on Wednesday, the Dalai Lama

once again proved his hostility toward his fellow Tibetans and his motherland.

As a long self-claimed Buddhist, the Dalai Lama should have focused on

spreading Buddhist tenets and culture instead of showing an extreme interest in

politics in an attempt to intervene in the country's political process under

religious guise.

A few years ago, the Dalai Lama stopped playing any official role in the so-called Tibetan government in

exile. That should have offered him a chance to be committed to

Buddhism and make contributions for its development. Unfortunately, the Dalai Lama has

chosen otherwise.

Monks pray at Nequng Monastery in Lhasa,

capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, Feb. 26,

2009.With his New Year message on Wednesday, the Dalai Lama once

again proved his hostility toward his fellow Tibetans and his

motherland. (Chinese media/Ren Xiaogang)
Photo Gallery

In his message to his compatriots on the eve of the Tibetan New Year, the

Dalai Lama once again demonstrated his lack of basic knowledge about the

country's legal system as well as a lack of common sense that religion is

separated from politics worldwide.

Given his religious background and identity, the Dalai Lama should be

disqualified from talking about politics at any time.

In his message, the Dalai Lama claimed that the large-scale "peaceful

protests" launched in Tibetan-inhabited regions last year caused hundreds of

deaths. His remarks are a serious denial of facts.

It is true that organized unrests and violence did occur in Tibet and

beyond, but they were only confined to a small part of Tibetan-populated areas,

not the whole area as the Dalai Lama claimed.

Enough material and facts indicate that an overwhelming part of the Tibetan

region enjoyed a peaceful, stable and tranquil environment last year. Even last

March, when Lhasa, capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region, experienced a bloody

riot, the rest of the region still remained stable.

The Dalai Lama was also wrong when he used the phrase "peaceful protest."

Available facts have indicated that participants in the violence chose to use

sticks, clods, stones and swords not only against security forces, who always

maintained self-restraint in trying to restore stability in the region, but also

against civilians, including shop owners, tourists and passersby.

His remarks that "hundreds of Tibetans lost lives" also proved to be a

sheer lie. To restore peace and stability, the local government maintained

self-restraint from the beginning of the outbreak of the riot. Persuasive talks

and warnings were used to deal with violence. In that round of violent clashes,

a total of 18 civilians died, not hundreds as the Dalai Lama put it. And they

were beaten or burned to death by the rioters. Obviously, there exists an

ulterior intention behind his lie.

On Feb 11, the Dalai Lama claimed that "the situation in Tibet is very

strained, and incidents might burst out". In his New Year message two weeks

later, he demanded that Tibetans should not take any action in a hasty manner.

The change of tones are obviously aimed at creating and disseminating a

tense atmosphere in Tibet in an attempt to tell more people it is time to rise

up and riot. Such practices will unavoidably cause people to heavily doubt

whether the so-called Tibetan spiritual leader wants a peaceful and stable or a

turbulent Tibet.

The answer is absolutely clear to all.

In his New Year speech, the Dalai Lama also hoped Tibetans care and value

life and avoid violence. However, there are also exposed motives behind his

words. On one hand, he aims to encourage extremist Tibetans to use violence, and

on the other hand prepare a pretext in advance to evade his own responsibility

in case unexpected things happen.

Since Chinese people have dealt with the Dalai Lama for ages, we are quite

capable of grasping his overtones. Despite staying overseas for a long period as

a religious figure, the Dalai Lama has never stopped his intervention in the

country's politics.

Thus, he is completely incapable, morally or physically, to confront with

the irreversible current of the national unity. Being such a busy person flying

around the world, the Dalai Lama should have contributed to disseminating the

essence of Buddhism.

However, he has chosen to sacrifice self-dignity and succumb to other

countries' attitudes by distorting facts and fermenting riots. All his motives

are doomed to failure.

As a religious figure, the Dalai Lama should conform to the historical

trend of the national unification and focus on Buddhist teachings. His choice of

a religious career should not be distracted by other affairs.

If he really cares about the Tibetans just as he said, the Dalai Lama

should abide by the country's laws and sincerely put himself under the

leadership of the central government, and take real actions to be a good Chinese

citizen.

The author is director of the Center for American Studies at the

Shanghai-based Fudan University.

(Source: China Daily)

Origin of the title of "Dalai Lama" and its related

backgrounder

BEIJING, March 1

(Chinese medianet) -- The title of "Dalai Lama", was not granted by the Dalai Lama

himself, or created by Tibetan Buddhism, or conferred by the old Tibetan ruling

class and still less by any foreigners. The title was actually granted by the

central government of China's dynasties and has multi-ethnic language features.