China Arrests Hundreds of Tibetans in Response to Protests

I. Citation:

China Arrests Hundreds of Tibetans in Response to Protests
April 3, 2008
Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/03/AR2008040302129.html?hpid=topnews

II. Summary:

Chinese officials said that they have finally restored order in Tibet after the many riots and uprisings starting March 14th, and that the Tibet will reopen to tourism in May. Because of the Olympic Games, China has been trying very hard to suppress the Tibetan uprisings and keep peace with the people, though often resorting to violent ways of containment. Nevertheless, they have pledged to support the minorities better, and insist that they riots were only led by a small “clique” that does not represent Tibet as a whole. Relations between the Chinese and Tibetans are very strained right now, and arguments between the two sides can be seen on the streets.

III. Reactions:

a. This article relates to the AP theme of changes in functions and structures of states and in attitudes toward states and political identities because of the negative attitude of the Tibetans towards the Chinese government that rules over them, and of the changes and moderations that the Chinese are making to restrain the uprisings and keep the Olympics running smoothly.

b. Tibetans say that they have been repressed in the almost 6 decades that it has been part of China, with serious violations of human rights and genocide, although the truth of that is uncertain. Exiles began a six-month march from India to Tibet to protest the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and the increased government influence in Tibet. On March 14, they carried out a large riot in the streets of Tibet, starting the chain of uprisings against Chinese suppression continuing until now.

c. The writer, Jill Drew, is an outsider, a writer for the Washington Post Foreign Service.

d. Although the author is an outsider, she seems to be in favor of the Tibetans, and disagreeing with the way China is dealing with the problems. She repeats the lines “total figures of those detained are not known” as a way to conclude the reports of many police arrests of Tibetan rioters, and writing in a tone hinting that the Chinese officials might have kept the information from reporters because they were hiding something that might make China seem bad. She also concluded that the only reason Chinese officials would be so willing to bother with trying to keep peace with Tibet is because of the Olympic Games. She claims that they have only “project[ed] an image of harmony and stability”, and have not really solved the problem. When repeating the speeches of Chinese officials, she uses words like “insisted”, indicating that they might be lying. It is quite obvious that she is not in favor of the way the Chinese authority is suppressing the Tibetan uprisings.

e. The point of view missing from the article is the Chinese. Although the writer of the article included what the Chinese government has been doing to stop the riots, and also some of their views on the issue, the article focused on how the Chinese officials caused deaths and injuries among the rioters, written mostly on the writer’s point of view. What’s missing is what is happening in China. It would be helpful to know why they decided to use the methods they did to solve the problems, and if the uprisings were really affecting the 2008 Olympic Games

f. I believe that this is a really bad time to have such a serious conflict. The Olympics is a very big and important event to the whole world, and I think that it was wrong for the Tibetans to choose a time like this to riot and cause uprisings, although they might have done so at such a time so they can gain more international publicity. I believe the Chinese officials were right to use whatever method they can to suppress the uprisings and keep the Olympics running smoothly, but they should make changes on their policies toward minorities to make it more fair and acceptable.