DOOMED AMERICAN CHINA FANTASY vs US POLICY ON TIBET
US President Donald Trump (2nd L) holds a bilateral meeting with China’s President Xi Jinping (R) at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, US, on April 7, 2017. Photo: Reuters
US Policy on Tibet is not working. It will not work until and unless the US revises US Policy on Communist China. If Communism remains the ruling doctrine of China, no US Policy on Tibet will work. United States has no choice other than that of containing, engaging, confronting, and opposing China’s Communism.
DOOMED AMERICAN CHINA FANTASY. US CONGRESSMAN JIM McGOVERN, D-Mass., CALLS FOR NEW US POLICY ON TIBET.
FILE – Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington, May 7, 2014. McGovern is calling for a new U.S. policy on Tibet.
WASHINGTON —
Congressman Jim McGovern is calling for a new U.S. policy on Tibet, saying “the status quo isn’t working” and urging U.S. businesses to raise the issue of human rights in Tibet with Chinese business partners.
“It’s important that the U.S. have a policy toward Tibet because the status quo isn’t working,” McGovern, a Democrat from Massachusetts, told VOA Mandarin. “The Chinese government is just getting worse on a whole range of issues — jailing more and more Tibetans in Tibet and in the Tibetan region, so I think we need to re-assess. … We need to start walking the walk.”
US Congressman Calls for New US Policy on Tibet
China says the Himalayan region has been part of its realm for more than seven centuries and considers the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan spiritual leader, to be a dangerous separatist.
Many Tibetans insist they were essentially independent for most of that time and have protested what they regard as China’s heavy-handed rule since Chinese army units crossed the Yangtze River into eastern Tibet in 1950.
Congressional visit
Last month, McGovern traveled to Nepal and the north Indian hill town of Dharamsala, where the Dalai Lama has been in exile from Tibet for almost 60 years. The eight-person House delegation led by Rep. Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat from California, wanted to make China aware that they would not stand down in their campaign for human rights in Tibet.
Watch: US Congressman Calls for China to Show Flexibility on Tibet
The delegation, including a lone Republican, Wisconsin’s Jim Sensenbrenner, met with the Dalai Lama.
“His Holiness is not a separatist … but he wants to go home and so do his people,” McGovern said.
“China is one of the great powers of the world, they’re doing great things on climate change,” he said, adding he’s always puzzled that China “is paranoid over this monk, and paranoid over his message.”
McGovern is the sponsor of the Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act of 2017. He introduced the bipartisan bill in the House in April with Congressman Randy Hultgren, a Republican from Illinois. Marco Rubio, a Republican from Florida, and Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat from Wisconsin, introduced a companion bill in the Senate.
US Congressman Poses Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act
Travel in US
McGovern described his bill as saying, “we will treat you like you treat us” in that it calls for restricting where Chinese can visit in the United States in the same way China restricts United States officials, journalists and other citizens in Tibetan areas of the People’s Republic of China.
“If China wants its citizens and officials to travel freely in the U.S., Americans must be able to travel freely in China, including Tibet,” McGovern echoes on his website.
He also wants the U.S. to “publicly call on the Chinese government to restart the direct dialog that used to exist between the Chinese government and the Tibetan people. That needs to be restarted.”
McGovern said he wants the United States to appoint a special coordinator on Tibet as soon as possible to help elevate these issues.
“We’ve also talked about working with other countries and establishing what we call A Group of Friends on Tibet who would meet regularly and publicly to assess the situation in Tibet, and whether there’s been progress or not,” he added.
US Congressman: US Firms Can Raise Issue of Tibet With Chinese Counterparts
McGovern, who is co-chair of the bipartisan Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, told VOA that while U.S. and Chinese companies profit from trading with each other, if U.S. companies “know what’s happening and you don’t say anything [about human rights in Tibet], then you’re complicit. China wants to do business with you. You want to do business with China but that doesn’t mean you can’t raise the issue of human rights.”
In the interview with VOA Mandarin, McGovern, who has been arrested three times protesting human rights violations in Sudan, said he is also concerned about human rights in Hong Kong, and China’s treatment of the ethnic minority group, the Uighurs.
‘We’re not perfect’
Listing hate crimes and attacks against members of the Muslim community, threats against Jewish community centers and hate crimes against the LGBTQ community, McGovern said he also worries about human rights in the United States, “so we’re not perfect.”
None of that, however, should lessen the attention paid to Tibet, McGovern said.
“I think the Chinese government thinks this issue will just go away. The Dalai Lama is in his 80s, and they think at some point he won’t be around and everybody will forget,” McGovern said.
But, he stressed, “we’re not going away, and this issue is not going away, and we’re going to keep on bringing it up over, and over, and over again until there’s some change.”
This story originated with VOA Mandarin.
DOOMED AMERICAN CHINA FANTASY – US HOUSE REPRESENTATIVE JIM McGOVERN CALLS FOR NEW US POLICY ON TIBET.
TIBETAN IDENTITY – MISS TIBET 2017 TENZIN PALDON. THIS BEAUTY BRINGS INTO FOCUS TIBETAN IDENTITY.
I congratulate Miss Tibet 2017 Tenzin Paldon for winning the crown in beauty pageant for women of Tibetan Identity. This event helps to project Tibetan Identity to the World. Beauty Pageants always involve National Identity.
Miss Tibet wins crown for most controversial beauty pageant
By Sugam Pokharel, CNN
Updated 5:16 AM ET, Mon June 5, 2017
TIBETAN IDENTITY – MISS TIBET 2017 TENZIN PALDON. THIS BEAUTY PAGEANT BRINGS INTO FOCUS TIBETAN NATIONAL IDENTITY.
Nine contestants of the Miss Tibet Pageant 2017 pose for a photo during a press conference on 30 May 2017.
Story highlights
Miss Tibet draws objections from exiled community, feminists and China
Organizer Lobsang Wangyal says its intended to empower Tibetan women
(CNN)This is no ordinary beauty contest.
There are virtually no sponsors, judges are hard to find — and so are the participants. Moreover, it is embroiled in a hefty dose of controversy.
Welcome to Miss Tibet.
The 15th edition of the beauty pageant for exiled Tibetan women wrapped up on Sunday in the small town of Dharamsala in northwestern India — home to the Dalai Lama and the headquarters of Tibetan government-in-exile.
This year the contest saw a record number of nine participants. None of the contestants have ever been to Tibet and are part of India’s 100,000-strong Tibetan community that was established 1960 after the Dalai Lama fled across the border.
Tenzin Paldon, 21, claimed the crown in the grand finale attended by more than 3,000 people, according to organizers.
“With this title, I will try my best to take it to an international level — to speak up regarding my country, Tibetan causes, and culture as much as I can,” she told CNN.
Tibet: Fast facts
TIBETAN IDENTITY – MISS TIBET 2017 TENZIN PALDON. THIS BEAUTY BRINGS INTO FOCUS TIBETAN NATIONAL IDENTITY.
Miss Tibet 2017 Tenzin Paldon poses for a photo after winning the crown on June 4, 2017.
CULTURE CLASH
The contest though faces controversy on multiple fronts: conservative members of the Tibetan community, and feminists object to the pageant on moral grounds, and China, which regards Tibet as an integral part of its territory and objects to winners participating in any international event.
It’s been organized by Lobsang Wangyal since 2002 with the motto “Celebrating Tibetan Women.”
He used $10,000 of his own in money to stage the event plus $1,300 raised via Generosity.com.
This year, said Wangyal, two Tibetan businessmen living in Taiwan and US provided the cash prizes for the winner ($1,550) and runner-up ($775.)
Tibetan Identity – Miss World Beauty Pageant Winner Anastasia.
Barred from China and silenced in the US, this beauty queen isn’t backing down
Wangyal told CNN many Tibetan women want to participate but are held back by Tibetan culture — which is deeply religious and conservative.
“[Tibetan women] think what will society have to say? Will people call me different names? Will they talk behind my back? They are so scared and they latch onto that fear,” Wangyal said.
Tibetan elders aren’t happy about the contest either. They see it as a cultural betrayal to Tibetan culture and not compatible with Buddhist culture. Traditionally, Tibetan women wear modest, full length robes.
The three-day event included a swimsuit round.
“Yes, this is a democratic society but the young generation should remember that we don’t have a country, we don’t have a home, we are refugees – all we have is our tradition and religion. They should focus on conserving and nurturing that,” said Dharamsala-based Tibetan shopkeeper Thinley Kalsyang, 67.
“Also remember, Buddhism focuses on inner beauty and not your skin and petite body,” he added.
Paldon says the older generation is not well-educated.
“They find it problematic for showcasing our skin. I believe that if you are good in heart, nothing else matters. If you wear a traditional attire, if inside you are a bad person, that is not good,” said Paldon.
Tibetan Identity – Miss Tibet 2017 Tenzin Paldon. This Beauty Pageant brings into focus Tibetan National Identity.
The nine contestants of the Miss Tibet Pageant 2017 pose for a photo during the Swimsuit Round at Asia Health Resorts in Dharamshala, India, on 2 June 2017.
Tenzin Lungtok, Secretary of Culture and Religion for the exiled Tibetan government, declined to comment when asked if he supported the event.
TIBETAN IDENTITY – MISS TIBET 2016
2016 Miss Tibet winner Tenzing Sanganyi faced a backlash for her poor knowledge of Tibetan language. She told CNN she took that as a constructive criticism.
“I cannot blame them. They are concerned about our culture. As refugees, we have to conserve our culture and language. So, if I’m representing a modern Tibetan woman, I should have been more fluent with my language,” Sanganyi said.
ENTER CHINA
China is another major objector.
Wangyal says Chinese government doesn’t directly interfere in the event but often the winners are met with heavy Chinese interference when they try to participate in international pageants.
For example, Miss Tibet 2004 Tashi Yangchen told CNN she withdrew from a Miss Tourism Pageant held in Zimbabwe after she was pressured to wear a sash labeled “Miss Tibet-China”.
“The organizers pressured by Chinese officials gave me two options: to participate as a guest or as a “Miss Tibet-China”…I chose to walk out of the event,” Yangchen said.
The Miss Tourism organizers didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
HOLDING UP SKINNY WOMEN WITH FAIR SKIN AND STRAIGHT NOSES?
Tibetan Feminist Collective, a New York-based group, also attacked the event’s format, saying it promoted and adhered to Western standards of beauty.
Tibetan identity – Miss Tibet 2017 Tenzin Paldon
Tenzin Paldon, the winner of Miss Tibet 2017.
“Holding up skinny women with fair skin and straight noses on a pedestal holds us back as a society, although it is not limited to our particular group. We Tibetans vary immensely in terms of physical features – something to be celebrated and embraced,” the group said in a statement.
Wangyal says he is committed to creating what he describes as a more liberal Tibetan society, believing the beauty pageant empowers Tibetan women, who lack confidence. It’s something this year’s winner agrees with.
“It’s a great achievement and also a role model to all young Tibetan women — that if you believe in something, you can achieve it,” says Paldon.
“With this title, I want to help other women achieve their goals.”
CNN Intern Karma Dolma Gurung contributed to this report
TIBET EQUILIBRIUM vs THUCYDIDES TRAP – UNFINISHED VIETNAM WAR
TIBET EQUILIBRIUM vs THUCYDIDES TRAP – UNFINISHED VIETNAM WAR. RED CHINA’S EVIL ACTIONS DESTINED US-CHINA WAR.
Special Frontier Force represents military organization that symbolizes ‘Unfinished Vietnam War’. The US fought bloody War in Vietnam to contain, to engage, to confront, and to oppose the spread of Communism in South Asia. Red China’s Evil actions Destined US-China War. ‘Tibet Equilibrium’ is good reason to fight Unfinished Vietnam War to its rightful conclusion.
TIBET EQUILIBRIUM vs THUCYDIDES TRAP – UNFINISHED VIETNAM WAR. RED CHINA’S EVIL ACTIONS DESTINED US-CHINA WAR.
Could the U.S. and China end up in a terrible war that neither wants?
May 30 at 6:00 AM
TIBET EQUILIBRIUM vs THUCYDIDES TRAP – UNFINISHED VIETNAM WAR. RED CHINA’S EVIL ACTIONS DESTINED US-CHINA WAR.
Chinese troops marching to commemorate the 70th Anniversary of the ‘Victory of Chinese People’s Resistance against Japanese Aggression and World Anti-Fascist War’ at Tiananmen Square in Beijing on Sept. 3, 2015. China planned to increase its defense budget in 2016 by 7 to 8 percent (European Pressphoto Agency/Rolex Dela Pena/poll/file)
Is a dangerous pattern emerging in U.S.-China relations? International relations scholar Graham Allison coined the term “Thucydides Trap” in 2012 to explain how a rising power can instill fear in an existing power, leading to hostility and mistrust that can escalate into war.
In his new book, Allison argues that China and the United States are falling into this trap, which owes its name to Greek historian Thucydides’s famous history of the Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta, which proved disastrous for both sides. Fast-forward a couple of millennia, and some observers worry that Washington and Beijing are heading toward the same fate.
But the focus on whether the United States and China will follow this path has obscured another insight from Thucydides’ classic work, “The Peloponnesian War” — how the geography of East Asia would shape what a U.S.-China war might look like, and just how dangerous and destructive such a war may be.
There is another way to look at rising powers
The Thucydides Trap we often see in debates about rising powers is actually a simple version of power transition theory, which dates back to the 1950s. The idea is that a war between great powers is more likely when a rising state seeks to topple the international pecking order. It is easy to see why this idea might be applicable to contemporary U.S.-China relations.
There are other ways to view the situation. Some scholars have argued that things may be more stable when two leading powers are at similar strength; others argue that the sources of war lie elsewhere. And the empirical record does not provide a lot of evidence that rising and dominant powers fight directly, or for the reasons that power transition theorists suggest. This leads some scholars to suggest that the power transition model is a poor guide to understanding U.S.-China relations.
None of this discussion means that U.S. and Chinese analysts should ignore Thucydides, although perhaps they should look for inspiration from other parts of his book.
The other Thucydides Trap isn’t pretty
Thucydides is best remembered for his short argument about the causes of war, but he said much more about its conduct. His insights are quite relevant for a hypothetical clash between the United States and China. This is especially the case in his commentary on the first few years of the Peloponnesian War, where he describes how Athens and Sparta stumbled into a protracted fight that neither side expected.
How they got there has to do with a very different kind of Thucydides trap. They wanted a quick victory, and they wanted to avoid their respective enemies’ comparative military advantages. Both opponents fell victim to delusions about bloodless victory without hard fighting. After their early efforts failed, they faced a terrible dilemma: capitulate or settle into a long and uncertain war.
And both sides faced the same basic challenge when the war began in 431 B.C. — how to avoid engaging on terms that favored the enemy. Sparta (like China today) was a dominant land power while Athens was the dominant naval power (like today’s United States). Sparta needed to figure out how to defeat Athens without challenging its navy directly. Meanwhile, Athens needed Sparta to concede without taking the risk of a pitched battle on land against the formidable Spartan army.
Neither side had a good solution — but they pursued operational fantasies about how to win without having to challenge the enemy’s main area of strength. Athens wanted to use its navy to assist land forces that would conduct raids on Sparta’s allies, while simultaneously encouraging a slave insurrection in the Spartan homeland. Sparta, for its part, thought that others would take on the Athenian navy on its behalf — and then it could focus instead on fighting on land.
Not much came out of these plans for the first few years. As long as Sparta and Athens were unwilling to challenge their counterparts directly, neither was able to hurt the enemy enough to force surrender. Neither side was willing to back down. And because they could both retreat to reliable sanctuaries — Sparta on land, Athens at sea — they didn’t need to seek terms.
A toxic blend of geography and politics conspired against the Greek great powers, and the result was an exhausting war that no one wanted. Geography enabled retreat, while political pressures encouraged continued fighting. Meanwhile the military balance held, with Sparta dominant on land and Athens controlling the water. What followed were years of costly but indecisive campaigns. Neither side was strong enough to win — nor weak enough to lose.
Geography would factor into any U.S.-China war
Here’s how this applies to U.S.-China relations today. As I explain in a forthcoming article in the Journal of Strategic Studies, the United States and China risk slipping into this pattern.
War is far from inevitable, of course. But if it did break out, the United States and China — like Athens and Sparta — would each be able to retreat safely in the event of early wartime setbacks. When we read about potential flash points that could spark a confrontation, especially over Taiwan and disputed maritime claims, this geographic risk lurks in the background.
Wartime setbacks that send each side retreating to its safe haven are possible, perhaps even likely, given that both sides are placing their bets on elaborate plans to win quickly. In this scenario, China and the United States would each put a premium on interfering with the other’s communications and blinding its intelligence capabilities to inject confusion on the battlefield and make it hard to coordinate complex operations.
For the United States, the goal would be to seize the initiative, ensuring freedom of movement in the waters near the Chinese mainland, overcoming anti-access weapons, and buying time for superior reinforcements to arrive in the region. For China, it means forcing the United States to fight farther from the shore, which might prevent it from effectively defending its regional allies and partners.
These plans might sound good in theory, but both sides are investing in efforts to secure their communications against debilitating attacks. The normal fog and friction of war also work against operational plans that depend on precise attacks with little margin for error. Leaders might also become so concerned about nuclear escalation that they scale back their opening moves, further decreasing their effectiveness. For all these reasons, both sides may end up disappointed by the result of the first volley.
A quick political settlement might be the rational response in this case, but the fact that both sides were willing to take the gigantic risk of war suggests they will find it hard to stomach the prospect of backing down, especially if they haven’t suffered many casualties. This is a recipe for a long and grinding war.
This is the kind of Thucydides trap that looms over any U.S.-China conflict. Geography, politics and the maritime-land balance in East Asia create a situation likely to lead to prolonged fighting. The central task for strategists is figuring out how to escape it. If they cannot, the only alternative is avoiding war in the first place.
Joshua Rovner holds the John Goodwin Tower Distinguished Chair in National Security and International Politics at Southern Methodist University, where he also serves as director of the Security and Strategy Program (SAS@SMU).
Comments
Rudranarasimham Rebbapragada
10:32 AM EDT
On behalf of Special Frontier Force, I confirm the possibility of war between the US and China. We wanted to fight this War to relieve pressure on the US Armed Forces fighting bloody war in Vietnam. President Nixon-Kissinger continued using bombing campaign while knowing that it was not effective. Special Frontier Force as a military organization symbolizes the Unfinished Vietnam War. US was fighting against the spread of Communism in South Asia. The fall of Soviet Union has not eliminated the problem of Power Equilibrium in Asia. If not the tensions of South and North China Sea disputes, the great problem of ‘Tibet Equilibrium’ will be a good reason to check, to contain, to engage, and to oppose Red China.
mustquestion
10:20 AM EDT
Odd that it does not include North Korea in the discussion. The most likely scenario is a US – N. Korea conflict with China taking sides with N Korea. But that does not fit the simplistic model of dominant vs challenging state that is the book’s theme.
Rudranarasimham Rebbapragada
10:46 AM EDT
Tibet is the second largest nation of this region sharing border with China. In terms of size, Tibet is second to China. Korea receives plenty of media attention. The problem of Balance of Power demands action to accomplish ‘Tibet Equilibrium’.
nqb123
7:54 AM EDT
I don’t see how the US and China could stumble onto war. What’s the motive for a war when there is so much trade going between these 2 countries? There is no common border between the two, no known historical animosity between the two people, no known problem that only a war could solve. The Taiwan problem is likely to be solved sometime in the future by the Chinese themselves. If the US wanted to defend Taiwan in the first place, Taiwan and the US would already have a mutual defense treaty. I don’t see any US military base in Taiwan either.
Rudranarasimham Rebbapragada
10:52 AM EDT
That’s not correct reading of the US history. President Harry Truman tried his best to avert Communist victory in China. Apart from giving support to Nationalists, the US made modest efforts to deliver arms and ammunition to Tibet during 1948-49. Tibet maintained policy of Isolationism until China’s military conquest in 1950s. Since that time, the US is helping Tibetan Resistance. The plans for a future war are not yet buried.
Douglas Levene
7:42 AM EDT
Excellent article, thank you. I’ve been teaching in China for the past seven years and worry about what to do if war breaks out – can I make it across the border into Hong Kong? Would the Chinese expel all Americans or intern them or worse? From this end of the pond, it’s pretty easy to see how rising Chinese confidence could lead to miscalculations, spilled blood and war. The Chinese think they can overcome US supremacy in submarines by building out a huge network of sea floor sensors in the South China Sea – who knows what that type of arms race combined with territorial expansion could lead to?
kcs1760
7:22 AM EDT
A good article, but I would have liked to read how the author feels our economic inter-dependency would factor into the equation.
Rudranarasimham Rebbapragada
10:56 AM EDT
In the past, Communist Powers like Soviet Union encouraged people and nations to oppose European Colonial Rulers. Now, the world of geopolitics and geoeconomics have changed. Now, the US would encourage people and nations to oppose Red China’s Neocolonialism.
William Billeaud
7:10 AM EDT
Only someone with a worldview based in the capitol of the U.S. Bible Belt would spew this. What horse shout; I subscribed to Wash Post for this?
Rudranarasimham Rebbapragada
11:00 AM EDT
Don’t worry about your subscription. You can still read this story without being a subscriber. The realities of the world are described by Red China’s occupation of the second largest nation of South Asia. As long as that occupation prevails, there will be Power Imbalance. Tibet Equilibrium cannot be dismissed as wishful thinking.
TIBET EQUILIBRIUM vs THUCYDIDES TRAP – UNFINISHED VIETNAM WAR. RED CHINA’S EVIL ACTIONS DESTINED US-CHINA WAR.
THE FUTURE OF RED CHINA’S EXPANSIONISM – BEIJING DOOMED
THE FUTURE OF RED CHINA’S EXPANSIONISM – BEIJING DOOMED.
People’s Republic of China in 1949 embraced Communism as State Doctrine and lost no time to announce ambitious plan of Territorial, Maritime, Economic, and Political Expansionism. While others painfully reflect upon ‘The Future of the Tibetan Resistance Movement’, I express optimism by announcing Beijing’s Doom, sudden downfall, as consequence of her own evil actions. This predestined Disaster, Catastrophe, Cataclysm, Calamity, Apocalypse, Doom will bring Regime Change and The Evil Red Empire cannot ward it off by paying ransom.
THE FUTURE OF RED CHINA’S EXPANSIONISM. BEIJING DOOMED.
TIBETAN PROTEST MOVEMENT – THE NEWS LENS INTERNATIONAL EDITION
Friday, May 26, 2017
PODCAST: Tibet, Protest and China; The Future of the Tibetan Protest Movement
The Future of Red China’s Expansionism. Beijing Doomed.
Photo Credit: Reuters
TNL Staff
These small acts have reverberations and impact way beyond what we can see through the media and numbers. – Tenzin Dorjee.
Earlier this month, Radio Free Asia reported that a Tibetan monk, Jamyang Losal, had died after setting himself on fire in China’s northwestern Qinghai province. Losal was the 150th Tibetan to self-immolate since 2009 when Tibetan monks started taking their own lives in protest of China’s rule. But it seems these desperate protests are having little impact on China as it continues to crack down on any signs of dissent in Tibet.
In this episode of The News Lens Radio, we are bringing you the views of three Tibetan leaders to discuss the efforts to keep the protest movement alive both inside and outside Tibet. They say not only is the Chinese government continuing to rule Tibet with an iron fist, it is also increasingly working beyond its own borders to shut down the movements calling for Tibetan autonomy or independence from China.
About today’s guests
Tenzing Jigme is the president of the Tibetan Youth Congress, an international organization with about 30,000 members advocating for Tibetan independence.
Pema Yoko is the interim executive director of the New York-headquartered Students for a Free Tibet.
Tenzin (Tendor) Dorjee is a U.S.-based author and program director with the Tibet Action Institute. He is also the former executive director of Students for a Free Tibet.
This podcast is available via SoundCloud, Stitcher and iTunes apps.
Editor: Olivia Yang
2017/05/22
Cold Shoulder: Why Beijing Snubbed Singapore at the Belt and Road Summit
The Future of Red China’s Expansionism. Beijing Doomed. Singapore was not invited to ‘Belt and Road’ event hosted by Beijing.
ANGELA HAN
Angela Han is a Research Associate in the Polling Program. She holds a Masters in European and International Studies from the University of Trento and a Graduate Diploma in Transnational Governance from Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna. She has also spent six months abroad learning Mandarin at the China University of Political Science and Law in Beijing. Prior to undertaking her Masters, Angela spent two years as a researcher of labor and economic policies in her home country of Singapore.
Beijing did not invite Singapore’s Prime Minister to attend the Belt and Road event in Beijing this week, signifying strain in Sino-Singapore relations.
Among the 29 Heads of State who converged on Beijing for the Belt and Road Summit earlier this week were leaders of seven of the ten ASEAN states. One leader was noticeably missing: Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Various observers have noted this absence, including Hugh White, who suggested it was no co-incidence that, like others – Japan, India, Australia and “most western countries” – who had not sent their national leaders to Beijing, Singapore was aligned with the U.S. and uneasy about China’s rise – “or perceived to be so.”
However, it has since emerged that Singapore was never given the choice. China had not invited Singapore’s prime minister in the first place.
This is surprising, especially as Singapore has been one of the biggest advocates of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). While many other states were initially hesitant in signing up to BRI, including some of its ASEAN neighbors, Singapore’s support has been unequivocal from the beginning. Many high-level cooperation talks between China and Singapore on the subject have taken place, with both sides warmly welcoming cooperation on BRI.
In light of this past co-operation, Beijing’s snub is significant. It is fair to conclude that, if China continues to freeze out Singapore, there could be significant implications on at least three levels.
What it might mean for Sino-Singapore relations
First, this marks a low point in Sino-Singapore relations. Since its independence 50 years ago, managing the U.S.-China dichotomy has been a key tenet of Singapore’s foreign policy. Despite close defense partnerships with the U.S., China has referred to Singapore as an “important partner and a special friend of China.” This long-standing relationship has been fostered not only by historical and cultural linkages, but also the deep bond that existed between former leaders, Lee Kuan Yew and Deng Xiaoping. When Lee Kuan Yew died in 2015 there were video tributes on Chinese state media, and he was described as “an old friend of the Chinese people” by President Xi Jinping.
Of late, however, the bilateral relationship has been less than smooth, particularly since remarks made by the Singaporean prime minister at a White House state dinner in August last year. At that event, Lee Hsien Loong praised the U.S. rebalance and endorsed the arbitral tribunal ruling on the South China Sea. In a separate incident, a Chinese tabloid accused Singapore of bringing up the tribunal ruling at the Non-Aligned Movement Summit, which led to a very public spat between the Global Times editor and Singapore’s Ambassador to China.
Singapore is not a claimant state but the fear that China might extend its reach in the South China Sea is nevertheless acute for the tiny island-state. Given its trade volumes are 3.5 times its GDP, any instability in the region would affect Singapore’s trade routes, and therefore its economy. When Singapore advocates for a rules-based order, it is not just values that it seeks to defend but its economic lifeblood.
Singapore’s stance on the South China Sea did not please China. In November nine of Singapore’s armored troop carriers were impounded in Hong Kong on their way back from Taiwan. At the time, many saw Beijing’s heavy hand at work behind the scenes and believed the incident reflected China’s displeasure with Singapore’s joint military exercises with Taiwan, even though these dates back decades.
In their usual quiet diplomatic style, Singapore diplomats worked hard behind the scenes to eventually secure the vehicles’ return after two months. This was then quickly followed up by a high-level bilateral cooperation forum, postponed the previous year due to strained ties. Yet, China still raises the South China Sea matter at bilateral forums.
Implications for other middle powers
China’s snub is yet another example of the narrowing diplomatic space that small states like Singapore have in which to maneuver. Relying on its hard-nosed pragmatism has, for half a decade, served Singapore well. But with most of its ASEAN neighbors increasingly willing to set aside the South China Sea disputes in return for a massive influx of Chinese investment, it is increasingly difficult for Singapore to both protect its national interest and maintain an independent foreign policy of not picking sides.
This has implications for other countries like Australia, which occupy a very similar position in the world. Like Singapore, Australia has strong historical, security and defense ties to the United States, while China is now far and away from its biggest trading partner. Perhaps one lesson from this incident is that it is becoming harder to compartmentalize politics and economics.
Implications for China’s role in the world
Finally, what does the incident say about the Belt and Road Initiative and more broadly, China’s role as architect of global initiatives? Although the BRI is as much about geoeconomics as geopolitics, it is undeniable that just on the basis of scale, access to and participation in Chinese initiatives have a tendency to draw lines in the sand; clearly distinguishing between who is a friend of China, and who is not.
The snub demonstrates Beijing now has another diplomatic tool in its arsenal. Such “sanctions with Chinese characteristics” are proving to be increasingly effective at asserting dominance and deterring actions counter to China’s interest. It is clear that China’s already considerable diplomatic and economic clout is increasing and its reach is becoming more pervasive. This too makes it more difficult for states that seek to steer a middle course.
This article originally appeared in the Lowy Interpreter. The News Lens has been authorized to republish this article.
“RECIPROCAL ACCESS TO TIBET ACT” ENGAGES, CONTAINS, CONFRONTS, AND OPPOSES THE DOCTRINE OF COMMUNISM
Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act seeks unrestricted access to Tibet for its purpose is to engage, contain, confront, and oppose the Doctrine of Communism.
Rudranarasimham Rebbapragada
DOOM DOOMA DOOMSAYER
U.S. CONGRESS RE-INTRODUCES “RECIPROCAL ACCESS TO TIBET ACT” AMIDST RISE IN TENSIONS OVER THE DALAI LAMA’S TRAVELS
In the long shadow of the recent Trump-Xi meeting lingers a bill in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate that seeks to guarantee open access to Tibet for American citizens. Introduced just before the meeting early last month, the bill seeks greater access to the region for U.S. officials, journalists, and other citizens. The bill finds that, despite claims of openness by the Chinese government, heavy restrictions and frequent denial of travel documents has been observed, especially in attempts to visit the Tibetan region.
Senators Marco Rubio and Tammy Baldwin, described by Tenzin Monlam as “longtime supporters of Tibet,” introduced the bill in the Senate while Congressmen Jim McGovern and Randy Hultgren introduced it in the House of Representatives. (Phayul)
However, this is not the first attempt to pass this bill, with previous attempts in 2014 and 2015. And like previous attempts, this one seems unlikely to move forward as the nation’s collective attention jumps from North Korea to Health Care to the upcoming French elections.
Nevertheless, speaking to India’s The Sunday Guardian, the Tibetan government-in-exile spokesperson and Secretary, Department of Information and International Relations, Sonam Dagpo said. “[The] Central Tibetan Administration welcomes the US Congress bill to have reciprocal access to Tibetan areas. We are also grateful to the government and people of India for its support in the preservation and promotion of Tibetan language, culture and religion. India’s assistance in the education of Tibetan children will go a long way in the struggle of the Tibetan people.” (The Sunday Guardian)
The bill comes at a time of continued disagreement between China and other world powers over Tibet and the activities of the most renowned Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama has caused alarm by Beijing officials with his recent visit to the India-China border region of Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh. Arunachal Pradesh is officially a state in India, though Chinese officials believe that much of it belongs to China.
Tawang, India, Dalai Lama via Wikimedia Commons, modified.
Meanwhile, the Dalai Lama himself has sought to dispel tensions in his teachings. The day before his visit to Tawang, the Dalai Lama, at a public address, spoke of his discomfort with rising intolerance and stressed the need for mutual respect and concern and for social well-being. (The Diplomat)
Back in the United States, the Dalai Lama’s planned June commencement speech at U.C. San Diego sparked anger in many Chinese students attending the university. The Chinese Students and Scholars Association, after consulting with the Chinese consulate issued the following statement, borrowing from themes of inclusivity and respect common among campus activist groups:
UCSD is a place for students to cultivate their minds and enrich their knowledge. Currently, the various actions undertaken by the university have contravened the spirit of respect, tolerance, equality, and earnestness—the ethos upon which the university is built. These actions have also dampened the academic enthusiasm of Chinese students and scholars. If the university insists on acting unilaterally and inviting the Dalai Lama to give a speech at the graduation ceremony, our association vows to take further measures to firmly resist the university’s unreasonable behavior. (Quartz)
Countering this, the International Campaign for Tibet issued a statement supporting the university, saying that, “By objecting to the invitation to the Dalai Lama, the CSSA of UC San Diego is doing the work of the Chinese government. The University of [California], San Diego’s invitation to the Dalai Lama is a reflection of the tremendous American public interest in and support for his thoughts and vision for the broader world…” In an interview with Inside Higher Ed, Robert Barnett, a Columbia University scholar of Tibet, echoed these sentiments, asking, “Does the university accept to be bullied by the foreign government in terms of who it selects as a speaker, especially when that subject of that foreign government’s bullying is almost certainly, without any serious question of all, not deserving of that bullying and is certainly being misrepresented and indeed demonized by the Chinese government? Do we allow the Chinese government’s propaganda to dictate major cultural decisions in other countries?” (Inside Higher Ed)
In their announcement to host the Dalai Lama, university Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla said: “We are honored to host His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama at UC San Diego and thankful that he will share messages of global compassion with our graduates and their families, as well as with a broad public audience. A man of peace, the Dalai Lama promotes global responsibility and service to humanity. These are the ideals we aim to convey and instill in our students and graduates at UC San Diego.” (UCSD News)
Currently there are no plans to cancel the invitation, which will constitute the Dalai Lama’s first stop on his 2017 U.S. tour.
MISSION IMPOSSIBLE – THE DANGERS OF COVERT OPERATIONS
A fundamental feature of Democratic Governance is that of Transparency and Public Accountability. Democratic nations need to conduct foreign relations in transparent manner with due public support for such relations of either friendship or adversity.
Peoples’ Republic of China adheres to the doctrine of Communism and may conduct her national affairs without Transparency and Public Accountability.
While I appreciate the need for gathering “Intelligence,” the United States must abide by the Principle of Transparency and Public Accountability. There should be no doubts in the minds of US citizens about the resolve of United States to oppose, contain, engage, and confront the doctrine of Communism.
Rudranarasimham Rebbapragada
DOOM DOOMA DOOMSAYER
MISSION IMPLAUSIBLE! CHINA MEDIA CLAIMS ‘VICTORY’ OVER US SPY KILLINGS, BUT RIDICULES REPORT
But the state-run Global Times also dismissed the dramatic account of China’s dismantling of US spying activities as a Mission Impossible-style fantasy.
The New York Times reported on Saturday that US intelligence agencies suffered their biggest setback in decades between late 2010 and the end of 2012 when China uncovered their spying network in the country.
Intelligence officials never discovered whether the US was betrayed by a mole within the CIA or whether the Chinese hacked a covert system used by the CIA to communicate with foreign sources, the report said.
“We would like to applaud China’s anti-espionage activities,” said the Global Times, which often publishes nationalist editorials.
“Not only was the CIA’s spy network dismantled, but Washington had no idea what happened and which part of the spy network had gone wrong.
“It can be taken as a sweeping victory. Perhaps it means even if the CIA makes efforts to rebuild its spy network in China, it could face the same result.”
The most chilling detail in the NYT report – which cited 10 anonymous current and former security officers – was that Chinese agents shot a CIA source in front of colleagues, in an apparent deterrent to others.
However, that detail was rejected by the Global Times, a newspaper which is published by the People’s Daily, the Communist Party’s official mouthpiece newspaper.
“That is a purely fabricated story,” the newspaper said. “Most likely a piece of American-style imagination based on ideology.”
The editorial, which appeared in both the Chinese and English-language editions, then goes on to ridicule the report, accusing the New York Times journalists of watching too many Hollywood spy-thrillers.
“The NYT report seems to be a white-knuckle beginning for a new version of Mission: Impossible: American spies who worked in China disappeared, and some of them died miserably,” it said.
“However, no one knew the reason for their deaths. The journalists who wrote the report must have been deeply addicted to the franchise.”
Hu Xijin, the Global Times’ editor, repeated the claim that the world of espionage was being over-dramatized by the New York Times in a video that was posted by the newspaper on Sina Weibo, China’s version of Twitter.
The video also included publicity pictures from Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, a 2011 blockbuster starring Tom Cruise and Simon Pegg.
Mr. Hu said: “The New York Times report depicted government buildings as places of executions, which is divorced from China’s reality.”
The New York Times’s website is blocked in China, but many people have posted comments about the report on Chinese social media.
“I will put my hands up and support the shooting of these spies,” said one Weibo comment. “Anyone who has sold their souls should not only be executed, but their bodies should not be buried and instead fed to wild dogs.”
Other comments reminded the netizen that Chinese spies were also operating abroad.
Related: People you didn’t know were spies (Provided by Microsoft GES)
It is the 70th anniversary of the National Intelligence Authority on Jan. 22, 2016. The authority was a committee set up to monitor the Central Intelligence Group (CIG) which was later absorbed into the Central Intelligence Authority (CIA) in 1947. On this occasion, we take a look at some famous people you might not have known were spies at some point of their lives.
The celebrated American-born French dancer-actress worked as a spy for the French Resistance during World War II. She leveraged her celebrity status to get close to high-ranking Japanese and Italian officials and extract information from them. She would sneak secret messages in invisible ink on her music sheets and help smuggle people to safety. She was awarded the Medal of the Resistance with Rosette and named a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor by the French government. At her death, Baker became the first American woman buried in France with military honors.
During the Second World War, the United States government was suspicious of the presence of Axis sympathizers in the homeland, especially within the entertainment industry. This led the intelligence agencies reaching out to producers and actors to keep an ear to the ground and matinee idol Cary Grant was one of them. His most sensational reveal was that fellow actor Errol Flynn was allegedly a Nazi sympathizer and even wrote letters of support to Hitler.
Before she became a celebrated chef and cookbook author of French cuisine, Julia Child was employed at the Office of Strategic Services. Initially hired as a clerk, she later went on to work as a researcher assisting in the development of a shark repellent to keep undersea predators away from explosives. She was also posted to Sri Lanka and China, where her responsibilities included transcribing classified information from listening posts.
The Swedish-born Hollywood actress was one of the greatest screen stars during the ’20s and ’30s. However, she suddenly quit films in 1941 and became famously reclusive. It was believed that she started working with MI6 during this time and was tasked with gathering information on one of the world’s richest men, Swedish millionaire industrialist Axel Wenner-Gren. She allegedly played a pivotal role in smuggling physicist Niels Bohr from Copenhagen to Britain; Bohr went onto develop the atomic bomb later.
The author of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” was a Royal Air Force pilot during World War II before a near-fatal accident rendered him unfit for flying operations. He was next posted at the British embassy in Washington, D.C. at a desk job, using his flair for language to pen British propaganda for American newspapers. Dahl quickly established himself as a ladies’ man in the elite society and was tasked with developing friendships with influential women, or the wives of powerful men, to find out American secrets and information.
The creator of secret service agent James Bond was a spy himself. Fleming worked as a British Naval intelligence officer during World War II, maintaining communications between the admiralty and the branch of intelligence tasked with sabotage behind enemy lines. Given his skills, he was involved in drawing up a detailed organizational chart for setting up the Office of Strategic Services — an early version of the CIA created during World War II by President Franklin Roosevelt. In 1942, he was put in charge of a commando group called the 30 Assault Unit that would accompany infantry advances to seize documents from enemy headquarters.
The flamboyant playwright, composer, director, actor and singer of the ’40s was trained along with Ian Fleming in covert action at Bletchley Park. He was later appointed the head of the British Secret Service bureau in Paris to liaise with the French Ministry of Information. Talking about his wartime espionage work, Coward once said, “Celebrity was wonderful cover. My disguise would be my own reputation as a bit of an idiot…a merry playboy.”
One of the most glamorous leading ladies of the ’30s and ’40s, the German singer-actress was considered a spy in her adopted homeland of the United States, despite entertaining U.S. troops during the war and abandoning Nazi Germany. According to declassified FBI files, there was a formal espionage investigation against her from 1942 to 1944 at the order of then FBI boss J. Edgar Hoover. Dietrich attempted to win the trust of FBI officials by volunteering to spy for America instead. Her role involved “collecting observations about subversive activities in Europe” while on trips to the front to entertain the troops.
The iconic Hollywood actor was recruited to the Special Operations Executive, a top-secret group organized to conduct sabotage and espionage actions in occupied Europe during World War II. The details of Lee’s missions during this time are still classified. “I was attached to the Special Air Service from time to time but we are forbidden — former, present, or future — to discuss any specific operations. Let’s just say I was in Special Forces and leave it at that. People can read in to that what they like,” he said in an interview in 2011.
While many believe that the legendary singer had strong Mafia connections, his association with the CIA is a fact not many are aware of. According to his daughter, the secret service agency agreed to overlook Sinatra’s mafia ties in lieu of his working as a CIA courier — smuggling documents and even people in his private jet on cross-country or cross-Atlantic flights.
The master escape artist assisted British and American intelligence agencies with information gathered during his traveling magic acts throughout Europe. He had a significant fan following in the German and Russian elite society who would unknowingly spill war details to the magician during after-parties which Houdini would pass on to the secret agencies.
The former associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States worked for the Office of Strategic Services during the Second World War. He took a break from practicing law during the war and started developing an information-gathering network behind enemy lines across Europe.
The multiple Oscar-winning director was a naval reserve officer before making films. While working as a secret agent during WWII, he alerted the agency about a suspected Japanese presence near the coastal areas of Baja in northwestern Mexico. Later, Ford directed many U.S. wartime propaganda films.
As the head of the powerful Genovese family, Charles “Lucky” Luciano was the undisputed boss of organized crime on the U.S. East Coast during the ’40s. However, he was sentenced for 50 years for promoting prostitution. Luciano offered to work as a conduit in the search for information about saboteurs who sank a French liner at the New York City dock in exchange for a commuted sentence. The association proved to be a success, and the mobster’s services were sought again ahead of the Allied invasion of Sicily. Luciano was subsequently released after serving just 10 years of his sentence and deported to Italy.
Graduating from Princeton University with a degree in modern languages and a law degree from Columbia University, the U.S.-born Major League Baseball catcher was often dubbed “the brainiest man in baseball.” During WWII, he became an officer at the Office of Strategic Services where one of his assignments was to assassinate Werner Heisenberg, the head of Nazi Germany’s atom-bomb project. The plan was eventually called off.
The tall, handsome actor was dubbed “The Most Beautiful Man in the Movies” by Paramount Pictures. However, after appearing in two films, Hayden went on to join the U.S. Marine Corps under the name John Hamilton. He was subsequently commissioned as an undercover agent during WWII. His role during the period involved shipping supplies to Nazi-resistant groups in Yugoslavia and parachuting into Croatia.
On behalf of Special Frontier Force, I demand upholding of dignity of Indian Armed Forces and Allied Services operating in Jammu and Kashmir to restore rule of law to defend Republic of India from attacks by Enemy. Service in Uniform is a matter of Valor, Pride, Honor, and Dignity for serving the purpose of Nation is Noble Duty.
GIVE US FULL AFSPA COVER TO TACKLE J&K ISSUE: ARMY TELLS CENTRE
Thursday, May 18, 2017
By: One India
The Army has also called for strict action against those who have been damaging government property in the Valley.
Authority over the central armed police forces, a positive social media outreach program and full protective cover under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act or AFSPA is what the Indian Army has sought in a bid to restore normalcy in Jammu and Kashmir.
The Army which has put in place the counter-insurgency strategy said that a social media outreach program is the need of the hour. It could have a positive effect on the youth of the Valley. It would be an outreach programme, the Army has suggested. Further the Army has also said that the problem is not across the Valley. The focus would be on five districts in the state which are most trouble-hit.
While seeking authority over the CAPF, the Army has said that there is an urgent need to protect the force. Pictures of the personnel of the CAPF being targeted by the stone pelters and some youth of the Valley have been in circulation and this had a demoralizing effect on the force. This needs to stop at once the Army has also said.
The Army has also called for strict action against those who have been damaging government property in the Valley. Housing them in prisons alone would not be enough. They need to be booked under the appropriate laws, the Army has further suggested.
The Army says that it needs to work under the full cover of AFSPA. The debate on this law is unnecessary at this point of time. The Army at times would need to act strongly and for this the cover of a law is necessary, the Army has further said. In such situations, the Army cannot work under the fear of being summoned by the police for investigation which drags on for years. AFSPA is a necessity which would be used sparingly and in situations that mandate it, the Indian Army has further told the Centre.
SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE DEMANDS ACCOUNT OF THE MISSING 54, INDIAN ARMED FORCES PERSONNEL HELD CAPTIVE IN PAKISTAN
On behalf of Special Frontier Force, I demand Government of India to give account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel (Prisoners of War) held captive in Pakistan.
Special Frontier Force Demands Account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan.
India cannot accept Pakistan’s unwillingness to provide information. I ask India to sever diplomatic and trade relations with Pakistan as the first step to obtain Pakistan’s cooperation.
Special Frontier Force Demands Account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Missing Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan. The 1965 India-Pakistan Prisoners of War. Indian PoWs in Pakistan.
KULBUSHAN JADHAV IS ONE. HERE IS THE STORY ‘MISSING 54’ THE INDIAN SOLDIERS TAKEN AS PoWs BY PAK WHO NEVER RETURNED
Special Frontier Force Demands Account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan. Commander Kulbushan Jadhav held captive on espionage charges.
The 1971 war, when India gave a crushing defeat to Pakistan and split it into two and took 90,000 plus of its soldiers as Prisoners of War (PoWs), was indeed the greatest achievement of Indian armed forces.
ARCHIVE.THEDAILYSTAR.NET
While India’s feat remains undisputed with Indians celebrating December 16 as ‘Vijay Divas’ every year, 54 families in India probably don’t get that ecstatic as one more year passes since they last spoke to their loved ones.
Special Frontier Force Demands Account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan. India defeated Pakistan in 1971 War.
We all know that India took 90,000 soldiers of Pakistan as POWs, but not many know that after the two wars of 1965 and 1971, Pakistan held 54 of our valiant soldiers whose whereabouts are still unknown.
The Government of India in 2015 had given an affidavit in the Supreme Court that it has no details regarding 54 missing Defence personnel believed to be held captive as prisoners of wars (POWs) in Pakistan jails after 1965 and 1971 wars.
Submitting an affidavit on the status of 54 Defence personnel reportedly in Pakistan jails after the two Indo-Pak wars, the Ministry of Defense (MoD) expressed its inability to state anything affirmatively about their whereabouts and said it would continue making efforts for their release and repatriation.
“As such, the exact status of these 54 ‘missing defense personnel’, believed to be in Pakistan jails, is not known. Amongst 54 such personnel, no service details are available with respect to three personnel of the Indian Army,” stated the affidavit filed by the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
These 54 belong to all three wings of armed forces
Of 54 missing personnel, 27 were from the Army, 24 from the Air Force, two from the Navy and one personnel from the Border Security Force. While 48 out of the 54 were missing since the 1971 war, three went missing in the 1965 war.
Pakistan always denied their existence
Special Frontier Force Demands Account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan. India defeated Pakistan in 1971 War.
1971 Victory
Though India was kind to Pakistani POWs which accounted for roughly 30 per cent of its army, but when it came India’s PoWs, Pakistan never acknowledged that they exist.
But here Is Maj Suri’s story that says otherwise
“If the cause is just and mind is strong, no force is great, No distance long, If selfless souls with such a strength, Face hazards all, they win at length.”
This is a diary noting in Dr R.S. Suri’s diary, father of Major Ashok Suri, captured in the 1971 war. Though the army had declared Major Suri as “Killed in action”, the Suri senior never believed it despite the army sent him a helmet with a bullet hole in it (but with someone else’s name written on it).
Special Frontier Force Demands Account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan. India defeated Pakistan in 1971 War.
Dr Suri never bought any of the stories cooked or presented before him by the army or the government and his belief got cemented on 26 December 1974 when he received a handwritten note believed to be written by Major Suri himself. The note dated December 7, 1974, contained a slip. “I am okay here.”
These words filled Dr Suri with an energy one can only dream of. Though the letter had one only line, but the covering note helped further as it read, “Sahib, Valaikum Salam, I cannot meet you in person. Your son is alive and he is in Pakistan. I could only bring his slip, which I am sending you. Now going back to Pak.” Signed M. Abdul Hamid.
In 1975, Dr Suri received another letter, this time with more about his son
Another letter confirmed Dr Suri that his son, whom the army designated as ‘killed in action’ is alive. Dated June 14/15/16, 1975, Karachi.’
The letter said: “Dear Daddy, Ashok touches thy feet to get your benediction. I am quite ok here. Please try to contact the Indian Army or Government of India about us. We are 20 officers here. Don’t worry about me. Pay my regards to everybody at home, especially to mummy, grandfather – Indian government can contact Pakistan government for our freedom.”
Special Frontier Force Demands Account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan. India defeated Pakistan in 1971 War.
Great India
Dr Suri rushed to the Defence Ministry in South Block and the then Defence Secretary had the handwriting confirmed as Maj Ashok’s and changed the official statement from “killed in action” to “missing in action”! Ecstatic about the development Dr Suri and other members of families of other soldiers formed a the Missing Defence Personnel Relative’s organization and Dr Suri kept visiting South Block weekly till he breathed last in 1999.
General Zia ul Haq’s visit gave some hope
In 1982, Pakistan’s military dictator visited India and Dr Suri and several other families got hopeful that government of India will work out something to get their loved one back. And surprisingly, in 1983 what it looked like a breakthrough, Pakistan government invited Indian family members to Pakistan.
The then MEA, Narasimha Rao said that he would take up at the highest level the visit of the parents of missing Defence personnel to Pakistan, since India had allowed the visit of some Pakistani family members to India in 1972.
Dr Suri, on behalf of the missing Defence families, was assured that Rao would try to facilitate this visit.
Special Frontier Force Demands Account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan. Pakistan’s President, General Zia ul Haq visited India in 1982 after India defeated Pakistan in 1971 War.
Photo Credit.Tribune
A delegation of six next-of-kin was allowed to go. It was made very clear that this was a classified visit that the press should not get wind off. There was a feeling of some deal having been done. The families were told to “Get the men back. They may not be in good health but you can nurse them back to health.”
The families left on September 12, 1983, Monday for Lahore. This was the first time the Indians had got consular access after 1971.
Families went to Pakistan
The families left on September 12, 1983, Monday for Lahore. This was the first time the Indians had got consular access after 1971. The families later got to know that MEA officials will go with them to Multan jail where the majority of the prisoner were believed to be kept. On Sept 14th, they flew to Multan.
But politics again did what it does best
In those days, PM Indira Gandhi was quite critical about Zia-ul-Haq and was aggressive in her statements in favor of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan & the MQM movement which made Pakistan quite skeptical. It might be seen as a larger cause, but what could be called the immediate cause that on the 14th day India was supposed to grant Pak officials reciprocal access to 25 Pakistani prisoners at Patiala jail which did not happen.
The news came in Pakistani papers that “India goes back on its words”.
Thus, despite reaching Multan, they couldn’t meet anybody
On September 15, 1983, the families visited Multan jail. Dr Suri was unable to control himself and was laughing and crying in the same go. The jail official who was present commented when Mrs.Tambay was signing her name remarked: “Sorry Mrs.Tambay, Tambay is not here.”
They did not find any of the people they were looking for there. 200 odd prisoners were being offered repatriation by Pakistan, subject to verification during the consular access. The families including Dr Suri wondered when Pakistan had already offered to repatriate these people where was the need for the visit?
Special Frontier Force Demands Account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan. Photo images of Indian Prisoners of War not accounted by Pakistan.
India Together
The family members sat through the consular access process for about 6 people, after which they were asked to go out as their part was done. The jail officials told them that only Zia ul Haq could help us with this category of prisoners.
Dr Suri believed the government was doing all it could to get the men back. He never gave up hope. Finally, though his body gave up and he died in 1999 saying,” Perhaps I will finally find peace in the grave.”
There has been no clue of those brave 54 soldiers and government of India as their affidavit in the SC suggests too seems to have given up on those who fought for the nation.
Here are the names of those ‘Missing 54’.
1. Major SPS Waraich IC-12712 15 Punjab
2. Major Kanwaljit Singh Sandhu IC-14590 15 Punjab
Special Frontier Force Demands Account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan. Flight Lieutenant Purohit of Indian Air Force.
48. Flight Lieutenant Shrikant C Mahajan 10239-F(P) 5 Sqn
49. Flight Lieutenant Gurdev Singh Rai 9015-F(P) 27 Sqn
50. Flight Lieutenant Ramesh G Kadam 8404-F(P) TACDE
51. Flag Officer. KP Murlidharan 10575-F(P) 20 Sqn
52. Naval Pilot Lt. Commander Ashok Roy
53. Squadron Leader Deva Prasad Chatterjee
54. Pilot Officer Tejinder Singh Sethi
Special Frontier Force Demands Account for the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan. Subedar Jaswant Singh held captive in Pakistan since 1965 War.Special Frontier Force Demands Account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan. Sepoy Balwinder Singh of 10 Sikh Regiment Missing since 1971 War.Special Frontier Force Demands Account of the Missing 54, Indian Armed Forces Personnel Held Captive in Pakistan.
BEIJING DOOMED – MORAL VICTORY FOR TIBET. PELOSI DELEGATION IN DHARAMSHALA.
Tibetans believe in moral principles that govern lives of individuals and of their chosen leaders. I believe in Moral Principles that govern or rule both man and national entities created by man. I predict Red China’s Doom or Downfall for her “EVIL” actions for Evil means Calamity, Catastrophe, Cataclysm, Disaster, and Apocalypse.
U.S. OFFICIALS VISIT DHARAMSHALA, EXPRESS SUPPORT FOR TIBET, DALAI LAMA
Tibetan Spiritual leader the Dalai Lama (left) and Democratic leader of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi stand onstage as they prepare to address exiled Tibetans gathered at the Tsuglakang Temple in McLeod Ganj, May 10, 2017. Democratic leader of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi is visiting the northern Indian town of Dharamshala, home to thousands of Tibetans living in exile. (Lobsang Wangyal/AFP/Getty Images)
U.S. Officials Visit Dharamshala, Express Support for Tibet, Dalai Lama
KATY DAIGLE and ASHWINI BHATIA, Associated Press
May 10, 2017
Tibetan Spiritual leader the Dalai Lama (left) and Democratic leader of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi stand onstage as they prepare to address exiled Tibetans gathered at the Tsuglakang Temple in McLeod Ganj, May 10, 2017. Democratic leader of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi is visiting the northern Indian town of Dharamshala, home to thousands of Tibetans living in exile. (Lobsang Wangyal/AFP/Getty Images)
DHARAMSHALA — As President Donald Trump appears to be warming to China, a bipartisan group from the U.S. House of Representatives took aim May 10 at one of Beijing’s sore spots: Tibet.
Representative Nancy Pelosi accused China of using economic leverage to crush Tibetan calls for autonomy. During a meeting with Tibetans and the Dalai Lama at his main temple in the Indian hill town of Dharamshala, she urged the community not to give up.
“You will not be silenced,” said Pelosi, a California Democrat. “The brutal tactics of the Chinese government to erase race, culture and language of Tibetan people challenges the conscience of the world. We will meet that challenge.”
The visit by Pelosi and seven other U.S. representatives irritated Beijing, where a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry reiterated China’s stance that the Dalai Lama is a dangerous separatist.
“The visit by U.S. congressmen to Dharamshala and their meeting with the Dalai Lama has sent a very wrong signal to the outside world about supporting Tibetan independence, which violates the U.S. government’s commitment not to support independence for Tibet,” the spokesman, Geng Shuang, told reporters.
He said Beijing had complained to the U.S. government over the matter, and urged the American representatives “to stop any kind of contact with the Dalai Lama, and take immediate measures to eliminate the negative impact.”
But Representative Jim Sensenbrenner assured that the U.S. Congress stood in “solidarity with the cause of the Tibetan people to be free from the repression that has been put upon them for a very, very long time from Beijing.”
“Without justice there is no freedom,” said the Wisconsin Republican, noting that the U.S. Constitution has prohibited government restrictions on the free exercise of religion for more than 220 years. “Today there is no justice in Tibet for Tibetans, for their religion, for their culture, for their language, and for His Holiness The Dalai Lama. … This is a civil rights issue.”
China says the Himalayan region has been part of the country for more than seven centuries. Many Tibetans insist they were essentially independent for most of that time. At least 148 Tibetans have set themselves on fire since 2009 to protest China’s rule.
In many cases, China has offered aid packages to foreign governments on the condition that they support China’s position on issues such as Tibet and Taiwan, the self-governing island that Beijing has pledged to take control of, by force if necessary. Mongolia said in December that it would no longer allow visits by the Dalai Lama after a recent trip by the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader led China to suspend talks on a major loan.
“China uses its economic leverage to silence the voices of friends of Tibet,” Pelosi said May 10. “But if we don’t speak out against repression in Tibet and the rest of China because of China’s economic power, we lose all moral authority to talk about human rights anywhere else in the world.”
Pelosi told the gathering that she would limit her comments on China’s “brutal tactics” because the Dalai Lama had “prayed for me that I would rid myself of my negative attitude about dwelling on the negative too much.”
The Dalai Lama, meanwhile, said Tibetans do not need weapons in their struggle for autonomy, and again prescribed a path of nonviolence and compassion. While he has devolved political power to an elected government, the Dalai Lama is still widely revered by Tibetans as their most influential leader.
Tibetans who remain in the closely guarded region “are living in fear and anxiety. Their life is at risk, but they are still preserving our traditions,” said the Dalai Lama, who fled Tibet to India in 1959 during an abortive uprising.
“We all are dedicated to the Tibetan cause, but should not think of harming the Chinese people as such. We need to befriend them,” he said, adding that compassion was needed to resolve the Tibetan issue.
The timing of the U.S. congressional visit may irk Trump, who just weeks ago boasted of enjoying cozy conversations and chocolate cake with Chinese President Xi Jinping at Trump’s Florida resort. During Xi’s official visit last month, Beijing also provisionally approved several trademark applications for Ivanka Trump, the president’s daughter.
President Trump’s rhetoric on China has warmed considerably since the U.S. presidential campaign, when he repeatedly called the Asian giant a currency manipulator and an economic adversary of the United States.
Many in the crowd at the May 10 gathering in Dharamshala said they were delighted, and relieved, to see a bipartisan U.S. delegation address the Tibetan issue.
“It perhaps shows that there is huge support for Tibet in the U.S. Congress. With Trump at the helm, things are uncertain,” said internet security analyst Lobsang Gyatso, 34.
Rinchen, a 27-year-old antiques dealer who fled Tibet as a teenager in 2006, said the visit had burnished the Tibetan cause and sent a strong message to China.
“The mere fact that this delegation is visiting Dharamshala gives importance to Tibet and the Dalai Lama,” said Rinchen, who uses only one name, as is common in the region. When people inside Tibet hear of the visit, “they will know that the support is real,” he said.
– Daigle reported from New Delhi. Associated Press writers Louise Watt in Beijing and Ashok Sharma contributed to this report.
DOOMED AMERICAN CHINA FANTASY – ONE BELT, ONE ROAD TO OPPRESSION
DOOMED AMERICAN CHINA FANTASY – ONE BELT, ONE ROAD TO OPPRESSION.
America’s participation in Red China’s One Belt, One Road Initiative accomplishes continued Occupation, Oppression, and Suppression in Tibet undermining American core values of Freedom, Peace, Democracy, and Natural Justice.
Doomed American China Fantasy – One Belt, One Road to Oppression.
In a step which could see India put under tremendous pressure, the United States of America has decided to take a U-Turn from its initial position and is set to participate in China’s One Belt, One Road (OBOR) initiative, being organised in Beijing.
The event, is to showcase and build momentum for its new 21st-century silk route, both land and maritime, and other similar initiatives which would lead to increasing connectivity with Asian and European countries and solidify its place in the world as a major trading partner. In India, along with concerns over its sovereignty, it is also seen as a continuation of Chinese strategy of ‘strings of pearls’ which China uses to flex its muscle in India’s neighbourhood.
The step of the US has put India in a dilemma as the change in its stance is early signal that the Trump administration is reframing the US-China relationship, according to Jagannath Panda, from the Institute for Defense Studies and Analysis, New Delhi.
India, which is still undecided on whether to send its representatives to the event to be held this Sunday and Monday, maintains that China has not built an environment of trust to carry out the belt and road projects.
The country’s concerns on the Chinese project stem from what it perceives to be a lack of regard shown to issues raised by it that projects which are part of OBOR impinge its sovereignty.
For example, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, which is a part of the larger project, by which China is set to link the Xinjiang province with the Gwadar port in Pakistan and is to be built-in Balochistan, passes through Gilgit-Baltistan region which India claims as its own.
Concerns such as these have led to the serious thoughts whether to send representatives to the event or not and if yes, officials of what level are to attend. Reports have claimed that the country may be represented by junior embassy level officials. The thinking is that even if it does not attend, it may not lead to any immediate material loss to it as OBOR is not a membership-based organisation, and may even get India praise in certain quarters for taking a principled stand.
Other than officials, academics from India may be present at the meet which is to see representation from over 50 countries including organisations such the World Bank.
The US has now decided to send senior representation to the event, with an inter-agency delegation led by Matthew Pottinger, a top adviser to the Trump administration and National Security Council senior director for East Asia to take part.
But many see it to be a trade-off between the country and China after the latter’s commitment to buy American beef as part of the Donald Trump’s 100-day plan’ agreement, and in return, the US will not only attend the event but also allow Chinese banks to expand their operation in the US.
The decision seems to be a direct result of the meeting between Trump and the Chinese President Xi Jinping when the Chinese leader visited the US last month. Chinese vice-finance minister Zhu Guangyao is reported to have said, ‘We welcome all countries to attend. And we welcome the United States’ attendance as the world’s largest economy.’
Out of the representatives of different countries, head of state’s of more than 29 countries are to be present for the programme. And now with the entry of the US into the fray, along with countries like Britain and Germany, China’s dominant position in the programme may be somewhat diluted.
Other countries that are taking part include Japan and South Korea, which have military differences with China, as well as other countries engaged in territorial disputes with China over the South China Sea issue, including Vietnam and Indonesia. Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka will also take part.
China may be put under pressure on the issue of transparency as other developed countries may ask for more details related to its plans, and whether it would follow internationally accepted standards on environment and labour in the projects which include six economic corridors but have not seen any reliable map made available.
According to reports, Tom Miller, author of a recent book, China’s Asian Dream, said, ‘What actually gets built will depend on what deals Chinese companies or the government make with other countries, abroad or on the deals that the Chinese government makes with other governments abroad, and no one knows exactly what those are going to be.’
OneIndia News
Doomed American China Fantasy – One Belt, One Road to Oppression.On tibettruth.comDoomed American China Fantasy – One Belt, One Road to Oppression. On forcechange.com
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