Sunday August 7

• Do you work for one of the Tibetan Organizations here?

• No, I’m the Chinese killer

This was one of the fun interactions I had today. I think you can guess which one was me.

Actually, maybe not. Ahahaha

Traveling alone is funny. You become so much more aware of human interactions around you, the people staring at you, and well, people suddenly become more comfortable letting out their weirdness in your company. Wait, I think I’ve always tended to bring out the more odd personality traits in people, so maybe it’s just me.

While I was having breakfast/lunch at Yak Tibetan Restaurant, 3 Tibetan monks stared at me while I flipped through a human rights publication, in the hopes of educating myself on the situation of Tibetan refugees in Mcleod Gange. Not sure if they were just curious why the Asian girl was traveling alone or if they were trying to figure out if I was from China. Probably the latter.

At least once a year, people in Mcleod Gange burn all things from China. A Muslim merchant let this slip out while I was shopping for jewelry in his shop. I still need to confirm this with another source, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a lot of animosity toward Chinese people here. There are tons of stalls in the area selling documentaries about Tibetan refugees and crimes committed by the Chinese gov (it’s like heaven for me because I LOVE documentaries). Most people think I’m Nepali, Thai, Taiwanese, Japanese, or Korean up in the north, so I am fortunate enough to hear some of the uncensored anger.

The Chinese killer came in after the monks left. He was full of energy and sat at the table opposite mine. Though we were sitting at different tables, we were facing each other with no obstructions. He thought he met me before in Tibet. I said no, I’ve never been there. Then he asked if I was Taiwanese, Korean, or Japan. No, no, no was my response. I said I was from the United States, but my family is from China. Then the above conversation took place.

I’m pretty sure he was kidding. Though I was slightly uncomfortable when he repeated his joke about having killed Chinese people, he wasn’t really a zealot. When I told him that the Chinese government tortured and oppressed even their own people, he listened with an open mind. When I told him that the Chinese government censors their media and that 100% of the Chinese people probably wouldn’t support the government’s practices in Tibet if they knew all the facts, he nodded in agreement. Overall it was a pretty interesting conversation. He told me about how the Chinese have completely overpowered the Tibetans in population size (10 million versus 6 million). I learned that all of the major businesses in Tibet are Chinese owned and that attempts by Tibetans to move above middle class economic status is quashed by the government. Tibetan intellectuals, rebels, and successful businessmen are “disappeared” without a trace. If students protest, teachers are punished for fomenting rebellion. It’s like the Cultural Revolution all over again.

In various publications available in the restaurant, I learned that the Tibetans are fighting for their livelihood. The Chinese government is requiring that education should all be through Mandarin and are actively reducing the availability of courses on Tibetan culture or language. Linguists believe that if this is strictly enforced, the Tibetan language can become obsolete within 2 generations. Initially, I didn’t really understand why the Dalai Lama and Tibetan people would invest so much energy into fighting this education policy. Of all the human rights violations committed against their people, should this really be the priority?

Yes. There are words and phrases in a language that reflect the unique ideas of the culture. For instance, in Chinese, there is a phrase called “joe wren” which directly translates to “be human”. Whenever I did something socially inappropriate as a kid (in Chinese standards), my mom always asked me if I didn’t know how to “joe wren”. Knowing how to “be human” is of utmost importance. It’s a wonderful compliment if someone says you know how to “joe wren”. It means you’re civilized, a good person, and live life correctly. Honestly, this is probably a fragment of what this phrase really means, but my Chinese is also pretty horrible.

Basically what I’m trying to get to is, extinguishing a language might actually be the most efficient way to erase a culture. If future generations of Tibetans can’t understand the complexities of their ancestral language, how can they appreciate the ideas conveyed in their ancient literature? Sanskrit, Chinese, and Tibetan have the largest and most unique bodies of literature in the world. There is so much to lose. For both the Tibetans and the world.

Interesting day.