Monster Media 1994 #2/Monster Media No. 2 (Monster Media)(1994).ISO/magazine/wtn_0594.zip/WTN-0512.NWS

Text File | 1994-06-06 | 50KB | 856 lines

------------------------   World Tibet Network News   ----------------------
   Published by:     The Canada-Tibet Committee
   Editorial Board:  Brian Given <[e-mail]>
                     Nima Dorjee <[e-mail]>
                     Conrad Richter <[e-mail]>
                     Tseten Samdup <[e-mail]>
   Submissions and subscriptions to:
                     [e-mail]
                     or fax to: [phone]  (U.K.)
   Send us your comments, announcements, news or items for discussion.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Issue ID 94/05/12 GMT 10:40     Complied by Tseten Samdup

Contents
---------------------------------------------------------------------
1) Tibet party deputy secretary meets visiting Nepalese senator
2) Tibet adopts rules on foreigners' mountaineering
3) Tibet daily adopts laser typesetting technology
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---------------------------------------------------------------------
1) Tibet party deputy secretary meets visiting Nepalese senator
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'Xizang Ribao ', Lhasa, in Chinese 28 Apr 94 p I BBC SWB 11 may
1994

Excerpts from report

Basang, deputy secretary of the Tibet Autonomous Regional Chinese
Communist Party [CCP] Committee and vice-chairman of the regional
committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative
Conference, cordially met in Lhasa with visiting Nepalese Senator
(?Bandi) and his wife yesterday evening [27th April].

Basang said:.. In recent years in particular, the increase
in mutual visits by high-ranking leaders of our two
countries has promoted understanding and friendship
between the peoples of our two countries and has
strengthened bilateral friendly cooperation. Basang said:
The Tibet Autonomous Region and Nepal have scored marked
achievements in exchanges and cooperation in the fields of
economy, trade, transportation and culture. There are
broad prospects for cooperation in the future.
Appreciating Basang's remarks, Senator (?Bandi) expressed
the hope that economic and trade cooperation between Nepal
and the Tibet Autonomous Region will continue to expand.
(?Bandi) and his wife arrived in Lhasa for a visit on 26th
April. This is his fifth visit to China...


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2) Tibet adopts rules on foreigners' mountaineering
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Xinhua news agency, Beijing, in English 1531 gmt 7 May 94 BBC SWB
11 may 1994

Excerpts from report

Lhasa, 7th May: The Standing Committee of China's Tibet Autonomous
Regional People's Congress adopted today "The Rules on
Administration of Foreigners' Mountaineering in Tibet," which will
go into effect as of 1st July this year. The rules are the first
of its kind drawn up by the people's government of the Tibet
Autonomous Region...
Since 1980, Tibet has opened 44 mountain peaks to
foreigners and received nearly 6,000 mountaineers from 26
countries and regions.  All those who come for
mountain-climbing, expedition, skiing, gliding or
rock-climbing at a mountain peak over 5,500 m above the
sea level in Tibet or at the border of Tibet should abide
by the rules.  According to the rules, any foreigner going
to mountaineer in Tibet should present an written
application to Tibet Mountaineering Association for
approval. Besides, foreign mountaineering groups or
individuals going to mountaineer in Tibet should apply for
the entrance of their means of communications,
telecommunication and photographical equipment ahead of
time.

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3) Tibet daily adopts laser typesetting technology
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Summary: 'Xizang Ribao' holds ceremony o mark introduction of
laser typesetting for the paper, Tibet deputy party secretary
Danzim speak at ceremony on behalf of regional party committee and
regional  government.  'Xizang Ribao', Lhasa, in Chinese 23 Apr 94
p 1 BBC SWB 11 may 1994

Text of article by reporter Zhang Lei (1728 7191)

Amid crackling firecrackers, Basang, deputy chairman of the Tibet
regional party committee and vice-chairman of the regional
committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative
Conference; Laba Pingcuo, vice chairman of the regional people's
government; and Wang Yuchuan, vice-chairman of the Bada and
Fangzheng Group and general manager of the Chengdu Fangzheng Corp
Ltd, took up their scissors. Soon, three red flowers dropped onto
a platter. After 38 years of unremitting efforts, 'Xizang Ribao',
while marking its founding anniversary on 22nd April, also said
goodbye to its "lead and fire" history and ushered in a "light and
electricity" era. From now on, both the Chinese and Tibetan
editions of the 'Xizang Ribao' will be typeset by laser, and the
paper, like all other provincial-level papers in the country, has
upgraded its typesetting with new technology.
Danzim, a veteran 'Xizang Ribao' newsman and deputy
secretary of the regional party committee, expressed what
was in the hearts of the entire Xizang Ribao' staff. He
said: "With the use of laser typesetting technology, the
long-cherished dream of veteran newsmen has been realized,
and the frontier areas' journalistic development has made
one step forward. " Representing the regional party
committee and the regional people's government, Danzim
warmly congratulated the entire 'Xizang Ribao' staff and
thanked the Beida and Fangzheng groups for their unselfish
assistance and energetic support.  Lieque, member of the
regional party committee standing committee and secretary
of the Lhasa municipal party committee; Pucung,
vice-chairman of the regional people's congress standing
committee [name and post as given]; and Ga Jin, deputy
political commissar of the Tibet regional people's armed
police corps [post as given; BBC records list him as
deputy commander of the armed police corps]; as well as
persons in charge of relevant departments, bureaus,
committees and offices in Tibet, leaders in charge of
propaganda in various prefectures; and journalists of
various news units in Lhasa, also came to 'Xizang Ribao'
to extend their congratulations.  Gao Yanxiang, 'Xizang
Ribao' editor-in-chief, said excitedly: Although 'Xizang
Ribao' is the last newspaper in the country to begin using
laser typesetting technology, the use of this technology
has great significance. It represents a leap forward and a
revolution in Tibet's newspaper publishing history. He
added: The regional party committee and government set
strict requirements for the laser typesetting project and
always expressed interests in its progress. Despite
financial restraints, planning, financial, banking,
designing and construction departments made sure that
special funds for the project were available and the
project was meticulously designed and installed. Postal,
telecommunications and power departments made positive
efforts in coordinating our paper's normal publishing and
distribution; civil air transport and the Lhasa Air
Command [Chinese: kong Zhi 4500 2172] airlifted the
machinery to Lhasa safely and in the quickest way
possible; and newspapers and publishing units of central
authorities and all provinces and municipalities gave us
their warm encouragement and support. All this reflected
the great importance which people of all walks of life
inside and outside Tibet attached to 'Xizang Ribao"s news
reporting and propaganda; reflected the spirit of unity,
cooperation and mutual assistance; and reflected the
warmth of our motherland as a big family and the fraternal
ties among people of all nationalities. Speaking on behalf
of the entire 'Xizang Ribao' staff, Gao Yanxiang pledged
that the entire 'Xizang Ribao' staff would continue to
carry forward the spirit of waging arduous struggle, being
ready to dedicate themselves and working hard in unity in
operating the newspaper. He said the 'Xizang Ribao' staff
will continue to emancipate their minds, press forward,
and bring forth new ideas to create a good and stable
environment for Tibet's spiritual and material
construction .  At yesterday's ribbon-cutting ceremony, Du
Tai, deputy head of the regional party committee
propaganda department; and Wang Yuchuan, vice-chairman of
the Beida and Fangzheng groups and president of the
Chengdu Fangzheng Electronics Corp Ltd, also gave warm
speeches.  Following the ribbon-cutting ceremony, the
leaders and visitors toured the laser typesetting room
with great interest.

---------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------   World Tibet Network News   ----------------------
   Published by:     The Canada-Tibet Committee
   Editorial Board:  Brian Given <[e-mail]>
                     Nima Dorjee <[e-mail]>
                     Conrad Richter <[e-mail]>
                     Tseten Samdup <[e-mail]>
   Submissions and subscriptions to:
                     [e-mail]
                     or fax to: [phone]  (U.K.)
   Send us your comments, announcements, news or items for discussion.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Issue ID 94/05/12 GMT 12:45     Complied by Tseten Samdup

Content
---------------------------------------------------------------------
1) Dalai Lama hints at reconsidering move
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From: The Times of India
        New Delhi 12 May 1994

The Dalai Lama today made it clear to the Chief minister, Mr
Virbhadra Singh, that he would reconsider his decision of not
moving his headquarters from Dharamsala only if there was an
assurance from senior local residents that the incidents that
occurred there recently would not be repeated.

The secretary to the Dalai Lama, Mr. Tenzin Geyche Tethong, told
The Times of India News Service over telephone that Mr Virbhadra
Singh called on the Tibetan religious leader at his headquarters
in Mcleodganj and made a strong plea that His Holiness should not
move out because of the centuries-long relationship between Tibet
and Himachal Pradesh.

Mr Virbhadra Singh, however, told reporters at Dharamsala that he
had met the Dalai Lam and it was wrong to say that the latter had
decided to move out.  "The Dalai Lama only said that if his
presence or that of the Tibetans was causing difficulty to the
local population, he would think in terms of shifting," he added.

Mr Tethong said that the Dalai Lama made it clear during the near
hour-long discussions with the chief minister that he first wanted
to be fully satisfied that the local residents did not want  him
or the Tibetan community that had settled in Dharamsala to move
out.

Secondly, the Dalai Lama made clear that despite his best efforts
and those by the senior Tibetans that there was no repetition of
such incident, he could not given any guarantee that a similar
incident involving a Tibetan youth and a Indian would not take
place.  And should such an incident ever unfortunately take place,
it should not be blown out of proportion by some local politicians
and a section of the local population, is the second guarantee
that the Dalai Lama wants," Mr Tethong added.

ASSURANCE SOUGHT:  He said that it was only after a categorical
assurance was given on these two counts would the Dalai Lama
consider his plan to move out of Dharamsala.

The Dalai Lama pointed out that he had not come to Dharamsala on
his own, but reluctantly or at the advise of the then Prime
Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, and the government of India.
"The communications system here in the early '60s was not good and
in the mid-'60s, we wanted to move elsewhere.  Initial scouting
for the place was also done, but senior citizens of Dharamsala
strongly appealed to me to stay back to which I agreed," he
added.

He said that it was only after this that he bought land and got
his headquarters and those of other Tibetan institutions
constructed here.  Thereafter, other Tibetans followed suit.

The religious head also said that in the '80s, when earthquake hit
the region, many of his followers and Tibetans around the world
requested him to shift his headquarters but he refused.

Mr Virbhadra Singh later said that an isolated incident had been
blown out of proportion and given a communal colour.  The chief
minister said there had only been a few incidents involving Indian
and Tibetans in the state which spoke of the cordial relations
between the two communities.

He said that three-member committee formed by him was not to probe
the incident.  It was a fact-finding committee which would
determine the steps to take to strengthen relations between the
two communities.

CENTRE CONCERNED:  It appears that the Centre was also in touch
with Mr Virbhadra Singh to take stock of the situations and bring
things under control so that it did not create an embarrassing
situation for India.  Further, any shifting of the headquarters
would also put a burden on the government.

---------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------   World Tibet Network News   ----------------------
   Published by:     The Canada-Tibet Committee
   Editorial Board:  Brian Given <[e-mail]>
                     Nima Dorjee <[e-mail]>
                     Conrad Richter <[e-mail]>
                     Tseten Samdup <[e-mail]>
   Submissions and subscriptions to:
                     [e-mail]
                     or fax to: [phone]  (U.K.)
   Send us your comments, announcements, news or items for discussion.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Issue ID: 94/05/12 21:00 GMT                      Compiled by Conrad Richter

Contents
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Amnesty Accuses China of Widespread Torture
2. Dalai Lama Seen Unlikely to Shift Headquarters
3. Indian Official Asks Dalai Lama to Stay
4. Dalai Lama to Receive Roosevelt Freedoms Medal
5. Clinton Under Pressure to Give MFN to China; Tibet and Political Prisoners
   are the Focus as Discussions Continue
6. Hollywood-Star Gere gegen Handelsvorteile fuer China [Hollywood Star Gere
   is Against Improved Trade Status for China]
7. The Hollowing of a Threat; Trade is Squeezing Rights Out of China Policy
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Amnesty Accuses China of Widespread Torture
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
    WASHINGTON, May 12, Reuter -- The U.S. section of Amnesty International
asserted that China was continuing to use thumbscrews, electric prods and
shackleboards in widespread torture of dissidents in China and Tibet.
    Displaying what it said were such instruments of torture smuggled from
Tibet, Amnesty urged the Clinton administration to "tell the truth" in the
debate over extending Most Favored Nation trading privileges to China.

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2. Dalai Lama Seen Unlikely to Shift Headquarters
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    DHARAMSALA, May 11, Reuter -- The Dalai Lama, spiritual leader of
Tibetan Buddhists and Nobel Peace Prize winner, seems unlikely to carry out
his threat to move from his Indian headquarters, Tibetan officials said on
Wednesday.
     The Dalai Lama made the threat on May 3 after local residents attacked
Tibetans in the headquarters in the Himalayan town of Dharamsala over the
killing of a young man by a Tibetan.
     Mobs damaged property owned by Tibetans, who followed their leader from
exile in Tibet when he fled a failed uprising in 1959 against the Chinese
rulers.
     Tibetan and Indian sources blamed a local legislator of the Hindu
nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for stirring up the mobs. Tibetan
officials said senior members of the party apologised to the Dalai Lama.
     It was at that meeting the spiritual leader suggested he might leave
Dharamsala and move elsewhere in India.
     "If possible, I may shift to either (the southern city of) Bangalore or
Delhi or somewhere in (the northern state of) Uttar Pradesh," he said in a
statement.
     "Dharamsala being a small town, the small Tibetan community is very
conspicuous here," he said.
     Tibetan officials said the Dalai Lama had not approached the Indian
government on any such move and doubted whether Delhi would be happy to agree.
     Rinchen Khando, education minister in the Tibetan government-in-exile,
which is not recognised by any country, said the "move would send the wrong
signals -- that the Tibetans could not co-exist with the locals and hence were
booted out. The Chinese will definitely use it for propaganda worldwide."
     The Dalai Lama won the Nobel prize for his non-violent campaign against
Chinese rule of Tibet. His efforts to negotiate a settlement with Beijing have
so far been unsuccessful.
     China invaded the remote state in 1950 and proclaimed Tibet a "national
autonomous region" a year later.

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3. Indian Official Asks Dalai Lama to Stay
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
By NEELAM JAIN
   NEW DELHI, May 10, UPI -- Indian leaders urged the dalai lama, the Tibetan
spiritual leader, to keep his government-in-exile in the Himalayan resort town
of Dharamsala, news reports said Tuesday.
   Virbhadra Singh, the chief minister in the northern state of Himachal
Pradesh where Dharamsala is located, asked the Nobel prize winner to stay,
along with members of his community, The Times of India reported.
   "We are honored that you have been living with us for the last 30 years,"
Singh told the dalai lama.
   The Tibetan leader expressed a desire to move to another part of India with
his followers after last month's rioting and clashes between the Tibetans and
tribal natives. The rioting followed the stabbing death of a local shepherd by a
Tibetan youth.
   "I am personally hurt at the unwarranted and intimidating slogans raised
against His Holiness," Singh said.
   The dalai lama has not yet made a formal request to the Indian government,
however, it is believed that he considered the southern Indian city of
Bangalore, which has 30,000 Tibetans, as an alternative to Dharamsala after an
earthquake a few years ago. Recently the dalai lama said: "Now a human
earthquake has sent tremors in Tibetan community."
   Authorities said this is not the first time the two communities have
clashed. "This is mainly an economic problem," a high official said in New
Delhi. The economic prosperity of the Tibetans in the small town has sparked
feelings of jealousy and animosity among the local people, he said.
   Local leader Dharam Singh said, "corruption has become rampant in the
Dharamsala administration because of some Tibetans, who do not hesitate to
bribe the officials with imported items and even cash."
   In addition to the headquarters of the government-in-exile, there are more
than two dozen Tibetan institutions in the region and many Tibetan settlements
in the surroundings villages.
   The dalai lama recently said "too many Tibetans in a small town like
Dharamsala were catching the eyes of the local people."
   This coupled with the lack of interaction between the two communities has
worsened the situation.
   "The two communities should come closer and participate in social functions
of each other in a big way to defuse the situation and avoid recurrence of
such incidents," the dalai lama said.
   Meanwhile the 35th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising will be celebrated
later this month and New Delhi will have to make adequate arrangements to
avoid any violence, officials said.
   China annexed Tibet, "the roof of the world," in 1951, causing a short-
lived independence uprising. In 1959 the dalai lama fled to India with more
than 100,000 followers.

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4. Dalai Lama to Receive Roosevelt Freedoms Medal
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
    AMSTERDAM, May 10, Reuter -- The Dalai Lama, Tibet's exiled spiritual
leader, will receive the Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Medal at a
ceremony in the southern Netherlands next month, the organising Roosevelt
Foundation said on Tuesday.
     The foundation said it was honouring the 1989 Nobel peace prize laureate
because his message of peace and understanding had been "a beacon of hope" to
oppressed peoples everywhere.
     Separate awards for freedom of speech and freedom of worship will be made
to Marion Countess Doenhoff, publisher of German newspaper Die Zeit, and to
Gerhart Riegner, honorary vice-president of the World Jewish Congress.
     Sadako Ogata, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, will receive an
award for freedom from want. Sarajevo law professor Zdravko Grebo, who set up
the independent radio station ZID, will be given an award for freedom from
fear.
     The awards are named after the four freedoms mentioned by president
Franklin D. Roosevelt in a 1941 speech to Congress -- freedom of speech,
freedom of worship, freedom from want and freedom from fear.
     The foundation is based in the southern Dutch province of Zeeland where
Roosevelt's ancestors lived.

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5. Clinton Under Pressure to Give MFN to China; Tibet and Political Prisoners
   are the Focus as Discussions Continue
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
By DONALD M. ROTHBERG
   WASHINGTON, May 12, AP -- With billions of dollars in trade and business at
stake, President Clinton came under increasing pressure Thursday to declare
that China has met his conditions for renewing trade privileges.
   A study, released by Sen. Mark O. Hatfield, R-Ore., said termination of
favorable trade relations with China would cost American consumers $10 billion
a year and hurt several key U.S. industries.
   It predicted that China will spend $400 billion over the next five years on
imports related to major public works projects and modernization of plants and
equipment.
   Chairman Lee Hamilton, D-Ind., of the House Foreign Affairs Committee,
lending his influential voice to pro-MFN camp, said that the president should
"go ahead and find that the terms of the executive order have been met."
   Hamilton said he hoped the Chinese would do some things "that would make it
much easier for all of us."
   That could be happening.
   Zhang Ruiyu, 54, a Chinese Protestant jailed since 1990 on charges of
attempting to overthrow the ruling Communist Party has been paroled for good
behavior, the official Xinhua news agency said Thursday.
   The announcement came one day after news that China would allow dissident
legal scholar Yu Haocheng to travel to study in the United States after four
years of refusing to let him leave.
   So far, the administration has greeted each move by Beijing with praise,
and the admonition that more must be done.
   Clinton must decide by June 3, and Secretary of State Warren Christopher
has notified key officials the decision is likely to come before the president
leaves for Europe on June 1.
   State Department spokesman Mike McCurry said officials were drafting "a
large number of study papers" covering the various options open to Clinton.
They include a middle course under which trade privileges would be denied to
products manufactured by state-owned industries, including the military.
   That approach has been criticized as unenforceable because the communist
government could easily mask whether products came from state-owned industries
or from the country's burgeoning private sector.
   Sources in the administration and on Capitol Hill said that Tibet and
political prisoners were the focus of quiet and intense ongoing discussions
between the United States and China.
   As the deadline has drawn close, the body language from the administration
suggests a leaning toward renewal.
   "China has made significant overall progress in several of the areas
outlined in my executive order," Clinton said during a recent CNN foreign
policy forum. "But not in all of the areas."
   There was speculation on Capitol Hill that Clinton might send a special
envoy to Beijing in a last-ditch effort to spell out precisely the steps China
must take to win renewal of Most Favored Nation status, under which its
products enter the United States at the lowest available tariff rates.
   But administration officials said they knew of no such plan.
   When Clinton renewed MFN for China a year ago, he issued an executive order
saying that continuation depended on China allowing freedom of emigration and
adhering to an agreement that would allow inspections to assure that Chinese
exports to the United States were not made with prison labor.
   In addition, the order directed Christopher to determine whether China had
made "overall, significant progress" on human rights and in "protecting
Tibet's distinctive religious and cultural heritage."
   In recent testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Winston
Lord, assistant secretary of state for East Asia and the Pacific, said that
Beijing has said it was willing to talk to the Dalai Lama, but only if Tibetan
independence is not on the agenda.
   "It's not clear to us why they can't get together and set a date," he said.
   Lord was ambassador to China at the time of the June 1989 crackdown on
democracy demonstrators and is considered one of the administration hard-
liners on the question of human rights.

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6. Hollywood-Star Gere gegen Handelsvorteile fuer China [Hollywood Star Gere
   is Against Improved Trade Status for China]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
    WASHINGTON, May 12, DPA -- Hollywood-Star Richard Gere hat die
amerikanische Regierung aufgefordert, der Volksrepublik China wegen ihrer
Menschenrechtsverletzungen in Tibet Handelsvorteile zu entziehen. Auf einer
Pressekonferenz mit amnesty international (ai) sagte Gere am Donnerstag in
Washington, Tibet sei ein "Riesen-Gulag" und ein "Konzentrationslager"
politischer Haeftlinge.
    Die USA koennten ein solches Verhalten nicht mit dem
Meistbeguenstigungsrecht belohnen, sagte Gere, der sich dem Buddhismus
zugewandt und kuerzlich China und Tibet besucht hat. Praesident Bill Clinton
muss spaetestens bis zum 3. Juni eine Entscheidung ueber eine einjaehrige
Verlaengerung des Rechts treffen, das die im Welthandel ueblichen Zoelle
gewaehrt. Nach US-Recht sind dazu Fortschritte in Pekings Menschenrechts-
politik erforderlich.

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7. The Hollowing of a Threat; Trade is Squeezing Rights Out of China Policy
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Daniel Williams and Clay Chandler
    WASHINGTON, May 12, Washington Post -- President Clinton's stern threat to
punish China with trade sanctions if it fails to improve its record on human
rights has all but collapsed in a jumble of cross purposes, second thoughts
and mistaken assumptions about the ease of reaching compromise with Beijing.
    Less than a month remains before Clinton must decide whether to revoke
China's low tariff privileges, known as most favored nation (MFN) status,
based on progress in seven human rights categories. Within a matter of days,
Secretary of State Warren Christopher is expected to send the president an
assessment of China's performance.
    The overwhelming consensus of independent human rights organizations is
that China's human's rights record has not improved, and in some areas
worsened. But revoking China's MFN status is increasingly viewed as the
economic equivalent of dropping an atom bomb: too devastating to contemplate.
    Even members of Congress who last year supported a tough line on China
have begun to get cold feet. Revocation would severely strain relations and
cost millions in American business, they fear. Clinton's top advisers are
scrambling to improvise a dignified retreat. The objective now, many
administration officials say, is to find a "middle ground" solution that
demonstrates Clinton's human rights concern, but does little or no damage to
trade. Half-way measures would represent a retreat from Clinton's executive
order last year, in which he threatened to yank China's low-tariff privileges
unless Beijing made "overall significant progress" in human rights.
    "The issue now is saving face for the president," said Banning Garrett, a
senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
   A senior administration official yesterday described Clinton as irritated
over the outcome of his policy. He said "intensive dialogue" is continuing
with China in hopes of eliciting additional concessions.
   Clinton's need to live down campaign rhetoric has become a recurring
foreign policy nightmare. Clinton attacked President George Bush for
"coddling" dictators and pledged to support tough legislation aimed at forcing
Chinese progress on human rights.
    The evolution of Clinton's China policy has been marked by defects evident
in other troubled efforts: issuance of a threat that was easier to make than
carry out; an inability to set or stick to priorities; misplaced faith in the
goodwill of adversaries; indiscipline among contending voices in the
administration, undermining any impression of resolve. The deeper failing,
though, was a reluctance to recognize that U.S. leverage over China was
extremely limited.
    Opinion is growing inside and outside the administration that Clinton
should cut losses and move on. Unlike Bosnia, Somalia or Haiti, China is
regarded as central to Washington's foreign policy concerns. A botched
relationship could cast a shadow on issues as diverse as nuclear
proliferation, the stability of East Asia and global warming.
    U.S. exports to China last year totaled $8.8 billion, far below China's
sales of $30 billion to the United States. However, China is one of the
fastest growing markets for American goods and is regarded as a potential
bonanza by such major companies as AT&T, Boeing and General Motors.
    A rupture in trade relations that triggers retaliation by China could cost
jobs in key electoral states. Last month, a group representing 400 California
businesses warned Clinton of a potential loss of 35,000 jobs. Administration
officials are reviewing the costs in a confidential impact study.
    "The reading of the business community is that anything short of permanent
renewal (of MFN) would be an absolute disaster," one member of Clinton's
economic team said.
    Although the decision is pending, the administration spin is on, focusing
on what few advances have occurred. "You can't deny there has been a dialogue
with China on human rights for the first time," a senior State Department
official said. "We established a continuing dialogue, so some progress can be
made."
    Moreover, sentiment in Congress appears to be shifting away from
punishment of China. In a speech Tuesday, Rep. Lee H. Hamilton (D-Ind.),
chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, argued  in favor of extending MFN
to bolster liberalizing trends in China. "We should seek ways to support those
trends," he said to the American Enterprise Institute.
    Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), once a proponent of punishing China, said in
an interview that it is time for a new course. "The situation in China has
changed enough, and dynamics between the United States and China have changed
enough that it is time to begin a new dialogue" that woud enhance human rights
and U.S economic and security concerns.
    Administration officials now worry about flunking the "laugh test," the
derision that might greet full or partial renewal of trade privileges if China
has not shown meaningful progress.
    The threshold has been raised by periodic arrests of leading pro-democracy
activists. Such activity dilutes the impact of such gestures as permission
granted this week to Yu Haocheng, a prominent dissident, to leave China.
    Asia Watch, the human rights organization, earlier this month published a
study concluding that China had made no progress. "Beijing appears to have
opted for a policy of conspicuous crackdown mixed with minimal, superficial
concessions, while at the same time intensifying and extending overall
repression of dissent," the report said.
    The administration is still trying to wriggle free of its own rhetoric.
Christopher, at his confirmation hearing last year, said, "Our policy will be
to facilitate a broad, peaceful revolution in China from communism to
democracy, by encouraging the forces of economic and political liberalization
in that great and highly important country." In March, in an article printed
in The Washington Post, he stated, "The character of our relationship with
China depends significantly on how the Chinese government treats its people."
   Those ambitions have been lowered. On May 4, Assistant Secretary of State
Winston Lord said in a Senate hearing, "We are not seeking to transform
Chinese society." And the latest formulation, offered by a senior official
this week is, "We are not trying to change Chinese society overnight."
    One option under discussion - though viewed as unworkable by economic
advisers - is to raise tariffs only on Chinese goods produced by
government-owned enterprises. It is unclear whether such an action is legal or
practical. It would be difficult to distinguish among companies in China, many
of which are joint ventures and others that are spinoffs from government
ministries.
    Another option is to target specific products - for example, textiles or
tools - many of which happen to be made by state companies. This approach
would be easier to enforce but it is certain to harm private investors, just
the kind of group the administration hopes would benefit from trade.
    A third approach would single out military industries. The army, prime
villains of Tiananmen Square crackdown in 1989, sells thousands of assault
rifles and other weapons in the United States. Washington could also cite
China for violating labor rights and impose sanctions on selected products.
    As yet another alternative, some U.S. business groups have proposed
adoption of a code of conduct for their enterprises in China that would commit
them to protect worker rights.
    During the presidential campaign, Clinton took shots at Bush's
unwillingness to condition trade on human rights in the aftermath of the
Tiananmen Square crackdown.
    Once in office, Clinton's position subtly changed. While still willing to
threaten sanctions, he wanted to keep the decision out of the hands of
Congress. Intense negotiations between the administration and leading China
democracy advocates in Congress - including Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and
Senate Majority Leader George J. Mitchell (D-Maine) - resulted in an executive
order last June setting the seven conditions for improvement in China's human
rights record. Two conditions - emigration and prison-made exports - were
mandatory under U.S. law. On the remaining five conditions, including release
of prisoners and relief of repression in Tibet, China was told it had to show
"overall, significant progress."
    The order succeeded in mollifying Congress and to some extent the business
community. Administration officials billed the conditions as easy for China to
fulfill.
   China apparently thought otherwise. "This policy was intended to solve a
domestic political problem instead of a foreign policy problem," said Bonnie
Glaser, a consultant on Asian affairs.
    Relations quickly soured, not only over human rights, but also over
alleged sales of Chinese missile parts to Pakistan and suspected shipments of
chemical weapons to the Middle East. Lord wrote an internal memo that warned
of a downward spiral in relations and called for a broad range of talks with
Beijing. After several more months of further deterioration in relations, the
adminstration shifted course and embarked on a new strategy of expanded
diplomatic, economic and military contacts.
   The policy appeared to win results. Just before  a November meeting between
Clinton and Chinese President Jiang Zemin in Seattle, the Chinese announced
they would consider prison visits by the International Committee of the Red
Cross. Washington responded with sale of a high speed computer.
    But the rapproachement was short-lived. U.S. officials warned that China
was not making enough progress on human rights. Economic advisers began to get
nervous and extolled the worth of the China market, implying disaster if it
was lost.
    In a January meeting with reporters, Robert E. Rubin, Clinton's chief
economic adviser, appeared to endorse decoupling of the human rights issue
from renewal of MFN. State Department officials began to complain of
"indiscipline" undermining Washington's human rights stand.
    Visiting China in March, Christopher urged greater progress on human
rights but detentions of leading dissidents soured the visit.
    Since then, China has made a few gestures: the release of Wang Juntao, an
ill, imprisoned dissident among the most important.
    Supporters and critics of the presidenty's policy converge on one point:
Clinton must settle on a broad China policy and fit his coming decision into
it. Hamilton said he was "hopeful" that the Chinese will make sufficient
gestures to ease the burden on Clinton. "At that point," he said, "the
president ... should present to the Congress and the country a China policy
that looks toward the future and not the past."

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------------------------   World Tibet Network News   ----------------------
   Published by:     The Canada-Tibet Committee
   Editorial Board:  Brian Given <[e-mail]>
                     Nima Dorjee <[e-mail]>
                     Conrad Richter <[e-mail]>
                     Tseten Samdup <[e-mail]>
   Submissions and subscriptions to:
                     [e-mail]
                     or fax to: [phone]  (U.K.)
   Send us your comments, announcements, news or items for discussion.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Issue ID: 94/05/12 21:30 GMT                      Compiled by Conrad Richter

Contents
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Dalai Lama May Seek Shifting of Headquarter, Residence
2. National Tibet Forum Organization Proposal
3. Rampage Leads Dalai lama to Consider Moving Headquarters
4. Call for Tibetan Artists
5. Letters: Don't Forget the Plight of Tibet in Debate about China Trade
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Dalai Lama May Seek Shifting of Headquarter, Residence
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forwarded by: Phuntsok Namgyal, Tibetan Computer Resources Centre
              <[e-mail]>
DHARAMSALA, May 8, Indian Express -- A shocked, saddened and unsure
Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibetans, is thinking in terms of
making a request to the Government of India to shift the headquarters
of the Tibetan Government and his residence from Dharamsala in the
wake of the recent outbreak of violence.

"Time has come to reduce our settlement in Dharamsala and shift some
institutions to a bigger place, may be Delhi or Bangalore, or in
some part of northern Himalayas.  The shifting could be done in a
phased manner starting with my residence and the Tibetan Secretariat,"
the Dalai Lama told media persons at his residence here on Friday.
"We feel uncomfortable and sad.  We are refugees.  Moving out from
this city will be  sad.  But if the local people are uncomfortable with
our presence, it is better to leave," the Dalai Lama said in an emotional
tone.

Asked about his preference for the alternative seat of the Tibetan
Government-in-Exile in India, the Dalai Lama said, "It is for the
Government of India to decide which has been kind to grant us asylum here
and has allowed us freedom to propagate our religion and culture,"
Asked wasn't he over-reacting to the situation which he himself had
referred to as a "stray incident", the Dalai Lama, after a thoughtful pause,
said, "I don't know.  Of course, nobody is asking us to go from here.
Much depends on the behaviour of the locals.  If the majority of them
feel unhappy about our presence then there is no charm of staying.  If
there are no ill feelings or negative feelings and there is cultural
harmony between the two communities, then, there will be no need to move
out".

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2. National Tibet Forum Organization Proposal
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: National Empowerment Project <[e-mail]>

GARDENA, Calif., May 12, NEP --
Several individuals are interested in possibly putting together
alternative national bodies to represent Tibetans and Tibetan
supporters for funding and organizing possibilities, to include the
creation of a workable mission, structure, and agenda (through a
national conference), which would promote democratization and
human rights in Tibet and especially filling in the many voids from
current attempts with unique and creative funding solutions.

If interested, e-mail mailing address to [e-mail] or
write to NATIONAL EMPOWERMENT PROJECT L/A c/o TCCSC,
2501 Redondo Beach Blvd. 315, Gardena, Ca. 90249.

Information on national foundation and corporate RFPs and
contacts would be appreciated  and please be aware that
transportation fundings for any future meetings have not yet
been accessed. Creative proposal writers absolutely welcome !

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. Rampage Leads Dalai lama to Consider Moving Headquarters
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forwarded by: Karen Pope <[e-mail]>
By Tim McGirk

NEW DEHLI, May 12, The Independent -- The Dalai Lama, the spiritual and
political leader of Tibet, has threatened to move the headquarters of his
government-in-exile from Dharamsala, in the Himalayas of northern India,
after two local politicians incited Indians to go on a rampage against Tibetan
refugees.

The calm of Dharamsala, the forested retreat where the Dalai Lama and 8,000
other Tibetan monks and refugees have been living since 1960, was shattered
on April 22 when an Indian youth, who belonged to a caste of shepherds known
as the gaddis, was stabbed to death by a Tibetan in a fight that developed
over an India versus Pakistan cricket match on television.

During the funeral, Krishan Kapoor, a politician belonging to the right-wing
Hindu Bharatiya Janata party, yanked the shroud off the corpose, reached in
the cadaver's open stomach, pulled out a length of intenstine, and held it
high.  "This is what the Tibetans have done!" he yelled.  The mourners
went berserk.  Shouting "Death to the Dalai Lama!" and "Long Live (Chinese
leader) Deng Xiaoping!" the mob stormed the compound of the Tibetan
government-in-exile, smashed windows, set fires and destroyed furniture.
They then looted Tibetan shops and beat up refugees.

Not to be outdone by Kapoor, the rival Congress politician, a shrill
ex-princess named Chandresh Kumari, helped circulate a petition calling for
the Dalai Lama and the Tibetans to get out of India.  The Dalai Lama, a
Nobel Peace Prize winner, was abroad during these events, but in a statement
he said: "To avoid a conflict becoming a major problem in the future, it is
best that I move out of Dharamsala.  I am very, very sad that an individual
incident has, unfortunately, been allowed to be manipulated by local
politicians and this makes it serious."

He mentioned moving to Bangalore, in southern India, which would mean
dismantling the government-in-exile's offices, Tibetan medicine centres,
libraries, monasteries and schools.  In all, more than 100,000 Tibetan
refugees are scattered around the country.

Even before the stabbing, the gaddis' resentment against the refugees was
high.

They blame them for driving up land prices.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
4. Call for Tibetan Artists
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
From:   CTC National Office <[e-mail]>

The Museum of International Folk Art, located in Santa Fe, New
Mexico, U.S.A., is planning an exhibit of "Tibetan Material Culture
in Exile," planned to open in November of 1996.  If you are a
Tibetan artist or craftsman living anywhere in the world, please
contact me for further information.  We might be willing to
consider your work on either a purchase or loan basis for our show.

Those seriously interested should either call or send letters of
inquiry to Dr. Frank J.Korom, Curator of Asian & Middle Eastern
Collections, Museum of International Folk Art, P.O. Box 2087, Santa
Fe, New Mexico, 87504, U.S.A.  (Tel: [phone]; Fax: [phone].

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
5. Letters: Don't Forget the Plight of Tibet in Debate about China Trade
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forwarded by: International Committee Lawyers for Tibet" <[e-mail]>

SAN FRANCISCO, May 9, San Francisco Examiner [Letters to the editor] --
Kudos to The Examiner for urging President Clinton to remember
Tibet in the debate on most favored nation trade status for China
(editorial, "Blood on the earth," May 1).  Democratic freedoms in
occupied Tibet have deteriorated since last June when Clinton
linked renewal of China's MFN status to progress in protecting
Tibet's religious and cultural heritage.  Though the conditions
gave China plenty of room to maneuver, its dogmatic leaders have
failed to respond in any meaningful way.

Meanwhile, Tibetans are being increasingly marginalized
economically and culturally as China employs a "final solution" by
encouraging an influx of Chinese settlers in Tibet.  Tibet's
fragile high-altitude plateau and rich culture simply cannot
sustain this onslaught indefinitely.

Your editorial reinforces what China's leaders must eventually
understand--Tibet no longer can be ignored.  Too much blood has
been shed, too many lies have been told for the world to forget the
suffering of the Tibetan people.

Tibet and its neighbors will likely regain their independence when
the Chinese empire crumbles.  In the meantime, the United States
must step up its efforts to support the Dalai Lama's repeated calls
for negotiations and seek an interim solution that ends the
population transfer, protects the rich Tibetan culture and
guarantees the rights of the estimated 6 million Tibetans living
under a repressive, colonial regime.

John A. Maier
San Francisco

--------
I agree with the position you took on China and its treatment of
Tibet.  While I don't agree with many other arguments for denying
China most favored nation (MFN) status, China's treatment of Tibet
outweighs other economic rationalizations.

The treatment of China's own citizens by their government should
not be judged solely by our standards.  But the invasion and
oppression of the people of Tibet by China's thugs is inexcusable
by any standards.

Tibet has done nothing to deserve such treatment, and for the
United Nations and the United States to ignore the plight of the
people of Tibet is hypocrisy at its worst.

The denial of continued MFN status to China is the least we can do,
even though many American workers will be adversely affected.

Rod Nolte
San Ramon

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--- GoldED 2.41+/#1067
 * Origin: BODY DHARMA * Moderator, TIBET_NEWS - DharmaNet (96:101/33)