LETTER
(TibetanReview.net, May07’26) – Tsering Passang La, thank you for this piece (https://www.tibetanreview.net/as-tibets-veteran-freedom-fighters-pass-the-torch-britain-and-the-world-must-keep-the-cause-alive/). It is informative, instructive, and deeply inspiring. You were my senior by one class at CST Darjeeling; we spoke with each other on innumerable occasions, yet we never once exchanged the stories of our parents’ tribulations under the weight of the Communist Chinese occupation.
I never could have imagined you were the son of a resistance fighter, nor, I suspect, would you have guessed the depth of grief and struggle woven into my own family’s history. Reading your words now feels like a form of poetic justice – the stories we failed to whisper in the corridors of our youth are finally being shared across the span of half a world. I am currently finishing a biography of my father and look forward to sharing an advance copy with you. You can follow my progress here: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584818986687.
Your writing evokes a sharp nostalgia, providing both vital exhortation and a necessary reckoning with the past.
You are absolutely right to call out the UK for its historical sophistry. It is documented history that they not only withheld support for Tibet but also actively advised the then governments of India and the USA against intervention. One can only conclude that their diplomatic stance was a lingering revenge against the Ganden Phodrang for its lukewarm response to British overtures before the murderous Younghusband expedition. By inventing the legal fog of “suzerainty” versus “sovereignty,” they muddied the waters of historiography for generations. Yet, history is patient; it persists despite such distortions.
I offer only one humble suggestion: you used the word “burden” regarding the responsibility of the present Tibetan generation. While your intent is clearly noble, I fear vested interests might exploit that phrasing to imply a weight that exhausts rather than a legacy that empowers. Perhaps we should frame it as a “sacred trust” – a flame we carry, rather than a stone we drag.
-Nyima Tenzing
Nyima Tenzing holds a PhD in Economics. His research interests lie at the intersection of history, politics, and economics, where he explores the complex and often overlapping dynamics that shape social and economic realities. He maintains Nyima Tenzing-Writing & Stories on Facebook. He can also be reached at nyima.tenzing@gmail.com