LETTER

Recently I visited Wales and as I travelled through the rolling valleys and rugged mountains I was reminded of places in Tibet. It was impossible to miss the masses of golden daffodils, currently in bloom, and I was reminded of Wordsworth’s poem:

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o’er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

I learnt that daffodils are the national flower of Wales, as are roses for England, the thistle for Scotland, and the shamrock for Ireland. Though each of these flowers looks beautiful in its own right a bunch of them together in union looks even better. Britain looks great as a united union of the kingdoms of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Tibet would look great as a united union of Amdo, Kham and Central Tibet.

I noticed also that road signs and other announcements were written in both Welsh and English. Travelling by train some years ago from Golmud in Amdo to Lhasa in Central Tibet I recall that all announcements were made only in Chinese. Not to include Tibetan in the land where Tibetan people live is a clear erosion of our national language.

Today, we hear much about Chinese boarding schools where Tibetan children are taught and made to speak Chinese. The Chinese authorities feel there is no need to ban a local language – it is enough simply to make it unnecessary for children to speak it. Sadly, this policy of neglect seems to be working in their favour. Tibetans should be aware that the boarding schools are legal according to the Chinese constitution. Without independence there is little we Tibetans can do to preserve our language and way of life apart from accepting what the Chinese allow.

To retain our language and way of life was why so many of us left our homes in Tibet with a dream of regaining our independence. That is – and remains – our goal. The journey to it may be long and difficult; but it cannot be as difficult or as long as attaining enlightenment. That is why our people in Tibet are telling us NOT TO GIVE UP.

— Phuntsog Wangyal
Former representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and a former chairman of the Tibet Foundation, UK