Skip to main content

Revealing the real ways of Tibetan govt in exile through an anonymous friend

By Rajiv Shah 
Recently, I received an email from from a person who introduced himself as Ronny Krier, claiming to be an American cultural researcher. He said, he visits Counterview in a regular basis to read news about India, and thinks, “It's a great platform to break the information filter bubbles and hear different voice.” Then Kreir, who is on Twitter and Facebook, and calls himself “independent investigator, religion-politics researcher,” refers to a friend whom he does not name to point out how the Tibetan government in exile is failing to take care of refugees.
Says Krier, “Under the pandemic, my friend, a Tibetan refugee who lived in Dharmsāla, had something to talk about the CTA (Central Tibetan Administration) in dealing with Covid-19 and current issues in the Tibetan community. I met him when I was travelling India, and recently he reached me and talked about it. He really wants to be heard by the Indian public and the global audience. However, he's still a bit cautious about his personal info(Tibetan community is not big), so he would like to talk anonymously at this stage(I will try to convince him to be brave and speak out loud).”
He adds, “I think his story really needs to be heard in the Indian public, for it's about refugees ' human rights and the actual functions of the Tibetan exile government. And I think Counterview is a great platform to publish his opinion. So if you are interested in his story, please email me back and I will give you his whole story.”
I asked Krier to send a story, and this is what he sent to me along with a couple of photographs, revealing the ways of CTA:
***
Thanks for your reply. Then I directly sent his words to you...
"It is clear that the coronavirus in Dharmsāla has not been effectively controlled, as any Tibetan can see. Being a Buddhist, I practice every day. But in this situation, I always want to look back to see what led to such a bad situation. CTA is the elected government of Tibetans. Lobsang Sangay was the Sikyong that we voted for. But under his leadership, the pandemic was out of control and he seems to know himself as a local mayor under the Indian bureaucracy rather than our Sikyong. Looking through the news of the CTA, Lobsang Sangay seems to be busy soliciting international support on behalf of the Tibetan community. He has made a historic visit to the White House, he has met with some high-rank Indian officials, and he has written a letter to some important person... But I think he should have led the CTA to take stronger actions in dealing with coronavirus and focus on our Tibetan.
By contrast, I really appreciate the dedication of community health workers. Even though they are not scientifically trained, they are still doing something realistic. As for vaccines, they have been available in India for a long time and even have been exported to other countries, but how many people in Dharmsāla have been vaccinated? I read the news that hundreds of thousands of Indians vaccinated, but only 10 Tibetan health workers have been vaccinated. Isn't it what we CTA should have worked on harder?
Not to mention the economy under the pandemic, I know that if we want to build a strong settlement, we also need to develop our economy, at least to meet the basic living standard of our Tibetan. But the truth is that many people around me have lost their jobs because of the coronavirus, and we would rather see the CTA as a democratically elected government to give the Tibetans more tangible benefits than stay at home in despair and watch Dr. Lobsang socialize everywhere.
What's worse, His Holiness Dalai Lama is also facing the threat of coronavirus, he is over 80 years old, one of the high-risk groups to get this horrible virus. If the vaccine is really effective, why don't they give His Holiness Dalai Lama the vaccine first?
I am very worried about the safety of HH Dalai Lama, especially near where he lives. I heard that there are some new cases in the nursing home around there, and the number of deaths.
What most depressed me with the CTA government right now, like the @Tibetans said, is Lobsang Sangay. He did not respect the promise of Tibetan democracy. He broke the rules and did the campaign for Kelsang Dorjee Aukatsang, trying to interfere in our democratic elections, Sikyong 2021. I really don't want our democratic election to fall into party politics, since it's been a tough time getting here. I can only hope that the next government will improve our living standards and really focus on our benefits."
... And he still wants to speak anonymously, thanks for your understanding.

Comments

TRENDING

Andhra team joins Gandhians to protest against 'bulldozer action' in Varanasi

By Rosamma Thomas*  November 1 marked the 52nd day of the 100-day relay fast at the satyagraha site of Rajghat in Varanasi, seeking the restoration of the 12 acres of land to the Sarva Seva Sangh, the Gandhian organization that was evicted from the banks of the river. Twelve buildings were demolished as the site was abruptly taken over by the government after “bulldozer” action in August 2023, even as the matter was pending in court.  

Right-arm fast bowler who helped West Indies shape arguably greatest Test team in cricket history

By Harsh Thakor*  Malcolm Marshall redefined what it meant to be a right-arm fast bowler, challenging the traditional laws of biomechanics with his unique skill. As we remember his 25th death anniversary on November 4th, we reflect on the legacy he left behind after his untimely death from colon cancer. For a significant part of his career, Marshall was considered one of the fastest and most formidable bowlers in the world, helping to shape the West Indies into arguably the greatest Test team in cricket history.

Tributes paid to pioneer of Naxalism in Punjab, who 'dodged' police for 60 yrs

By Harsh Thakor*  Jagjit Singh Sohal, known as Comrade Sharma, a pioneer of Naxalism in Punjab, passed away on October 20 at the age of 96. Committed to the Naxalite cause and a prominent Maoist leader, Sohal, who succeeded Charu Majumdar, played hide and seek with the police for almost six decades. He was cremated in Patiala.

Campaign group urges INDIA alliance to release Jharkhand manifesto to counter BJP’s 'divisive' agenda

By Our Representative  The Loktantra Bachao Abhiyan, an advocacy group, has issued a press release urging the INDIA alliance to release a Jharkhand-specific manifesto to counter the BJP’s "divisive" electoral agenda. With just two weeks remaining before the assembly elections, the INDIA coalition has yet to announce its plans and priorities for the state. Meanwhile, the BJP's campaign, according to the press release, is centered around communalism, divisiveness, and distraction from Jharkhand's core issues.

Israel's 'war crime': 18,000 children died not just from bomb explosions but also starvation

By Sandeep Pandey*  Last year 6 years old Madiha was a guest during Diwali at our home in Lucknow. Listening to the sound of fire crackers bursting outside she remarked, ‘It appears as if we’re in Gaza.’ She has probably no idea of the extent of damage and loss of life that has taken place in Palestine but can relate to sound of crackers as bombs exploding over Gaza.

United organisations oppose privatisation of health services in Madhya Pradesh

By Our Representative  In a strong show of opposition, multiple health associations under the umbrella of the United Organisations for Action against Privatisation of Health Services have condemned the Government of Madhya Pradesh’s recent moves towards privatising public health facilities. They argue that these actions, including outsourcing and the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, will compromise the availability and accessibility of essential health services for the state’s citizens.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah  The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. 

Will Left victory in Sri Lanka deliver economic sovereignty plan, go beyond 'tired' IMF agenda?

By Atul Chandra, Vijay Prashad*  On September 22, 2024, the Sri Lankan election authority announced that Anura Kumara Dissanayake of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People’s Power (NPP) alliance won the presidential election. Dissanayake, who has been the leader of the left-wing JVP since 2014, defeated 37 other candidates, including the incumbent president Ranil Wickremesinghe of the United National Party (UNP) and his closest challenger Sajith Premadasa of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya.