Rite of passage in the small Pacific island of Vanuatu.

Almost every society has a rite of passage, depending upon values and beliefs held by the said community, that marks an important transition for a person. Although it could be understood as any milestone in a person’s life, it is generally understood to mean the transition from childhood to adulthood. It could range in severity from getting your driver’s license or reaching the age to vote to some skin crawling ceremonies practiced in some ancient societies which involves torturous tattoo sessions that could last for ten painful days with the crudest instruments or even genital mutilation amongst some tribes of the Australian Aborigines. Although, the movie “300” glorified the rite of passage for young Spartans with a successful slaying of a demi-wolf, the truth was even more revolting; they will be sent out with only a knife to kill as many state-owned slaves without being detected and return in one piece. I could go on about this fascinating subject but that wasn’t the point of this article. Our own community had recently gone through a rite of sorts, albeit on a much grander stage, where the political power that was once vested in the office of the Dalai Lamas or Ganden Phodrang since 1642, have finally been entrusted in the hands of a lay person.

Although, the democratic process of electing our Prime Minister itself was thoroughly invigorating and enjoyed wide-spread support and appeal from all walks of life, even authenticated, as it were, by foreign observers no less, I felt no one expected or was prepared for Kundun’s decision to devolve his political office and the rather abrupt transition of power in the last couple of months. For an institution that had governed Tibet and Tibetan affairs for the past 369 years, the end was rather unceremonious and curt. One would have expected a more deliberate and studied approach to such an enormously critical step for a nation’s transformation into a fully functioning democracy, with each step well thought out and the subsequent steps readily available to be implemented. The sudden announcement by H.H. the Dalai Lama on March 10th, ten days before the onset of the critically important election, to publicly devolved his political powers to the next Kalon Tripa, was for the lack of a better term, a shocker. What followed next was even more bizarre what with the renaming of the “Shung” to “Diktsug” and the hastily organized re-drafting committee. Frankly, it all appeared as if the decisions were adopted in a haste. Let me elaborate on this. If such a critically important decision was to be made, it would seem prudent to at very least have the constitutional amendments already hashed out and drafted before the announcement. More importantly, enough time should have been allowed, especially given Tibetan people’s penchant for leaving everything in Kundun’s hands, to feel in control of their destiny by taking part in deliberations on how best to approach the new changes coming their way. Experts could have been called, both Tibetans and foreigners, series of public meeting organized to discuss different parts of the changes in the constitution, and issues should have been thoroughly debated in a public forum. The only public meeting organized to this effect bravely came out with recommendations that seemed reasonable, overwhelmingly affirming the proposal for Kundun to remain the head of state and rejection of the proposal to change the name of exile government. Well, you know what happened to those recommendations. I don’t begrudge Kundun for rejecting the head of State as it was truly his decision to make but I can’t say the same for the name change. There was really no need for it as it is simply self-destructive. It makes as much sense as drilling a hole in the middle of ship’s hull to help stop the flooding. The explanation provided by the then prime minister Samdhong Rinpoche and Envoy Kelsang Gyaltsen were frankly illogical and mostly evasive, failing to explain why such a change was needed when we did without it for the last fifty odd years. Is this name change supposed to fool anybody? If there was no exile government to be heading, then why the tedious title of Prime Minister? Why would Diktsug have members of parliament? It would only be logical, if your main concern is placating some opportunists in India stirring unnecessary problems, then to change every title that smacks of any relevance to an exile Government; Si-Kyong would be CEO, Member of parliament would be stake-holders or representatives of the branches. But I am sure it will surely fool the Indians and the Chinese counterparts. Nice going there.

What in the end happened was that Si-kyong Lobsang Sangay, who won a very deserving and hard fought battle in the election, discovered he was heading an NGO instead of a Government. As the newly minted first secular leader of the Tibetans, it must seem strange for him to head an office that does not exist — technically. It is probably why he expressed his opinion, during the recent DC Kalachakra, that he had a chat with the Penpa Tsering (Chair of the Parliament) and they were looking into a way to include Shung back into the designation. The examples he provided were somewhat strange, what with the conjoining of both Diktsug and Shung (must be in tune with his U-Rang designation a while back), but it still gave hope to a lot of concerned citizens that the issue will be treated with the seriousness it deserved. It naturally makes sense for Si-kyong Lobsang Sangay to assert his authority and claim what should be rightfully be his. If anything, this should really be his first priority in office. In reality, if he doesn’t, he is sabotaging his own legitimacy and the legitimacy of his office. Not to mention, he must be acutely aware of the general discontent with the name change even amongst middle path proponents, much less the uproar it caused with the Rangzen advocates — the showdown at DC between Kalden Lodoe and TYC president Tsewang Rinzin being a perfect example of it. Frankly, that is not even my main point. Personally, it seems almost nonsensical for us to even talk about this much less debate about it but here we are. Once again, we are forced to contend over something that was completely unnecessary and which is a major emotional drain for the public. I would rather we talk about his education policy and his mandate to produce 10,000 professionals by the end of his second term and how that is going to reconcile with the previous Katri’s emphasis on making Tibetan as the medium of education for all high schools. But times are such that if we could get what we had just few months ago, we can all claim it as a major victory for democracy and Tibetan people. I would not be averse to heaven opening up and Dakinis showering Si-Kyong Lobsang Sangay and the members of parliament with flowers. Like I said, times are hard.

My main point is that this is surely the first test for Tibetan democracy and for Si-Kyong Lobsang Sangay as a leader. He is the first truly elected Si-Kyong with the mandate of the majority of the Tibetan people 370 years. As such, he has every right to decide what happens to the political future of the Tibetan diaspora and in extension to the future of the Tibet Nation. Consequently, there have been much talk about whether the transfer of power actually happened or that it still remains embedded within the confines of H.H’s private office. A lot of people took the recent induction of Katri Surpa Samdhong Rinpoche to the private office of H.H as an indication that the power merely shifted to another location. Someone even quipped on Jamyang Norbu’s la website: “As long as Samdhong Rinpoche stays in Dhasa and peeks from the real station of power, Lobsang Sangye la is just a cheerleader….” I don’t know how serious he was but taking it at face value, it shows there is indication of doubt as to the authenticity of the powers vested in the office. Personally, I don’t believe it is of much import. I am sure Samdhong Rinpoche lak has every right to pursue whatever endeavor he wishes to pursue in his retirement. Ultimately, it is up to the Si-Kyong to flex his muscles and take the necessary risks and actually follow through with his earlier statement in DC, unless it was simply meant to diffuse public sentiments. So, not only is it a question of whether he is sensitive to the discontent of his own electorates and to do right by them, it is also about showcasing his own independence and to prove to the world, and more importantly to the Tibetan people that democracy is not just in name but that it exist as a fully functioning entity answerable only to the rule of the law and public mandate. I am fully aware the members of parliament are the ones who will actually vote on this issue and must have two-thirds majority for the bill to pass and land on Lobsang Sangay’s desk to be signed into law. I am also aware of the persuasive nature of the office he holds, especially since our democracy is devoid of the party system. Lets hope this issue will be resolved in the current ongoing parliament session. In theory, he has every right as the leader of the Tibetan people. It is time to put it to test.

In a remote Brazilian Jungle, the rite of passage involves getting intentional stung by bullet ants for ten minutes without crying or showing signs of weakness. A single bite is supposedly as painful as getting shot by a bullet which coincidentally helps to explain the honorary title. It has been said that the young men of the Satere-Mawe tribe, after putting their hands in a glove woven with bullet ants, undergo “waves of throbbing, all consuming pain,” for 24 hours and is seen shaking uncontrollably for days. If we observe our Si-Kyong looking dazed and shaking uncontrollably in the near future, we would at least know he was holding up under the pressure. Too soon?

Kalon Tripa candidate debate in Washington, DC, March 1st, 2011. (Photo: VOA)

The historic voting process has finally come to an end on both sides of the globe, if the globe can be divided into two that is. The turnout is guaranteed to be at least 70% of the registered voters which is a tremendous boost for our nascent (tell me when you get tired of this word) democracy and probably the first time it had reached that level in our history. Most of the credit for this vibrant election period can be attributed to the three candidates for their tireless work as they campaigned all over the world and especially to Dr. Lobsang Sangay and Kungo Tenzin Tethong. In particular, Dr. Lobsang Sangay has managed to unleash an unprecedented onslaught of campaigning before the Katri election had even begun, as he went around different settlements all over India and the west on his educational tour, stressing the importance and value of public participation. That early start left the other candidate scrambling to catch up with him as he led the preliminaries with 10,000 votes. It was actually a very smart move on his part because otherwise he would have been at a huge disadvantage being a complete unknown entity at that point and this strategy allowed him to put his face in front of the actual voters and connect with them on a human level. Even so, I am pretty sure the initial result probably shocked him too as much as it did everybody else. After that, the proverbial gloves were off, and the campaign took on a life of its own and we saw the first ever western style campaign pit stops all across Tibetan settlements – actually twice for Dr. Lobsang Sangay as he later went on a ‘thank you tour’ for his preliminary win. No, I don’t know what that means either. Well attended debates were held in every major Tibetan settlement around the world in various formats and If I am not wrong, there were as many as 15 such debates or appearances organized which is extraordinary and surpasses even western countries in terms of pure volume. There were also special election editions from different news outlets and every endeavor was made to keep the public in the loop with continual updates on the candidates. There was much professionalism displayed from the organizers and every effort was made to be transparent on all fronts, even though sometimes the technology betrayed us.

We also witnessed fund raising events organized by supporters, websites launched, mass production of pamphlets, newsletters, DVDs, TV spots on Tibetan channels, various support groups formed, and even musical numbers if you can believe it! There also was a slew of articles written on the election on Tibetan Political Review (probably the only website who did not give in to partisan accusation) and various other sites from each candidate’s supporters and also a serious attempt by an individual to even do an opinion poll on the candidates which I thought was pretty well done although I must say the result would have been just confined to those with access to computer and internet. It was truly on an unprecedented level and a huge success. As I jokingly tell my friends, half the people got inspired by Dr. Lobsang Sangay and the other half got terrified that he might actually win this election. Why am I the only one who thinks it is funny?

Whatever it might be, the candidates managed to make this Katri election exciting, memorable, and probably the only election so far with such extensive campaigning (for the two main candidates at least), with their gracious appearances on Tibetan News shows, their willingness to undergo the hardships during their campaign all over the world often in less than amicable travel conditions, and by inspiring supporters to form volunteer groups who promoted their candidacy with zeal and passion and sometimes heated debates on Facebook and other social websites. Personally, I was proud to represent Tenzing Namgyal Tethong and to be involved with his campaign team. Our team ran a very professional and a very clean campaign from the very beginning and have complied with everything the public needed to know whether it be about the deficit issue or finance transparency. I was particularly inspired by the grassroots participation from college students and other youths who went around campaigning on behalf of Tethong la in many settlements with well-organized and well prepared presentations. Regardless of whether Tethong la wins or not, I am sure he was tremendously impressed and moved by such show of faith and dedication in his candidacy, especially when it is from people who never even heard of him before this Katri Election and who were simply inspired by his lifetime of dedicated service to his country and people. I am sure it must be the same for the other two candidates.

Now, that the campaign has officially concluded, I thought I will share few thoughts on this election. Although, this election has been a huge success and has certainly created a new benchmark in almost every facet of public participation and it spells great hope for future engagement between the Government and the people, there are some areas that could use a little upgrading and tuning up for the future, as with any endeavors in life.

Election Commission

One of the chief overhaul or upgrading needs to happen with the Election Commission itself. Although, they have performed as expected in this election, they did show some weaknesses that we could possibly fix so that next time we are better prepared. One of the factors relates to its flexibility with emergency contingency planning which revealed serious flaws, particularly with Nepal and possibly even Bhutan interfering in the election process. I understand the position of the current Commissioner but I wished he had been a little more creative toward the end. There must be some sort of contingency plan in place which can be implemented under the sole authority of the Election Commissioner if we are to fully represent all our citizens in the future. Right now, I am made to understand that any changes in the election rules have to be approved by the Chitue and therefore there is no recourse if something like this happens in the future. Introducing voting by mail, voting Online, going door to door, or even stretching the Election Day into a week for the area affected could all be options that must be available for the Election Commissioner, so we won’t have a repeat of Nepal vote nullification.

The second thing I feel we need to look at is the full disclosure of the result, broken by area, precincts, age, gender, etc so that we can get a well informed outlook on the whole result. I have written on this disclosure issue before after the Preliminary results were announced as I wanted to know where my candidate needed to make more of an effort to garner votes. Aside from being fodder for the statisticians, I feel it will prove very educational for all concerned and allow us to get insights into the thought processes of the electorates and the changing dynamics of the population. More importantly, It will leave less room for uninformed rumors based on hearsay and that alone will be move in the right direction, especially when it comes to Chokha vote propensity. The more open we are as a society, the less room we leave for erroneous speculations based on faulty information. Numbers don’t lie.

The third thing is the timeline for the vote counting and vote declaration. If preliminary vote results are anything to go by, which was a month’s gap, then it leaves a huge vacuum between the Election Day to the day the results are disclosed to the public. I am not exactly asking for the results that very night but a timeframe that is not more than one week. I believe a tally is done at the polling station itself in most cases and then the ballots shipped to Dhasa, so it is not like it is something totally unfeasible. Besides, there are constant leaks coming out from most of the polling stations, leading to too many speculations already. If VOA or RFA could report the initial result as they are come in from different polling stations and analysts give their thoughts on how it will pan out and what different scenarios could occur and what needs to happen for one candidate to triumph over the over etc, it could make for a very engaging experience for all concerned. I could envision a whole show based simply on predictions and bar charts and discussion of raw numbers. I know touch screen maps and expandable screens are out of our reach at the moment but I think you can pretty much guess where I am going with this. I don’t know if this is practiced yet and I am leaning towards NO, we need representatives of the candidates themselves to witness the vote counting and make sure there are no untoward activities being perpetuated at particular localities. I personally don’t know who is handling the vote count right now and what sort of affiliations they might harbor. That way it will leave less room for controversy later on.

The fourth is the number of candidates allowed in the final election. This is nothing against any one candidate and also it can’t said to be without precedent either as we have observed it in the US elections too. Oh, before I forget, if you have been wondering, the role of Ross Perot in this election has been played by Kungo Tashi Wangdi la as I sort of predicted in an earlier piece. Well, not exactly by name but the gist was the same as the margin of votes between the top two candidates and rest was enormous as to be practically a non-starter for any serious chance for winning the election. Be that as it may, coming back to the topic at hand, I wasn’t aware of it initially but few people voiced their concern to me that if a candidate doesn’t win by majority votes, it will somehow weaken the post itself. I believe they were echoing H.H’s initial hope during the first Katri election that it would be highly desirable and beneficial if the elected person wins by huge margin. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying it is against the law or what have you because I know there are some people out there who are dying to take words out of context and run with it. Just to be sure, let me dumb it for them. Let’s say Candidate A wins 40% of the votes, followed by 35% for candidate B and then 25% for candidate C, the new Katri will have won only 40% of the Tibetan voters whereas 60% voted for someone else. Although I am sympathetic to that view I also realize the process itself is more important than the candidates and who is to say whether one of the Candidates in this election might possibly win by more than 50% – in spite of delusional people making ridiculous predictions. Nonetheless, I believe it is something to think about in the future.

The last important issue that must be looked at seriously is financial transparency in the future elections as that wasn’t properly implemented in this one as Dr. Lobsang Sangay pretty much ignored all calls for financial transparency while the other two complied with it. There is a reason why it is considered important in other countries in their elections as no one wants undue influence from shady organizations or special interest groups intruding upon this most precious proceeding of a democratic system. I am not implying anything by it but I was disappointed that Dr. Lobsang Sangay totally blew it away as another unnecessary element of this election, especially since he has some knowledge of the law. This is not about a single person but about the successful continuation of a process in place that was bestowed upon us by none other than Kundun. Frankly, I was not satisfied with his explanation on that front. Hopefully, a clear directive would be drawn up by the Election Commission so future candidates would abide by it.

Oh, get an independent website of your own next time.

The Role of Media and Journalists

I must say and when I say ‘I’, I mean the general consensus of the people around me and although I don’t know how profound an impact it will have on my claim, the consensus is that the Media and especially the Tibetan journalists did not live up to the expectation. Of course, there were some exceptions and there were some hard questions posed to the candidates from some Journalists but as a whole, the questions seemed like they were picked out of a board exam preparatory Made Easy books with readymade answers attached to it. Frankly it left much to be desired. Regardless of their personal biases or general inclinations or what not, it is still every journalist’s duty to grill each and every candidate and make sure every facet of the candidate is made known to public and if there are inconsistencies, it must be sought out and put to rest, instead of leaving it in the hands of individuals to do the job of a journalist. The general feeling I got was most of them were afraid of stepping on candidate’s toe and be labeled as a closet supporter of the other candidate. Lord knows character assassination had been constant in this election and anybody who is even perceived to be overly hard on a particular candidate is branded as ‘bought’ or ‘paid for’ by some people. Sometimes, it is enough to just share the last name to mislabel a whole organization. To that end, I must admit I might have unwittingly put Namgyal Shastri on the spot with an article for which he was promptly knocked off the perch and insidious rumors were spread on the internet about his personal relationships with Tethong. So, there is that. While I could sit here and feel outraged at such behaviors I must admit these things are nothing new – although the level was ridiculously high. Maybe, it reflects the brand new smell of democracy in our society that we cannot distinguish the role of a journalist as a neutral third party. Hopefully, that will change in the future because when journalists feel threatened or ostracized for doing what they are supposed to be doing, it bodes ill for democracy itself. On this front, I must once again congratulate Namgyal Shastri and the Moderator from Dhasa for RFA for their stellar performances. And I know I am being unfairly hard on them being new and all at this level of campaigning, still I would be remiss if I don’t point out the duty of a journalist is to pursue the truth at all cost. I am not saying it is not hard to be out in the open like this, especially in a small society like ours where personal interactions are at very close quarters and personal relationships could very well be frayed due to some people’s childish behavior. I guess what I am trying to say is that the price of investigative journalism is quite steep and the title of a journalist might have to be earned with a sullied image and dirty look from people. So, you want to be a journalist?

Debate Formats

I felt there was a lot more debate than was necessary if you can even call it a debate to begin with. A ‘Question & Answer’ session might be the correct terminology for it as the aptly named one held by Tibetan Women’s association in Dhasa. A debate is a chance for Candidates not only to present their platform but more importantly to point out the inconsistencies of their opponent’s position in public and to answer questions regarding any doubts of their own. It is the time to present the difference between oneself and the opponent’s position and to extol the virtue of your own platform. I understand it might be uncomfortable for Tibetan politicians to engage in this sort of debate due to the cultural norms and they would rather take the high road and hope the people understand the subtleties of their policies on their own. On a side note, I did hear one of the Moderator gently encourage the candidates to be more engaged (refute the position of the others) with each other and to make it more lively in one such debate but still no cigar. So, it wasn’t like attempts were not made and time slots provided to offer rebuttal. Maybe, the moderator needs to get more creative in the future and ask a candidate’s opinion on his opponent’s position on certain policies and spice it up a little. In any case, 15 such appearances is not only way too much and generates the same old stale questions which have been answered for the umpteenth time but also quite taxing for candidates who didn’t get a chance to visit different settlements and they have to fit all of these debates and other personal appearances on VOA or RFA with their travel arrangements. Of course, it wouldn’t matter if the candidate didn’t really care one way or the other and was only there for the ride. I would suggest reducing the “Q &A” sessions to half that amount and to announce it beforehand so that the candidates are fully aware of how to proceed with their campaign. I am thinking about 2 in North America and about 3 in India which are of course telecast live via internet (hopefully much better this time). If the Election Commissioner can allocate the dates and the locality of the said debates beforehand after consultation and approval of the said Candidates, it will reduce the really annoying that-group-did-it-so-we-have-to-organize-one-too sort of mentality I observed and the ensuing debate about why one candidate didn’t attend that particular debate. Let all the Tibetan communities sent in their applications and pick the ones that will result in huge turnout.

There is also something to be said about the duration of the debate itself. Although, the ones on VOA was well sectioned and time well managed, there were some that was like watching Tibetan Opera minus the music and was god awfully long. It didn’t help that there were technical difficulties and it was held at the most inconvenient time.

Miscellaneous Items

There is a whole misconception regarding Negative campaigning and critical questioning. People either can’t distinguish between the two or they are deliberately blurring the distinction to fool the public but every time hard questions are asked of Candidates, accusations of Negative campaigning abound to the total vexation of intelligent observers. It was becoming so bad that even debate organizers were afraid to allow ‘personal’ questions to be asked of Candidates ending up making the whole proceeding a snooze fest. This sort of crying wolf tactic is in of itself negative campaigning but more importantly it is tantamount to betrayal of the spirit of democracy itself, especially when journalists and private individuals are deliberately targeted to silence them. When something like this happens, it is the duty of every journalists and organizations to come forward and decry such behavior. As much as I would like to entertain the idea that future campaigns will be free of such antics, I am pretty sure people will push the envelope on that front again. So, let me give you some examples of what might be considered negative campaigning and what might not fall under that definition. Questioning the ethnicity of a Candidate’s wife (both candidates), his family members, his ancestry (Kudrak), or labeling neutral organization like SFT and TYC, or even Moderators and Organizers is definitely Negative since they are not running for the Katri post. The candidate himself is usually considered fair game even though there is a limit to everything and in a civilized world it would be strictly limited to his actual personal history, his work experiences, his previous voting records and his promises and statements. If possible, let us try to keep the dirty laundry amongst ourselves instead of blatantly firing off an email full of lies to 400 plus individual Tibet supporters and Support groups. I am sure they have better things to do than to listen to some spineless individual bent on promoting his own candidate at the cost of our society.

Lastly, I want to go back to a really annoying theme that has been perpetuated in this election which made me feel like we were reliving Cultural Revolution in exile without the Dunce hat and the elaborate lettering and that is the illusion of Kudraks being in power in exile. It was especially distasteful when it was propagated by supposedly western educated individuals and makes one wonder what kind of education they are actually getting. Some of their talking points were eerily familiar with our 50 cents counterparts I felt really disgusted at the whole thing. First of all, it has been a non issue for the longest time with the introduction of democratic principles and secondly nothing could be further from the truth. Sure, the initial cabinets were filled with them because we didn’t really have a choice back then but for the last 30 years or so, only 7 of the 54 Kalons have been from Kudrak background (86% were non-Kudraks) and only 1 of the past 8 kalon Tripas had Kudrak background. The myth of the common man arising out of the ashes of past is just that: a myth. Corollary to that let me bust another myth that is spread dutifully by some insidious people like a sexual disease: Utsang voters are somewhat biased toward Khampas. Either they are just plain stupid or they have poison running in their veins because that is a bold face lie and quite dangerous for a very fragile society like ours and very divisive. All you have to do is take a look at the Kalon Tripas and Kalons in the last thirty years or so and you will get a better picture. Despite Utsangs being the strong majority in exile, the majority of the Kalons have been from the Kham region from the time Parliament started electing Kalons (1990 Onwards = 15 Kham, 14 Utsang, 12 Amdo) and the number didn’t diverge too much even if you went back 30 years or so (20 Kham, 25 Utsang, 13 Amdo). The overwhelmingly majority of Kalon Tripa terms from the fifth Kashag onwards have been held by Khampas (6 kham, 2 Utsang, 1 Amdo) for the same period. That is another reason why I think voting pattern in exile should be disclosed to the public to show the lack of substance behind that assertion. You don’t have to look no further than the previous two terms of Samdhong Rinpoche. I bring this up because we really need to get away from this mentality if we are truly serious about Unity. If anybody brings it up next time, please smack that mouth with a chappal because they would be asking for it. Hard.

All in all, this has been a tremendous success for our democratic system in terms of public participation and it became especially significant when Kundun recently devolved his political powers and sought amendments in the constitution to make it official. Now, let us find out how we performed in our first outing post Kundun’s political leadership with a New Katri and Chitue. At the end of the day, Tibetan people won by actively participating in their own future. Whoever becomes our Prime Minister will need our support and our collective recognition as it should be but at the same time we have to make sure we hold them responsible for decisions made and policies implemented and don’t allow them to shift the blame upwards like usual. We owe it to Kundun to be more active in our own Government. Let us not let him down. Bodh Gyalo!

Of course, while those two issues are quite legitimate and important on their own, we have other issues we need to take into account that I believe are just as important. The most important factor of course is the fact that we are stateless and as such we will not enjoy the full rights of a citizen in India. Aside from facing various difficulties in even the most mundane issues in our regular lives, there is the over-arching concern about the precarious nature of the status itself. If and when will we be denied stay and when will Indian Government change their policy? Nobody wants to live with the sword of Damocles hanging over their head. Right now, we are enjoying a lot of sympathy and international recognition due to the tireless efforts of His Holiness. What will happen when he is no longer with us and when the exile community will have to go through a difficult transition with China breathing down our necks with their own 15th Dalai Lama? Some people are under the assumption that there is no way the Indian Government will change their mind and it is just needless worry. Well, it will be all good and dandy if it played out exactly like that but I rather we don’t even play that game if we don’t have to. Now is the time to think seriously about such issues.

To add to that, there is also the growing realization and concern we are getting addicted to foreign aids and there must be a time for us to be self-sufficient and self-reliant. It would have been quite difficult before 1000 immigration to US and the subsequent exodus of fellow Tibetans who went there on family visas, business visas or simply through marriage or other creative means. We now have very strong communities on either ends of North America with well over 10,000 Tibetans and quite possibly more than 20,000 Tibetans living abroad if we are to also count Europe and Australia and other developed countries. Coupled with Tibetans in India adopting Indian Citizenships and steadily embracing more opportunities and relying on themselves, I strongly believe, Tibetan people in the west, whose lives are greatly intertwined with their brethrens in India, would definitely help out in making our exile community stronger and self-reliant by taking responsibility and providing the core funding for most of our exile projects and to keep our government running. If we could make some sort of fund in the west akin to the highly successful Tibet Fund project with Tibetans in the west as core sponsors and if we could built on it regularly through individual donations yearly, monthly, or through deduction of a percentage through their pay check (like regular donation to Charity we do here), it is a dream we can definitely realize. Building on the model like Tibet Fund, if we also offer accountability, transparency and yearly update easily accessible on the net of where the donation have gone to and moreover provide the list of individuals who have donated, we could go a long way into convincing a lot of people into being valuable contributing members of our society. There is nothing spectacular about the idea itself but the issue has always been about sustainability and the implementation of the idea. Tibetans helping Tibetans should be the next development phase in exile.

The issue about a citizen’s right to purchase land in India and enjoy basic rights and opportunities applicable therein is also very important. We have lots of properties tied up under somebody else’s name, some are government related but most are private based. You can pretty much ascertain the nightmare it could amount to if anything should happen between the cup and the lips. Even if gaining Indian citizenship will help with such basic needs of an individual, it will relieve a lot of stress from a lot of people’s back and we wouldn’t have to be get dragged into Indian courts by some miscreant who has a bone to pick with us and may or may not have unsavory connections with you know who. One of the reasons why I believe we have been quite successful in the west, considering the short amount of time we have been here is because we enjoy the same rights and opportunities as any other person in that country. If we had remained as another stateless person, as some us still do, fearing deportation every time a police car whizzes by or every time there was a road block, and been legally barred from obtaining employment with equitable pay, benefits and insurance, we wouldn’t have come so far. Gaining citizenship in these countries are actively sought out and duly encouraged and even seen as a positive achievement in one’s life. Why can’t it be the same for those who are left in India? What is so wrong about them gaining something that will also provide them with previously unknown benefit, recognition, and opportunities in India as a de facto citizen? We have had few Tibetans make use of schedule class opportunities before and that had led them to great opportunities in the best Universities in India leading to successful careers that have greatly benefited our community. I am sure our Tibetan community will definitely get classified as one if the right buttons are pressed. Even if that is highly hypothetical, we will still be able to take advantage of various incentives as a citizen and as more opportunities open up, we would have a more prosperous community less dependent upon foreign aids and be able to take care of our own people. And the more Tibetan Indians we have, the better position we will be in assisting the most vulnerable portion of our community; the new arrivals from Tibet. They won’t be so easily bullied in every facet of their lives because now they will have the full backing of their brothers and sisters and there will be numerous ways we can assist them on that front.

By our recent estimation provided by Tibetan Exile Government, Tibetan born between 1950 and 1987, should amount to 35,000 if they can prove they were born in India. That is one third of our Indian Tibetan Population. Of course, the final tally will be much higher as these Indian citizens will have children who will automatically be Indian citizens themselves and so will their spouses if they didn’t qualify before. I am personally thinking upwards of 50,000 Tibetans eligible for Indian Citizenship but I have no data to back that up and that number should classified as my personal wishful thinking. Before this watershed legal boon, Tibetans have been denied on grounds of declaring citizenship of another country, no matter that they do not recognize Tibet as a legitimate state anyhow. Now, with this judgment, Tibetans should and must take this opportunity and pursue their birthright provided under the Indian Constitution. We now don’t have to worry about losing our culture and traditions like before because we are fully established with our own communities and establishments. The long-term benefits overwhelmingly outweigh the present difficulties. The cake is there in front of you and all you have to do is open your mouth and bite it. So, what are you waiting for?

Namgyal Shastri on VOA's Kunleng

So, you think you are a politician? That should be the name of his show keeping it on par with all the primetime show running these days on the television but for some odd reason the Namgyal Shastri Barbecue Grill seem more appropriate. And barbecue grill it was for all three candidates running for the Katri seat. I don’t believe I have heard more incisive and precision guided questions regarding each candidate anywhere else, including the recently concluded NY/NJ Katri debate. During that debate, the moderator sometimes spoke in such a half-halting manner that I thought the video was struck a few times until I observed the girl moving her head to check up on him. Compared to that, Namgyal Shastri moved from one question to the next like an agile cheetah without missing out any details and slowly guided the pre…I mean the candidates, back to answering his questions if they happen to linger around irrelevant issues. I sincerely hope he is the Moderator for the final debate in Washington, D.C. I have seen him moderate in one debate before and he was spectacular. He will not suffer foolish elongated ‘questions’ from the public and usually cuts them off before they had even finished telling us their own personal history, which for some reason, seem to be the norm amongst Tibetan questioners. I personally feel some of these frequent flyers of convoluted questions should be photographed, and then their pictures sent out to all future venues, to avoid further suffering for all sentient beings. Seriously, I feel, he is really trying to set a good standard for all future debate formats and that is an admirable thing to do if we wish to evolve in a more professional manner.

Now coming back to the grilling, with Tenzin Tethong la he made sure he asked about the deficit issue during his tenure as Kalon and also about his reasons for leaving Government service at the time. Tashi Wangdu la was similarly probed about this apparent lack of interest in the whole issue and why he was still in the race when the numbers are overwhelmingly against him compared to the other two candidates. Some people thought the Grill was put on high with Lobsang Sangay la but I didn’t think so. Lobsang Sangay la does not have the record of having worked in any Government post nor had he held any leadership position to date, so what else was he supposed to ask on that front? Both Tashi Wangdu la and Tenzin Tethong la have decades of service records for others to peruse and scrutinize and come to a reasonable conclusion regarding their performance and integrity. Lobsang Sangay la does not. How else was he supposed to ascertain people’s questions about his integrity and his experience? I personally felt he left no stone unturned or to use another metaphor, he grabbed everyone’s skeletons out of the closets and danced with them to the tune of Kunleng.

Also, he didn’t give out any opinion himself but rather asked all the questions that were running rampant in people’s mind and on the internet and blogs and gave the candidates a fair chance to clear things up and then left it to the voters to decide for themselves. I felt it was superbly done and he demonstrated courtesy and respect to each and everyone without letting that get in the way of being a journalist. But don’t just take my word for it. It seems a lot of people are saying good things about his show on Phayul and on Facebook and I am sure a lot of people will eagerly tune in each time his show comes up.
Maybe, he should come up with his own Facebook fan page if he hasn’t got one yet. That would be a good way to engage with the younger crowd and keep them abreast of all developments related to Tibet. It seems he is very well liked across generations.

Now people might think I am just praising him because he used to be my Tibetan teacher at one point back in high school. But let me remind you I was probably one of his worst students and an honour he would rather not acknowledge publicly, unless he really doesn’t have a choice…like right now. Oh. I am glad I am not a politician nor do I have any ambition in that direction and thereby I do not have to go on his show. But if he should ever call me for anything, even unrelated to his work, like for example, why I had to mention him name at all, I know exactly what I would say: “I am not at home right now. Please leave a message after the beep. Beep.” Click. Then, I am going to look for the person who gave him my number.

If you have been paying attention, you would have noticed that this has been in keeping with his long term plans for his people for a while now. From the very beginning, he has been moving ever so slowly in this general direction, from the initial introduction of democratic principles in exile Government, to the parliament elected by the Tibetan people, the introduction of Kashag elected by the parliament, and finally to the Kalon Tripa elected by Tibetan people. Now, he is ready to release the final political power vested in him to the democratically elected Katri come March 2011. That is why it becomes extremely important the next Katri be able to handle the difficult task ahead of him. That doesn’t mean Kundun thinks he can no longer lead his people and somehow his wisdom has diminished over the years. He doesn’t need that validation because the love, respect, and reverence for him from the Tibetan people is unshakeable and also because you can’t un-become Dalai Lama. What that means really is that Kundun feels this is the right time for the Tibetan people to take the political rein of the Exile Government and that he now has faith in the maturity of Tibetans to step up and lead themselves. In other words, he is saying stop leaning on me and start leading yourself just like the rest of the world. There is going to be a time when I am not going to be here and now is the time to make sure the transition is smooth and Tibetan Government in exile operates calmly and professionally even without me. That I think is not only a great honour and trust bestowed upon us but also a true mark of his wisdom and his vision for his people.

What that also means is that with great power naturally comes great responsibility and accountability. Personally, quite honestly, I believe the accountability factor has been missing in the picture. Whenever we have an issue, people have been hesitant to complain as they could not be sure whether it came from the office of H.H or whether it was something concocted in the office of Kashag. That is not helped by the general penchant of elected officials to forswear to Kundun’s benevolent wisdom to be their sole purpose for the endeavours. With this change, I would expect powers to be to be more accountable for their policies and decisions. Hopefully, it will be reflected in the next administration. Whatever your opinion of Samdhong Rinpoche may be, I think he at least didn’t try to pass the buck when some of his policies like closing Government owned businesses or his organic farming were criticized. There have been many instances also where genuine concerns about certain policies were termed as personal criticism of Kundun and the person unfortunately ostracized. Kundun had to personally intervene a few times to clarify he welcomes such criticism and it is the correct procedure of a democratic institution. He went even further and personally added amendment in the constitution, against the wishes of his advisors and the Kashag and Tibetan people in general, to make himself removable from office if the parliament deems it necessary. Unfortunately, we keep missing the point of the whole vision Kundun has planned for us time and time again.

I believe it is the correct move and the right time. We should honour and respect this decision because it is not something given out lightly. And also because, contrary to the mass hysteria, it doesn’t mean he is abandoning us altogether. Think of it more like a father gently letting go of the bicycle he has been pushing for his child all this time because that is the only proper way to learn. At least, that is my understanding after reflecting on Kundun’s past actions and the choices he has made for us so far. Perhaps I might be reading too much into this but I don’t think I am going to second guess Kundun’s decisions.

The main purpose of this piece is to properly introduce my candidate to the general public. I acknowledge the fault most probably lies with my candidate. It is mostly due to the fact that Tethong la is a very humble man and doesn’t like to talk about his achievements and a type of person who rather let his body of works speak for him. Unfortunately, sometimes that kind of humility doesn’t help in letting people know about his experience, achievements, his vision, and leadership qualities. So, since Tenzin Namgyal Tethong la is very reluctant to talk about his vast number of achievements without self effacement, I decided to go ahead and do it for him and also to relay at the same time why I think he is the right person for Kalon Tripa at this critical and precarious time in our nation’s history. On one hand we have an increasingly belligerent China flaunting its newly gained international clout while on the other hand His Holiness is considering retirement from politics. There is also the fact that His Holiness is 76 years old and anything is possible in the next five to ten years. This is not the time to experiment. It is a time that calls for a person who has the right combination of experience, integrity, leadership qualities and vision. We need a proven leader who can hit the ground running.

Tenzin Tethong la started his public service when he was a teenager working as a secretary and translator for the department of education. Before I forget, I want everyone to compare their life with his life so that we can truly assess the remarkable achievements of this man. When he was nineteen years of age, he was one of the founding members of Sheja, which was a Tibetan magazine which had a huge following in the 60′s and 70′s. When he was just 22 years old, he with three others, started Tibetan Youth Congress, which has now become the biggest non-governmental organization with its own rich history and is still a big presence in our community. Recognizing his skills and leadership qualities, he was appointed as the acting representative of His Holiness in 1972 when he was 24. That is not the remarkable part. You have to put that into context. At that time, there was huge shortage of fund and was at a dismal period in our history when United States was actively cultivating good ties with China and they had discontinued their financial and political support for Tibetans. There were only about 20-30 Tibetans living in New York at the time and only a handful of western supporters. That was the time Tibetan protestors were hackled and booed instead of supported like today. In spite of all these difficulties and in the middle of cold-war politics, Tenzin Tethong la managed not only to persevere but excel. He was able to arrange the first ever international tour of TIPA 1975-76. And more importantly he was instrumental in bringing to fruition the first ever visit of His Holiness to the US which set the stage for all the future visits and could very well be the one that worked to change the perspective of the American people toward His Holiness and Tibet in general. And at the age of 32, he was specifically chosen by Kundun to head the 2nd delegation to Tibet where he met Panchen Lama and reportedly made the Chinese handlers sweat quite a bit and also broke the popular misconception that young modern educated Tibetans will welcome the developments made by China in Tibet. Later on, he was made the special representative of H.H in Washington, DC in 1987. Tell me when to stop because the list keeps going. He was also involved in establishing Potala Publication, US-Tibet Committee, Tibet Fund, Fulbright, International Campaign for Tibet (which we have used successfully to lobby our cause to the American govt and the people), 1000 resettlement project etc. Now in the upper echelon of power, Tethong la has practically served in every department of Tibetan government before he served in the Kashag, giving him a depth of working experience very few can match, if any. Now, if you pay careful attention, you will notice a lot of ‘first’ in his resume. One of two might be mere coincidences but to be repeatedly mentioned as one of the first founders in a lot of projects and organizations, most of which are still going strong and still a vital part of Tibetan Diaspora, shows not only wisdom but a person who has a keen sense of vision and natural tenacity, the diplomatic skills and the leadership qualities to get things done, even in the most tiring of circumstances.

In total he has served Tibetan govt and Tibetan people for the good part of 40 years and is still serving the cause of Tibet currently as the resident expert on Tibetan Studies Initiative at Stanford university, which he helped create, aside from being a member of the Committee of 100 (yes, you guessed it, he was once again one of the founding members and a current board member). I am not supporting Tenzin Tethong la just because he has experience working for the Tibetan government but because he has shown he is a person who has the right mixture of diplomatic skills, integrity, far reaching vision, openness and leadership qualities that we desperately require at this critical time in our history. I support him because he has the can-do attitude and he has proven time and time again that he can ACTUALLY do it. When life gave him lemons, he not only made Lemonade, but he packaged it, distributed it and created a successful company. Repeatedly. I support him because he is the right man for the job and for Tibet. Nothing more.

P.S: Also forgot to mention he was one of the principal people behind the introduction of the Tibetan section of VOA, a founding member of the Dalai Lama Foundation, founding member of Missing Peace Arts Exhibit.

“Who is the new king, Sir?”
Asked the one who looked like a goat
nervously clearing his throat.

“You speak!”
I squealed like a little girl
Half choking on my lemon twirl.

“Do you know the new king?”
He spoke slower this time,
his gills gestured like a Mime.

“Yes, I do,
I kind of sort of do,
well, we all do
in a tabloid sort of do,”

I said haltingly
eyeing my bottle suspiciously.

“Has he been a fisherman?”

“I don’t know what you mean,”

“Has he woken up at dawn?
Does his fingers have scars?
Has he cast a net
and watched it sink in the sea?”

“I cannot say that he has.”

“Has he unfurled a mast?
Has he felt the tug of the line?
Has he struggled with a life
slowly slipping in his hands?”

“I cannot say that he has.”

“Has he lanced a shark?
Has he laughed with the Dolphins?
Has he returned empty-handed
and watched his family cry?”

‘I cannot say that he has.’

“Then we welcome the new king,
Then surely we love our king,
god save the king,
Long live the king.”

And they splashed away merrily,
instead of being on a fancy dish,
leaving me feeling a little queer,
For having spoken with a fish.

The preliminary polls are out and Lobsang Sangay la has the early lead. A huge lead would be the correct phrase actually as he had almost twice the votes as the next hopeful candidate, Tenzing Namgyal Tethong la. And for all intents and purposes, as previously suspected, these two front-runners are now the main candidates as determined by popular choice. I am not saying the other worthy candidates are not allowed to run for the office but it remains a pretty much done deal at this point. In most other countries, especially in the west, you will be hearing about graceful withdrawal of candidacy from the bottom dwellers about this time. Whether they do that or stick it out like Ross Perot, is pretty much up to them, depending upon backroom deals and political maneuvers. Since we don’t have a party system, it becomes even more complicated, but I wouldn’t worry about that just yet.

Now, coming back to the two main contestants, in spite of his most recent political gaffe with his “Obama of China” comment (which naturally drew strong reactions from Rangzen advocates, including me) and his near-zero governmental experience and despite lack of support from political pundits and advocacy groups, Lobsang Sangay la has somehow managed to not only surpass the general expectation but exceed it in surprising fashion. What could be the reasons that have brought about such a commanding lead for a political novice? Let me share some of my thoughts on this matter.

One of the reason for his strong lead is the over-selling of his Harvard law degree, subtly (barely) by him and quite blatantly by his supporters, which although impressive in its own rights and has managed to seduce not only young people but even some from the older generations, it still doesn’t explain why he is fit to lead a nation. Most of his supporters probably do not even know what he actually does at Harvard University and what research papers he has actually produced, much less read them and compared them to other people in the same field. But that is not his fault. He had the card and he played it beautifully.

Another reason is his youth, his good looks, modern education and accessible personality which naturally makes him palatable to the youth and the old alike whereas Tenzing Tethong la, who not only has the debonair gentleman appeal to him but also could very well be considered young in terms of world leaders and who could equally position his Stanford fellowship on parallel basis has somehow not managed to connect on those terms. His reserved personality and old-fashioned style might be his downfall on this front although lately he has shown marked improvement in this area. So, we shall see if that would garner him some more votes next time around. Meanwhile, Lobsang Sangay la does not hide the fact that he wants to stand for the office (which I like very much and find refreshing) and he tries to relate to the audience and has been known to tune his message accordingly depending on the crowd, which should really be second nature to a politician. Sometimes, he does get carried away and betray his inexperience and that could in and of itself carry certain connotations that he might be well advised to restrain from in a Tibetan setting in the future. This cannot be said of the other serious candidates who appear reluctant, almost as if they were pressured to stand for office with a shotgun. Maybe not Tenzing Tethong la. Tenzing Tethong la was also one of the early candidates, and although he wouldn’t say it outright, you can tell that he is confidant in his candidacy and does want the job. It should be worth noting that the two front-runners were also two of the earliest campaigners. Maybe a blueprint for future hopefuls?

There is also something to be said about their respective campaign styles. Lobsang Sangay la hit it early and hit it hard and he was busy campaigning in almost every Tibetan community in the west and most notably India, especially in various settlements that has the highest concentration of Tibetans. To my knowledge, Tenzing Tethong la hadn’t actively campaigned in the settlements aside from a few group appearances, which I found frustrating being one of his supporters. I don’t expect a door-to-door meet-and-greet sort of campaign but still wanted him to somewhat match Lobsang Sangay la’s enthusiasm. I don’t know if he wanted to wait and see and redouble his efforts after the initial results but it could very well have cost him some precious votes.

One dark side of the whole proceeding is the clear disapproval of one of the old stations of power, namely Kudraks, from the general public. You can pretty much read open statements of disdain for the aristocracy and a call for a new order of governance from Lobsang Sangay’s supporters. I can pretty much empathize with this sentiment and wouldn’t mind a change of things myself. But unfortunately that is not the only criteria I want in someone to run my future and the future of my country. I would prefer to judge a person by his own merits and not by his ancestors, whether real or fictional, and proverbially not make the mistake of throwing the baby out with the bath water. Curiously, these very same people somehow excuse the other half of the power metrics in Tibet, which is the monastic order that should be held equally responsible for the fate of Tibet if we are assigning blame. Even more bizarre is the rumor that most of the members of the clergy are in favor of Lobsang Sangay. I don’t know if the age-old rivalry between these two bastions of power are coming into effect and chess pieces are moving behind the scene way over my head but something definitely is going on there.

Lastly, and in my opinion very important, even though most people either simply ignore it or it totally escapes them, is the Hope factor. I have noticed very early on and it became stronger and stronger as the race went on, Lobsang Sangay la appeared more hopeful about the future than his counterparts, whether he means it or not. There is also his affinity for riding on Obama’s good political fortune and the simple message of change, which Obama used to near perfection. There is no escaping the fact that Tenzing Tethong la definitely represents the old guard, no matter how different his actual political disposition and inclination might be, which may not be too different from Lobsang Sangay. Fifty-one years in exile and the dismal political limbo we are struck in, the youth and the old alike are equally frustrated and understandably want someone different this time around, someone who doesn’t represent the old order whom they somewhat blame for the present condition. The actual brilliance about the word change is that you just have to represent it without having to prove anything (especially Lobsang Sangay la who literally has no record of any voting in the parliament nor does he have any tenure in any part of the exile government and thereby leaving no room for others to catch him flip-flopping on any position) and somehow make ‘experience’ seem outdated and old-fashioned. On the other hand, Tenzing Tethong la seemed hard-bent on relating the facts about the actual Tibetan political scene and the de facto power vested in the Kalon Tripa’s hand to his own detriment. Maybe, that is an area that my candidate for Kalon Tripa needs to work on more than anything if he is to make any gain in the actual election. That is a great strategy coming from Lobsang Sangay’s camp where they have actually managed to make experience appear undesirable considering that was one of his glaring shortcomings. My hats off to Lobsang Sangay la and his team even though it seems to me that he is actually believing it these days and that had led to a few political gaffes that he can ill afford to repeat on a continual basis.

All in all, even though my discontent with the exile democracy is well evident in my previous article, I am somewhat interested in this particular one. To be blunt, my interest or fear simply lies in the tenuous nature of our Government and the rapidly advancing age of Kundun. There is simply no way to tell what might befall us in the next 5-10 years. I don’t know about you folks but I for one wouldn’t want to be struck with someone who is a political novice, no matter how impressive his academic credentials. At the end of the day, wading through all the glam and frills of political theatre, you really have one very basic question to ask yourself: Can you trust the future of your children and your country with your chosen candidate if worst comes to worst? I want someone who has a proven record, who is well versed in both Tibetan and western political thoughts, a visionary, a person of integrity and smarts. In short, I want Tibet’s future to be in safe and able hands of Tenzin Tethong la. His impressive accomplishments during his tenure are there for all to see. It is one thing to run a campaign and quite another to run a government. All the same, I do want to congratulate Lobsang Sangay la for winning the preliminary with sound strategy and excellent maneuvers. See you guys in the next round.

P.S: I want people to pay very close attention to what was actually said by the two candidates about the feasibility of the Middle Way approach on November 12th, 2010 on RFA.

Click here to view the embedded video.

.

[Tenzin is waiting at the bustop. He is dressed for office and his hair is gelled to perfection. He is cold and jumps a little bit to warm himself. A little later, sonam and his friends arrive at the streetcar stop talking and complaining about the cold.]

Tenzin — Hey Sonam, wats up, dude?
Sonam — Hey hey… you waiting for the streetcar too?
Tenzin — No, I just like standing in the cold. Duh! of course I am waiting for the streetcar. [hits Sonam on the shoulder] Just kidding.
Sonam — Oh, you are so funny. NOT! It was a rhetorical question.
Tenzin — Haha. I know but I just wanted to mess with you. Hey, wasn’t that party fantastic on thursday night?
Sonam — Yeah, I really liked it. I am glad you told me about it. You were so drunk..haha that was so funny.
Tenzin — Hahaha… I know. I knew it was going to be great. That is why I called in sick that day. That girl I was hitting on, I think her name is Lobsang. She wouldn’t give me her number. Dang! she was acting so expensive.
Sonam — Why would she? You repeated your name like 5 times and you were slurring all the way. [imitates him]Hitting on girl while drunk, so not working. Hahaha
Tenzin — Oh my god. I didn’t realize I was so messed up. I hope I don’t see her for a few days. It would be embarrassing.
Sonam — Too late, dude. She is going to be at the protest. She is the SFT director. Hahaha.
Tenzin — What protest?

[then he notices the flags, and the hat]

Sonam — What do you mean what protest? March 10 of course. I thought you were going there too. You got to be kidding me!
Tenzin — Ohh… I forgot today was march 10th. Oh well, it doesn’t matter anyway, I don’t go to these lame protest anyway. Always shouting at empty buildings and no results.
[Sonam looked annoyed and his friends were shifting their feet uncomfortably and not liking the talk]
Sonam — You shouldn’t say that, man. We are going to the protest and we don’t think it is lame. It is our responsibility as a Tibetan to at least show up for march 10th protest even if you can’t do anything else for our society. Honestly, I am quite disappointed that you should think so, especially since I consider you quite educated. Even if you feel that way, you shouldn’t say that to people who actually take the time to go there. Do you think we enjoy walking around in –20 degree for 5-6 hours?

[Tenzin is a little annoyed that Sonam brought up his education and intelligence]

Tenzin — Look, Sonam, I like you and I don’t want to discourage you. But honestly, it is total waste of time. Look at how many people show up at these rallies? We have 5000 Tibetans in Toronto but less than 500 show up for protest every year for march 10. But new year’s party and losar party, ohhhh, we have few thousand show up. Get the picture? Nobody cares. Not Tibetans, Not Canadians, not the world. We are just shouting at empty buildings and freezing our asses off.

[One of Sonam's friend, Jordan, is visibly agitated and seen shaking his head in disgust ]

Jordan — Forget him, Sonam. We have too many of these guys.
Tenzin — Look, I am sorry but I am telling you the hard truth. Nobody cares. You think you protesting on the street is going to get you Rangzen?
Sonam — Jordan, it is ok. Look, Tenzin, this protest is not really about whether we get Rangzen today or next year or the year after that….

[Jordan is visibly agitated and interrupts Sonam again]

Jordan — So, are you saying Tibetans in Tibet who rose up on March 10th last year and died for our country are lame and stupid? Did you care about that? Oh educated professor…

[Jordan makes a mocking kowtow motion and Tenzin just sneers]

Tenzin — When did I say that?. Of course Tibetans in Tibet sacrificed quite a lot and risked their lives everytime they protest. I am just saying nobody here cares.
Jordan — The question is do you care?
Tenzin — What does it matter if I care or not, you got to be realistic and pragmatic and look at the world.
Jordan — Realistic? The real issue here is you are hiding behind words while we are at least trying to do something. How is that for reality?

[Bhuti quickly got in between Jordan and Tenzin and chimed in but in a very diplomatic way]

Bhuti — Tenzin la, I understand your frustration and I am sure you have actually attended number of rallies yourself [Tenzin relaxes a little bit and Jordan sulks off to the edge of the crowd]. But if young smart educated people like you don’t attend and leave the protest to few grandmas and grandpas, of course there is not going to be much result. Don’t you think? I feel a little discouraged when I hear such things.

[Tenzin was a little embarrassed now and didn't know what to say and Sonam sensing his predicament pats him on his shoulders]

Sonam — Tenzin, don’t take it to your heart. Jordan is a little hothead sometimes but he lost his sister during march 2008 Olympics protest in Tibet. So,you understand his anger. It is not directed at you. You just happen to set it off.

[Tenzin is really embarrassed now, understanding why Jordan was cross with him]

Tenzin — Oh. Jordan la, I am sorry. I didn’t know. I shouldn’t have been so careless with my words. Sometimes you get so frustrated. I didn’t mean it that way. ok?

[Jordan just gestures that it is fine but still didn't look at him]

Sonam — You know it is not just about Rangzen. Actually it is much more than that. First of all, we are connecting with our fellow Tibetans in one goal, something common that we share; our history, culture and country. That is very important when you are in a foreign country and you are a minority and that same goal and aspiration keeps us connected and gives us a sense of purpose and creates a community. We are doing something together, for Tibet, for….

[Bhuti cuts in]

Bhuti — He is right. Don’t you feel something in your heart when you see our flag marching down the street? We are also making sure that we don’t forget our history and the injustice that brought us here. Tibetans in Tibet die for this simple protest that you call “LAME’ and I honestly feel we in the free world should at least devote one single day in a year to protest. We don’t even have to fear bullets or prison like our brethreans in Tibet. Just a little bit of cold for a few hours. is that asking too much?
Tenzin — I already said I regret saying that. I didn’t mean it that way. I apologize.
Bhuti — Sorry, It just came out.
Sonam — Most of all, we are educating our children who look up to us. We are in fact teaching them about their history, culture, and where they came from. We are passing on an idea to the next generation. An idea that we don’t have to cower in shame and cowardice and we can rise up against a mighty country. That it is an honest struggle, a struggle that is worth fighting for. It doesn’t matter if we win or lose, that is not the most
important lesson here, it matters that we at least try; that we stand up for justice in this world. In sociology, it is called Meme. Or is it biology…

[He looks at Bhuti who just shrugs her shoulder]

[Just then the streetcar pulled up. And they filed in and sat together. Sonam and Tenzin in the front. Bhuti and Jordan at the back. Few others on the other side of the aisle by not necessary]

Sonam — Anyway, as I was saying, basically we are planting the seed in their head that we have a country called Tibet and each time we do that, we are passing a piece of our dream. We are teaching them that our country was forcefully taken away from us by China, and it is unjust. Tibetan cause is not just theory for them anymore, they can walk it, breathe it, and feel cold in it. They will always remember that they walked with their parents, their brothers and sisters, together, for a good cause. we are…

[Again Bhuti interrupts]

Bhuti — Yeah! we are teaching them that we should rise up against injustice and oppression. That truth and justice has value. I used to remember going to protest when I was a little kid in Dharamshala. I didn’t understand what was going on but I knew China took our country and we are protesting. I used to feel so important shouting with the grownups and they gave me a lot of candy. Most of the time, I would fall asleep coming back and Dad will carry me in his arms. I still remember how important I felt. Do you think that is a m’amm, mumb, what was it again?
Sonam — Meme…it is called meme. See, she remembers going to these demonstrations and just like her there are many Tibetans who got this dream passed down from their parents. It is almost like a genetic code, a social gene that is passed down from generation to generation. You can call it passing of dreams and ideas.
Bhuti — Like INCEPTION!! Have you seen that movie yet? It is awsomeeeee! .

[Tenzin looked puzzled as he still hadn't heard much about the movie]

Bhuti — What? You don’t know about Inception! OMG! Which planet do you live on? Ok, this is what happens in the movie..it is like Matrix, but like a dream…
Sonam — Bhuti please. You are going off topic again. I told you you keep doing that. And besides, I haven’t seen the movie yet, so don’t ruin it for us. Right, Jordan?
Jordan — [Jordan finally broke his silence] Yeah, we are going to watch it this weekend.
Tenzin — Jordan la, I am sorry about your sister and I shouldn’t have said something like that carelessly.
Jordan — [Jordan finally relaxes and shakes his hand] It is ok. I know you didn’t mean it that way and I am sorry I snapped at you.
Tenzin — You know it is really frustrating. I used to come quite a bit and then I got disheartened when I see only few Tibetans show up and I just gave up. I said to myself we don’t deserve our country with an attitude like this. But I must say I was very shortsighted and seeing people like you gives me confidence in our struggle.
Sonam — I remember you were always in the protest when we were back in school. Frankly, I used to look up to you, Tenzin. [Tenzin smiled a little bit remembering back] I know that person is still in there somewhere.
Tenzin — Yeah, I remember. I don’t know what went wrong. Maybe I got lost thinking about my own interest all the time and then all the frustration all those years…

Sonam — I know. [pats him on the shoulder]. I have gone through that too. [Tenzin looks at him]. I guess we all go through that. I used to think it was useless and it is better if we forget about it. Then one day I was watching TV and they were showing the March 10th protest. They were only a handful of Tibetan protesters there and most of them were older people. I remember this reporter trying to find somebody to interview and she couldn’t find anybody. Finally, she went to this old lady and started asking her questions about why we were protesting. The old lady started to say something in broken english and then she looked around for help and finding no one, she stared silently at the lens. Then she cried. It was as if her heart just broke right there on the 6 O’clock news. At first, I felt angry that there was nobody there to speak for her and then it slowly dawned on me that the reason there wasn’t somebody out there was because I was sitting here. Me and People like me who can speak but chose not to go, Who are educated in best schools but we think we was just too important for a small protest like this and it is for people from Tibet and those who are simpletons. I guess I secretly thought I was too good for that. I was ashamed to be uncool and kept lying to myself that I am working on a solution that will take care of Tibet issue within a month. [shakes his head in embarrassment] I realized then I was just trying to justify my own insecurity. I had never felt that kind of shame in my entire life. I decided right then I was going to show up at least for March10 every year no matter where I am; for my people, for those grandmas and grandpas, for our brothers and sisters who cannot speak, for those little kids walking in the cold winter. And most of all, for myself

[there was a long silence. Tenzin was still looking at Sonam who quickly wiped a tear at the edge of his eyes]

Tenzin — yeah..I..I.

[he then didn't say anything and looked straight ahead lost in his own thoughts]

[THE SCENE IS FROZEN. THE LIGHT SLOWLY FADES]

[INTERLUDE, MUSIC, the light focuses on someone who recites the poem with a slow beat at the background]
[ video of protest in Tibet (silent) or slide shows on the wall as the recitation starts]

The angels are falling
The angels are falling
They are falling all around me
Will you listen to me, brother?
Will you listen to me, sister?
The angels are falling for you and me

[slide show of Drapchi 14 nuns]

I saw their wings with bullet holes
I saw the wounds deep inside their souls
They did not ask for you by name
But I think they sang a song for you.
Can you hear them in the distance?
Can you remember them from your past?
Will you stand up from your sofa?
Will you throw the pizza down?

[The song Rangzen by Rangzen Shonu chorus rises in crescendo and fades for the next line]

The angels are falling
The angels are falling
They are falling all around me
Will you listen to me, brother?
Will you listen to me, sister?
The angels are falling for you and me

[Slide show of Nangpa La on the screen]

I saw them at the mountain pass
I saw them fall in somebody’s dream
They are praying knee deep in the snow
They are praying you do not forget them
Five thousand miles they searched for you
On a wind horse they wrote to you
Will you stand up from your sofa?
Will you put the remote down?

[Rangzen chorus rises in cresdo again and fades]

The angels are falling
The angels are falling
They are falling all around me
Will you listen to me, brother?
Will you listen to me, sister?
The angels are falling for you and me

[Now the full song plays or partial song plays and the light fades on the recital with the song]

[THE LIGHT FADES ON THE RECITAL. AND THE LIGHT SHINES ON THE PASSENGERS AGAIN. The streetcar announces Queens Park and they got up to go]

Sonam — Hey, Tenzin, sorry I got a little angry before. I didn’t mean it. ok?
Bhuti — Tenzin, sorry if we upset you. Bye.
Jordan — [he just smiled a little and gave an awkward pat on Tenzin's shoulder and left]
Tenzin — It is Ok, see you guys.

[Tenzin sat there lost in thoughts and watched his friends walk away huddled together against the cold, pulling their coats close and a deep sadness came over him. Freeze action for Sonam and his group and only the people in the streetcar will be animated. The streetcar closes and then Tenzin jumps up suddenly and yells at the top of his lung.]

Tenzin — FREE TIBET!!!! FREE TIBETT!!

[it startles the other passengers but it didn't matter to Tenzin. The streetcar had started moving slowly and now stopped as the driver wasn't sure what happened and wanted to make sure everybody was ok.]

Driver — Is everything ok?
Tenzin — YES! everything is fine now. Can you please open the door for me. It is urgent.
Driver —Are you ok?
Tenzin — I am now. Can you please open the door for me.

[he left the streetcar and the driver just shrugs in puzzlement]
[Now the streetcar is frozen and the Sonam, Bhuti, and Jordan are animated.]

Tenzin — Hey! Wait up!
Sonam — What! Tenzin..are you coming with us?

[tenzin gestures for Bhuti to hold on while he reaches in his pocket and calls a number]
[Bhuti and Jordan smiled broadly at each other while still clutching their winter coats]

Bhuti — Who you calling?
Tenzin — I am calling in sick.
Sonam — Didn’t you call sick just two days ago?
Tenzin — Yeah. But if I can call in sick for a lame party, I am sure I can call in sick for March 10, don’t you think?

[they all laughed]

Tenzin — Wait, quickly, what excuse should I give today. His answering machine will turn on soon.
Bhuti — You have a stomach ache?
Tenzin — I already used that Thursday.
Sonam — Now tell him the stomach ache has moved to your head this time.

[bhuti started laughing]

Tenzin — Come on guys, help me out fast
Bhuti — Your dog died?
Jordan — Your neighbor lost your sofa?
Sonam — Your wife ran away with the milkman?

[they all laugh while Tenzin stood there with an annoyed look]

Tenzin — Guys! this is not helping.

[The actors walk off stage. Sound of protest is heard for 30-60 seconds. Then the Rangzen Music starts again and the actors come back on stage and bows to the audience]

THE END.

I will not fear
I will not fear

When they come for me
At the break of dawn
And stuff cattle prods
Down my throat.
If they shatter
All my teeth
Sew my lips
And blacken my eyes

I will not yield
I will not yield.

If the world rather trade
On my broken back
And sell us off
for a fistful of gold
If truth and justice
Are for the rich and the strong
And they cannot see
beyond their land

I will not cry
I will not cry.

And if you cannot hear
My final words
Before they put
a bullet in me

It is Rangzen
It is Rangzen