Glad to hear you're hanging in there. Hope the weather cooperates soon. In the meantime, good luck and good health.

Wow, good job! It's all worth it in the end. It's like the matrix revolutions at the end when they see the sun, hehe.

It is highly unlikely that the Olympic torch has summited Everest. All details of the climb have been concealed from the media, typical of Beijing controlled events. And the sudden announcement of an easy summiting without any opportunity for independent journalists to observe or check facts, is also typical of Beijing's manipulation of information. It's probable, and quite characteristic of PRC's history, that the footage "proving" the summitting was simply shot at base camp.

Free Hawaii from USA, Return the land to Hawaiian
USA out of Hawaii.
Shame USA....Shame USA

We would support Hawaiian until they independent.

The Chinese Olympic team has successfully reached the top of Mt Everest. Congratulations. Well done. All the efforts to thwart saboteurs have paid off.

Well done and this deserves more reporting than this. Keep it up. Go Olympic!!!

Just read the story about the flame reaching the summit. Good video link on the CNN home page as well. Congratulations to all the climbers.

well done, that moment was so moving and touching!

What a great chapter being added to the Olympic History! Congratulations to the climbers! Salute to all field journalists!

i have just seen the torch reahced to the top of the mountain, but only showed in cctv, i wonder if i should believe it or not, since it quite often lies. Well done, Tomas, i can imagine how tough it is.
with regard!

thanks to all the climbers,they did a great job!!!!!!!

I think Sophia brings up a good point. Although I would like to believe they reached the summit, this is the ONLY picture I have seen atop of Everest that doesn't have a blue sky above the clouds. It makes me wonder...

What an exciting moment! Go China Go!
Thanks for the blog!

the Olympics run up to Everest Is a great feat achieved in terms of endurance and spirit ... well done !! and NOW all the way to Beijing !

... ignore and let it pass, the unhappy stories that arise from the politicising of sports lately and let this coming Olympics be yet another great and exciting one for the world to rejoice !

It is so cool. Cong!!!!

a disgraceful show of colonial power. Tibet is not part of China and this arrogance will backfire.

Amazing efforts! First time ever. Very inspiring. Huge thanks to everyone up there. Come home safe.
Peace to the world,

Adam's comment reminded me that many people in the world now believe NASA made up the manned moon landing in a secret studio.

China is on top of the world !

Hi Tomas,
Thanks for your hardwork. I've read about you from Sohu's interview. Hope you can read it, but it is in Chinese. http://2008.sohu.com/20080505/n256668763_3.shtml

I will translate a few words for you.
Tomas as a person – 'a very good journalist, a very kind man.' by Lizhi Li.
You and your colleauges– hardworking, very professional, pay attention to detail, and very sensitive to new information. Timing of asking questions.

They said you are from Czech Republic, a climber yourself, was praying for the event.

Hope you find this a fair report about you and your colleagues.

Go Olympics. What a great job done by the climbers. This is a historical moment.

hi, Sophia Keller, which era are you from and how many languages do you understand? How can you be faithful to news stories , which I believe , all in English , by western media?

I believe you have been branwashed , much more than me. Its true , that , the Chinese media dont always report things as fast as the western media. However after many years of observation, I have found that the westren media are so free , as to as tell lies and make up stories of their own .

Congratulations to Tomas for surviving the cold and high altitude. At least you got to see the beauty of Mt. Everest. Have a safe trip back down.

Good job for the Climbers, Tibetans and Chinese alike. You are brothers. So don't fight.

well done

We were at the base camp four years ago and living in the new temple hostel for a night. The Mt. Everest was always in the cloud even though the sun shone with blue sky until 10 p.m.
The climbers had done a fascinating job for all Chinese because one might have to wait many days before they had a glimpse of the Mt. Everest.
Go! Go! China. Let us all enjoy the Olympic Games.

congratulations to China! it's not about Chinese media or western media. Media is sort of the same thing.no matter what, just don't be so easily skeptical about those miracles achieved by others rather than you...or else,everyone is Einstein

To all those who support China,
I implore you to have some empathy and compassion to other people, especially for Tibetans, 99 percent of them are suffering under Communist rule since 1950s and all of them want Dalai Lama back to home to be their leader, bring peace and happiness and get rid nuclear station. Please, all of you should face the reality, the true History. You all know that Tibet was invaded by Maoist by force, brought more than 1.2 million death merely in 1959. and you all know that Tibetans and Chinese are totally different in many ways, the way of thinking, the way of believing. They are peace loving people, not like Chinese elits too egocentric. Don’t lie to others and most importantly to yourself just for self-defence, which is totally arbitrary. Those people including Tibetans themselves who support Tibet independence is not because they hate Chinese people, but the way the Communist regime treat them is inhuman.
Thanks for your love and compassion

To Adam:
inhuman??
why did we build schools, hospitals and railways in Tibet?
we developed and look after that place, and u call it inhuman.
have u ever been to that place?
and by the way, dont just only emphases "china invaded .... 57 years ago"
our history is more than two thousand years, not only 57 years.
before 57 years, Tibet was still a part of China. Even, Dalai said he was not after independence.

To Adam again:
"egocentric"
any western people who have ever worked with Chinese should know that we are not "egocentric", selfish, or aggressive.
we didn't invade Iraq.
we didn't make money from exporting opium to other countries.
we didn't massacre.
we were invaded by UK, France, Spain, Portugal, America, Germaney, Japan and so other western countries for more than a centure.
you were and still are colonial power, not us.
so Adam, u stop lying

Adam,

Please study history of Tibet first, especially the history before 1950.

To me, American Indians are very different to American white, both in language and culture. I do not know how many are killed, but I know not many in percentage survived afterward. How about thanksgiving day?

Don't you feel ashamed to call it Mount Everest. The montian is in Tibet, it has the name in Tibetan, check it out.
The western are full of arrogance; they entered other people's backyard and they assumed they were entitled to put their own name of the backyard.
Shame on you
Please give respect to the other culture!!!!
Be civilized!!!!!

Adam:

You need a lot of education on this topic and I'm going to add a few more points:

1. Go find a map, any map, that's published in the past 100 years by any country (inlcuding your own). You'll find XiZhang (Tibet) is WITHIN the border of China without exception. So a country invaded itself? Maybe Webster has another definition for the word "invade" that I'm not aware of.

2. The new Chinese government ("Communist" in your word) replaced the previous Chinese government (the one in Taiwan now) in Xizhang in 1950. Dalai Lama started the armed revolt in 1959 with direct financial and military support from CIA (yes your CIA) because the vested interest of his and all the slave owners was challenged by the Communist government. they represented 5% of the Zang Chinese (Tibetan as you call them). It shouldn't be a surprise that most of the other 95%, who were slaves, welcomed the change. Without the grassroots support, Dalai Lama and CIA failed miserably and fled.

So what you ended up with is that most of the 100,000+ Tibetans in Exile are former slave owners and their decendents, whose vested interests were taken away by the Chinese government. Oh yeah they were pisted off, wouldn't you. As to the other 95% of Zang Chinese (Tibetans) in XiZang? Their population has since doubled. I'm not saying they live in heaven. Nobody does. However, most of these people's lives are NOT what you think to say the least.

Most of the numbers that I cited above can be found easily on the web. You can go to the CIA website to find declassified documents on its accounts on happened in the 50s also.

I'm from the province where Shangri-La is located (it's not in the XiZang Autonomous Region, mind you). It's truly beautiful place. I hope you have the financial means and human curiosity to visit the region someday. It'd be an exhilarating experience, as Tom attested in his blog. Not to mention spending your money there helps the locals far more than your lip service.

Adam;

You are too dumb, you dont know what you are talking about. Its not a fault to be ignorant, but its your fault to be here misleading people by spreading your message. If you know Chinese, then go to some websites, see the detailed videos of the climbing , you will be amazed , that many of the climbers are Tibetans, They are so proud to be Chinese . Just 3 of the 5 torch bearers of the climbers are Tibetans. Ask them if they want Dalie Lama back or not ?

To Adam, please give any proof that "99 percent of them are suffering under Communist rule since 1950s and all of them want Dalai Lama back to home". Did you do a head count or you just enjoy cooking up rumors. No one can deny the significant improvement in Tibet unlesss he just simply chooses to be deaf and blind. Better send you to Tibet before 1950s through a time machine so you can enjoy being a serf/slave as 95% of the Tibetan people.

From a legal standpoint, Tibet has to this day not lost its statehood. It is an independent state under illegal occupation. Neither China's military invasion nor the continuing occupation has transferred the sovereignty of Tibet to China. As pointed out earlier, the Chinese government has never claimed to have acquired sovereignty over Tibet by conquest. Indeed, China recognizes that the use or threat of force (outside the exceptional circumstances provided for in the UN Charter), the imposition of an unequal treaty or the continued illegal occupation of a country can never grant an invader legal title to territory. Its claims are based solely on the alleged subjection of Tibet to a few of China's strongest foreign rulers in the thirteenth and eighteenth centuries. If other countries were to make such tenuous claims based on their imperial past, how seriously would they be taken? Are we not, in even considering the merits of China's arguments, accepting the right of powerful modern rulers to invade foreign countries in order to recreate lost empires of their ancestors?

Michael C. van Walt is an international legal scholar and a board member of the International Campaign for Tibet. Reprinted from the Cultural Survival Quarterly. Vol.12 1988 Number 1

To Angie: I'm not sure you can conclude someone is "dumb" just because they disagree with you. If you "fault" others for spreading a message, you can similarly be faulted for doing exactly the same. I'm sure not all Tibetans are unhappy, but I'm also not sure how the opinion of 3 torch bearers can represent Tibetan sentiment as a whole.

To Angie and all Tibetan Sovereignty misguider's

How many of you have met exiled Dali Lama? Most likely none of you who hates even the idea of Tibetan sovereignty even bothered to know him if not in person, then at least by reading materials available also! Because all of you are so brain washed by your communist government that you can not think beyond your so called tunnel vision!!!!!

I admire and respect Chinese intelligence (I mean intelligent students from China all over the world ) so with due respect, t it is something like that you guys can get 2380 in GRE but can not speak two lines of straight English !!! Why because you can memorize very well the things told by your teachers or government but can not think beyond written lines. What I mean that since it is told to that Tibetan can not govern themselves(same way as Britishers said that Indian can not govern themselves, but see what happened??) so you can not think beyond that!!! Isn't it right ?????

But my friends, to survive in the 21st century all of must change our tunnel vision and start seeing in a broader perspective, as world is a common place in this century.

Also, some of you talked about Tibetan slavery....but occupying another's land is considers what do you guys know???? It is your pleasure/problem that you are 1.3 billion big/strong but that does not mean that you will so that power in occupying another's land where ever possible!!!!

Shame on government of the Republic of China's rotten policy and those who believe it!!!!!

To Angie and all Tibetan Sovereignty misguider's

How many of you have met exiled Dali Lama? Most likely none of you who hates even the idea of Tibetan sovereignty even bothered to know him. If not in person, then at least try to know him by reading materials available also! And because all of you are so brain washed by your communist government that you can not even think beyond your so called tunnel vision!!!!!

I admire and respect Chinese intelligence (I mean intelligent students from China all over the world ) so with all due respect, it it is something like that, that you guys can get 2380 in GRE but can not speak two lines of straight English !!! Why because you can memorize very well the things told by your teachers or government, but can not think beyond written lines. What I mean to say, that since it is told to all of you that Tibetan can not govern themselves, so you can not think beyond that!!! Isn't it right ?????

But my friends, to survive in the 21st century, all of us must change our tunnel vision and start seeing in a broader perspective, as world is a common place in this century.

Also, some of you talked about Tibetan slavery....but isn't occupying another's land is considered similar in this time and age???? It is your pleasure/problem that you are 1.3 billion big/strong but that does not mean that you will so that power in occupying another's land where ever possible!!!!

Shame on government of the Republic of China's rotten policy and those who believe it!!!!!

Syama,
Please go to Tibet or China if you really want to make a difference.
Do you really think people in Iraq can decide who will be the next president in Nov?

Khan

Jesus... so much effort for nothing. Taking a torch 8,000 meters high. A tremendous effort, lots of money spent and all this buzz for nothing! Amazing the ability of this humankind to dedicate the attention to useless things like this...

Hi ?????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We all agree, Chinese or Tibetans alike, Dalai Lama is so great that he deserves to rule a larger piece of land. So forget about that small place called Tibet. We voted to have him to come to rule US and EU combined. Are you happy now? Go ask the US President, UK PM, EU President to resign and make room for him. Because Dalai Lama likes to combine religion and politics together too. I would throw in the Vetican too so the Pope needs to be gone to make room for him.

To Chen: that's funny. A PRC citizen voting I mean. What did you get to vote for, exactly? Since China currently rules Tibet, and you're offering the Dalai a governing role, perhaps let the Dalai rule China, and that way he'll rule Tibet too. Or perhaps you can stop trying to be facetious, because your attempt fails miserably.

Haha...there is nothing great about it. Provocation is the worst someone can do. Shame on you Chinese. You have eaten our country, our people and now you are eating our Holy Mountain.. I wish you all the worst in live. Free Tibet.

hey great job,it's really nice to hear you are continuously fighting with the climate but any way i am sure u'll overcome it and complete ur expedition with full energy.all the bst

A worker from Tianjin said, "[The regime] is truly sparing no costs. I am sure they won't even make much money from the Games. We common people want food, housing, and to survive, not the Olympic Games. What's the significance of the Games? We have worked all our lives and only make a few hundred dollars a month from our pensions. Inflation is steep, and I have a whole family to feed. How can we survive? Some people say supporting the Olympic Games is showing patriotism. What do we have to show, for our patriotism?"

A person from Shenzhen remarked, "Inflation, unemployment, and stock market losses are all serious. The burden of debt is so heavy. What can the Olympic Games bring to the common people? Isn't it just a torch? The torch relay has no meaning, and is a pure waste of money and time."

The person went on, saying, "The government is too vain. They really don't spend money wisely. If they used the money on health insurance, more Chinese people will be able to see a doctor, and fewer would have to die, while their family members must watch helplessly. The government will have to pay for its vanity, at some point."

A migrant worker from Anhui Province commented, "It has to be a world record that the Olympic Games has brought in troops from four different military regions. The government can't even take care of daily things, let alone defend the Olympics. There are so many thieves and robbers in the streets. How many of the crimes are ever solved? I myself was robbed today. I felt helpless and totally unsafe."

A person from Beijing said, "I think the Beijing Olympics will incur a financial loss. The expense of using the military, public security officers, police, as well as all levels of public or private guards, will add up to a huge sum. The whole population has been involved in defending the Olympic Games, as though a civil war was about to break out. Is the Olympic Games a sports event or a war? Why are TV and radio trying to spread propaganda about 'waging well this defensive battle for the Olympics'? I think the Chinese government is treating everything as its enemy. They are not providing security. They are initiating a war."

Whomever said the Chinese are not self centered and xenophobic has not spent any time in China. You can be killed crossing the street simply because a driver is to selfish to yield to a person in a crosswalk. The Chinese people are so brainswashed by the propoganda from their government many of them believe the nononsense published by "The People's Daily" Yes, there are netizens from China who can circumvent the country's firewall to reach western news sources but their minds are so shackled\condidtioned by the years of government propogaanda.they have lost the ability to objectively analyze or critique world events.

The Olymplcs is all about "Face" for the Chinese and it has nothing to do with promoting social harmony. Manyof the posts of this blog are from Chinese zealots "defending" their country's honor and congratulating the Olympic flame team from supposedly climbing Mt. Everest which so far has been the ultimate PR farce as hundreds of Tibetan monks are sstill confined to their monasteries. Th truth is most Chinese know nothing about Buddhism which is the ultimate irony because it was spread from China thorughout Asia including Tibet, Japan, Korea etc.. Offering joss sticks at a temple and praying for good fortune is not Buddhism LOL

The govenrment and the Chinese people demonize the Dali Lama because most know nothing about the man or the religion he represents outside the lies they have been told by their government. The Chinese people would be wise learn tfrom the Dali Lama instead of listenining to all the lies from their government. Socilialism is a doomed economic system and democracy one day will rule China. Only then will the Chinese people be free.

To S.K.Cheung,

Can you tell I am kidding? You need some funny bones, man!

There is a problem with your logic. We, Chinese, don't think Dalai is good for China so no China or no Tibet for him to rule. The West thinks he is great and we, Chinese, agree that Dalai can rule the West.

To grace and those who wrote to me,
Yes, China has opened many schools in Tbet to brain wash Tibetan people with communist propaganda, abolishing their invaluable culture and language and religion. Yes, China built railway to Tibet to loot thier minerals and bringing in millions of chinese people to make Tibetan people minority in their own land. Yes, China built hospitals for their own people in TIbet. hi I studied in China and Tibet for 10 years. I know how most Tibetan people and many ordinary Chinese people felt about the inhuman communist regime, its inequality. i read history about the reason of Chinese occupation in Tibet both inside China and outside. At the least i know what is made up stories and what is authentic. Most westerners including me who support Tibetan people for a complete autonomy is not because we are paid to do so and Tibetan people have no money to give but their precious culture, religion and peaceful way of life to give us a good example, that life is not to be slave to worldly material things but happiness, inner happiness and i respect that. All their wealth has been taken away by the Chinese. We are doing this because we have human heart. Yes, it is wrong that American and British have invaded iran and Afghanistan, they are at the least not trying to eradicate their precious culture and language and religion, and they are not taking their land away like Chinese are doing to Tibet, but I agree they are there for minerals. Hi, brothers or sisters, we don’t have to argue who is wrong or right and you can’t judge yourself but others, but we have right to have our voice heard in western countries, this is not in China. Angie said, I am dump, it is may be right, but that is his or her judgment not everybody’s but her or his words will also be judged by others not by himself.
Cheers lads
because they deserve it and we have

History is often distorted. Sure the Chinese culture has a lot of history, but so does Tibet. These are two completely different cultures. I hesitate to say that I'm American. I'm truly a world citizen. Every culture should have the freedom to maintain their values independent of foreign controls. Tibet should be independent and so should any other culture who "feels" oppressed by another. I would not argue whether they have been oppressed or not, the fact is, they want to be independent. I'm proudly non-ethno-centric. If the Puerto Rico, Guam, Samoa or Hawaii want to be independent that is also within their right since they have their own cultural heritage. Peace and freedom to all cultures!

To Chen: yes, I knew you were "trying" to be funny; I was merely pointing out that you weren't that successful.

To Adam,
Thanks for your supports for FREE TIBET,i really appreciate your words and i feel pity for those chinese who put point finger at His Holiness Dalai Lama and dont understand the true history of TIBET.
You had given the right answer to them.
Keep it up...
FREE TIBET

First they littered their junk in space and now they have dumped all that mountaineering garbage atop Mt. Everest – All for the glory of China. Here is a news flash China, China will never be glorious in the minds of the rest of the world until it acts like a grown up, and not as an arrogant, violent, bully and a selfish show off. China has always been arrogant and authoritarian and is still socially and politically backward, perhaps it is too much to expect the Chinese nation to understand this elementary fact.

to syama: Yes, you are right. Chinese students know little about him and Chinese students are good at memorizing. However, have you ever met people from Tibetan? Do you have Tibetan friends? How many Chinese students do you know? If you have access to China's Central Television, please watch the National English Competition at the end of the year. I bet the contestants can speak more than three English sentences...By the way, are you sure what you read is true? My opinion: nothing is true unless you believe it.

Torch relay through Mt. Everest is just an act of claiming Tibet as part of China... Tibetans are not at all happy under Chinese rule as proved by uprising in all over Tibet recently.

So there is an urgent need for a 'meaningful, long term and transparent dialogue' between His His The Dalai Lama and Mr. Hu Jintao. This is the only solution to achive peace and harmony for Tibetans as well as Chinese.

To SK Cheung,

Yes. Before I go. I will like to congratulate you being turn your skin white and remain a happy second class citizen staying in the west.

Please wait for another 30 years and see how CCP will build China and the Asia as a whole. See how CCP going to made Asian proud and live with dignity include your mother land Korea.

To Chinese: yes, please now go hither into the night. Good riddance. Your foolishness knows no bounds.

To Sk Cheung,

Why get so angry? Your Korea also invested a lot in CCP China. Ask them to pull out from China. The Korean are perpetuating the rule of CCP in China.

Hypocrite.

To Syamma,

Yes. I read many books written by Dalai Lama. But I do not see that he acts like what he written.

Tibetan buddhism is no difference from any buddhism. We all follow the teachings of Budha.

A true buddhist do not involve in politics and also religious issues. The buddhist even build Mosques in Iran. Iran people appreciated by not killing the goat as a sacrifice when the Mosques are completed.

Dalai Lama should call upon the West to pull out from Iraq and Alfaganistan. The longer they stay, more people will dies.

Ask them to spend the wars money to save many lives in this world especially human lives. The money they spent in the wars can at least feed 1 billion people for their entire lives.

Do not just concentrate on a Tibet issue. Nobody dies of hunger in Tibet. But during his time in Tibet, many farmers slaves died of hunger.

There is no cultural genocide. Tibetan buddhism or buddhism as a whole are strongly propogated by CCP. Go to china and ask any Lamas or Monks.

Dalai Lama should be teaching Buddhism and not Tibet problem.
If he is a ture buddhist, he should know what is "Karma" and what is the "common Karma".

By the way, do you know Gautama Buddha's own country was destroyed? What Budha said is only this "This is karma".

Bhodisava's job is to help every human beings or at least make them survive and not empty talk like telling the poor man "Hey, you know the bread taste tastier if you go with butter" . How can the poor man knows when he even cannot afford to have the bread?

Dalai Lama job is to encourage these poor people to survive and give them some comforts. Use his influence to lessen the anger, hatred and infliction caused by those heartless people.

Dalai Lama should not just go around the western wolrd sto talk about Tibets. As a Nobel prize winner, he must at least speaks for the people suffer under the wars. Everyday people are dying. He must
at least tell the west "hey, let do some good Karma, stop the wars and let the common karma of the people work, what ever leaders they have chosen, they will pay for it. It is their common karma."
Tell the west today if they keep on killing they will pay for their own karma. It is better to stop now.

What I understand from Buddism is compassion. Compassion has no country and no religion. Buddhism is not a religion. We have no superior God to reward us or punish us. We responsible for our own Karma. Even Buddha had to paid for his karma in this world.

To Syama,

Oh, I forget. Even Pope condemned Bush for the Iraq war. What about Dalai Lama? Is his exiled government still financed by the CIA? Does he took any money form the Wests or his worshippers?

Budhha's teaching: A monk should not touch money. A monk should just have enough to cloth himself and take no more than a meal per day. Does Dalai Lama practices this? But I saw a beuatifull watch on his wriste?

Is Dalai Lama has the time to practice "pariyatti", "patipatti" and "pativeda"? Does he achieved "sammadithi"?

If the answer is no, then to me he is just a buddhist scholar or a person who study budhism .

Please check all the Dalai Lama before this Dalai Lama? Does any previous Dalai Lama involved in politics like he does. Does any previous Dalai Lama joint forces with the west to upset China.

Does any previous Dalai Lama instigate his people to kill for what ever cause whether right or wrong? If this Dalai Lama does not instigate, he should chase the youth wing out of his camp. Do not let them become " the worms inside the Lion Body" and destroy buddhism. Always remember buddhists do not KILL. Buddhist prefer
death than creating a bad karma.

( To those who do not understand the phrase" worms in Lion Body"- the meaning is those guys disguise as budhists and in actual facts are doing something harmfull to buddhism, just like the worm inside the Lion body)

Buddhist do not fear death . Born and reborn is normal to us. But we fear bad karma. Please do not instigate another killings.

To true buddhist , even if you have the right cause, you still cannot kill.
Killing will create hatred and the hatred will be carry to and by their childrens. One day these children grow up they will hate the Tibetan. Just like the palestinian children, they will hate the Israel.

"Buddham Saranam Gacchami" – May Buddha bless Dalai Lama

To the Chinese,
One of my Chinese friends in my university has written a dissertation on bilingualism in China and the communist’s government’s treatment to minority people. I found it extremely interesting. But unfortunately he said he could not take his dissertation with him to China. He said he could even be arrested for shot for what he has written. Here are some paragraphs I have excerpted from his dissertation for you to read and see what you think about it. If you want to read more about his dissertation, he permit me to let you to read. Cheers.

Bilingual education which the Chinese communist government began to provide for the minorities in China has been closely connected with the governement’s political policies. Lin says that since 1980, bilingual education has been provided in most minority schools in order to build up a relationship with ethnic minorities in China. However those schools which were trying to apply bilingual teaching have been continually bombarded with problems. The biggest problems noticeably came grew from inside society to a large extent, where minorities even now, in the 21st century, face discrimination and bias. (Lin, 1996: 45)

Lin points out that at the worse period, from 1949 to the early 1980s, assimilation was enforced on the minority students to conform. Their uniqueness had never been recognised . Autonomy and local initiatives were out of question, instead conformity to the centralised control of the Communist government were demanded. At the time minority cultural customs were hugely denounced as backward and subjected to attack. It was compulsory that all minority schools use Mandarin, the Han language. All the schools were forced to teach a curriculum which was designed for the whole nation regardless of local levels of economic development and culture. Minority teachers and students had but little choice but to take up the standard curriculum and mode of teaching. (Lin, 1996: 50)

For example, in Tibet Tibetan children are treated differently from Chinese pupils. Tibetan pupils were discriminated against inside their own country. The Chinese education system requires Tibetan students to learn Chinese, the Han language as their first language, leaving Tibetans with little education in their own language. The resettling of the Chinese people in Tibet has left Tibetans as a minority in their own country. Catriona Bass states that education of Chinese children in Tibet is far superior to that available to Tibetans. The Tibetan language and culture are treated as inferior. The Tibetan language is hardly taught in secondary schools. There is therefore little choice of employment left for those Tibetan students unless they speak fluent Chinese. (Catriona ,1998: 131)

Willian points out that the curriculum, laid down by the Ministry of Education in Tibet, which is directly governed by the communist government polices, included Tibetan language as merely a foundation subject which has no use after primary school education. (Willian, 2000: 187)

Gladney says that in China all schools have to follow the centralised curriculum which is designed by the State Education Commission. Students from minority regions also have to use the same set of textbooks and are expected to progress at the same pace as all other Han students. The subject areas are fixed, leaving little flexibility to local schools. Parents and local governments have a very limited say over what should be taught and how teaching is to take place. Within this context, bilingual education is provided only for the purpose of teaching the national curriculum so that they can master it as effectively as the majority students do. It is seldom a concern that knowledge about the minorities themselves is not being incorporated into the curriculum. (Gladney, 1994: 60)

Xinyu points out that the curricula are too difficult for the minority students and it hardly meets any of the local educational needs. For example, Chinese language textbooks are mostly filled with Han classic canons. Not only have the minority students never had any previous contact with these, but they are also remote from their lives and the language they use daily. Often they have to go through dual translation to understand the content. And yet, at the end of their study, minority students have to compete with the Han students on an equal basis for admission to colleges and universities. As a result, the proportion of minority students in every kind of major post-secondary and higher education institution has always been much lower than that of Han students.(Xinyu, 1995: 32-3 )

However Xinyu says that scholars in China have firmly claimed that providing bilingual education for minority students, especially for cognitive reasons, is indispensable for the development of their intellectual ability. They argued that students who are not able to learn in their own language miss the crucial stage in their life for developing an interest in learning. They argued that especially for those minority students, who come from remote areas and who barely had any contact with the Han culture and any other languages apart from their own native language, being taught in their own language is absolutely invaluable.

To Chinese: still here I see. What happened to going back to the asylum? It's not too late, you know. A man of his word, how honourable.

To all Dalai Lama haters,

How can you hate someone without even knowing him?????? I know and can contrubute a lot about Buddhaism, however, I prefer not to discuss it with those who are, brainwashed, contradicting themselvs, have tunnel vision, and so insecure that have no understanding of right or wrong!!!!!!!!

So on the name of humanity please have compassion for the world peace! Every bit of positive deeds would lead us towards brighter and better world.

tibetan religious hierarchy involves the selection of leader based upon whichever way the old dalai's head faces when he dies or a game very similar to spin the bottle. tibet was an enclosed society, where, 90 of its people are considered slaves. During the years the previous Dalai won the Nobel peace price, the Tibetans are practicing slavery such that slaves who don't obey perfectly have their arms cut off, eyes gorged out, or thrown into rooms full of scorpions, gagged and bounded, and these are just the lighter tortures, at lot of which ends up in death. all of this had been historically recorded, as have America's past actions of sending weapons to Tibet. then the chinese government interfered with this, now they have malls, airports...

it's confusing how democratic people supports the freeing of a country based on theology which is the most primitive form of government, which has a deep history of slavery and cruelty within itself...

To Syama,

Salam- cool down. Don't get angry. This is bad for your Karma. Breath in and out. Please note I am not being sarcastics to you. Sincerely for
your own good.

Anyway all of us cannot have a all round views on any issues. There is nothing is perfectness in human world. This is a "Samsara" world. I do not believe in good and bad. Something good for one is always bad for the others.

Just like the song by John Lenon "Imagine". There is no ideal world in this world. We are all passengers passing this world for a short period of time.

I only believe in Karma. Let the human common karma decides human's destiny.

To do good can be also a harm to others.

I apologised to all writers/readers whom I had annoyed on this blog. I made a bad Karma also by making people angry.

Sincerely apologized.

Thanks all of you. Bye bye.

The postings defending, the undefendable and eggregious atrocities committed and being committed by the government and elites of the People's Repbulic of China from mainland China and Tibet to the selling of counterfeit and inactive AIDS, malaria, and cancer medications throughout the world, are not only illogical, they should be seen for what they are – the work of 5 or at most 10 – partisan and or paid supporters of the aforementioned group.

These individuals no more represent the voiceless and unrepresented citizenry of China or Tibet than Ann Coulter and Rush Limbaugh represent the majoirty of good, decent, and intelligent American citizens.

Anyone with an internet connection can and is able to voice their opinions on CNN, which begs the obvious question, since the average Chinese citizen is routinely blocked from access to Google, CNN, and other sites due to the government of the People's Repbulic of China endeavoring to manipulate the collective public reality by controlling media and discourse, how is it, that these alledgedly free Chinese and Tibetan, but pro-government posters are able to so freely access the CNN blog but not one opposing voice from the same region is allowed or visible on the site?

And, the attacks on His Holiness the Dalai Lama, are not only offensive to all of humanity, but are seen for what they are, the desperate measures of a morally and ethically vacuous government and elite of the People's Republic of China who are willing to slaughter their own people in Tianeamen Square and utilize tactics from rape, torture, murder, imprisonment, re-education camps, and a littany of other "human rights attrocities" to maintain control over the citizenry.

The only chance that the world has to force the government and elites of the People's Republic of China to enter into and abide by the tenants of proper human decency is during the Olympics process, after that, this group, will never in our lifetimes, make such an error in global public relations judgement again.

They, the goverment and elites of the Peoples Republic of China, no more care about the good people of Tibet than they do about the millions whose water supply in China they intend to cut off and re-direct to the Olympic visitors and atheletes.

It is time for the nonsense being allowed to be espoused on this blog to not simply be challenged but be summarily and completely dismissed for what it is, a public relations offensive by partisan, paid, or simply ignorant supporters of the government of the People's Republic of China.

In future, before posting knowingly false partisan rhetoric, understand that all of your postings are not only permanently recorded but also are already refuted by human rights and objective academic sources ranging from Human Rights Watch to the Lancet Medical Journal.

Christ the Lord spoke of peace and brotherhood for all of mankind not only for Christians.

Free Tibet. Free China. Boycott the Olympics and their sponsors.

God Bless.

MFM, save your breath ranting and preaching those erudite western inspired lies and fabrications. Oh shut up and hope you go to heaven. We want some peace and quiet on earth.
Bless you.

My dear brother Peter,

Thank you for your greeting and advice, I would have thought after being summarily and completely revealed to be a partisan supporter of the elites and the government of the People's Republic of China, but also an individual who lacks the basic common courtesy to enter into discourse without resorting to misreprestnation or personal attacks, you would have decided to logical resign from the field of debate. But, clearly I was wrong.

To answer your request for silence, my dear brother, Peter, since we are blessed enough to live in principled democracies, we do not have to face the threats of rape, torture, re-education, or death, such as the ordinary and voiceless citizens of the People's Republic of China or Tibet if the government of the People's Republic of China tells us to "Oh shut up and hope you go to heaven. We want some peace and quiet on earth." The fundamental basis of our global environment of freedom and open discourse is the only thing that has stopped the elites and the government of the People's Republic of China from running completely amock not only in Tibet and China itself but indeed the world, we will not be silenced or indeed stopped, my brother, Peter, long after I am no longer on this planet, their will be other voices, more passionate, more eloquent, more intelligent, and much more powerful. One drop at a time, the flow will build, and the Great Wall will fall, and the citizens of the People's Republic of China will have what all mankind deserves the right to live and prosper without the domination and for the benefit of a select few individuals be they a government, military, religious, or an industrial elite.

And, if you truly want silence, my dear brother, Peter, simply visit all of the graves in Tibet, China, Afrca, India, Pakistan, and throughout the world filled with victims of the government of the People's Republic of China due to actions ranging from the use of military force to knowingly allowing and benefiting from the selling for counterfeit and inactive AIDS, Malaria, and Cancer medication to poor nations. Ofcoure, the empty hotel rooms during the Olympics due to the global boycott will also be very silent as well whether or not the nations have the courage of their citizens.

Please keep posting my dear brother, Peter, your ignorance, beligerance, and ferocity, only serves to undermine your own cause and reveal the complete lack of substance of the entire underpinnings of the belief as well as actual structure of the government of the People's Republic of China.

In future, before posting knowingly false partisan rhetoric, understand that all of your postings are not only permanently recorded but also are already refuted by human rights and objective academic sources ranging from Human Rights Watch to the Lancet Medical Journal.

Christ the Lord spoke of peace and brotherhood for all of mankind not only for Christians.

Free Tibet. Free China. Boycott the Olympics and their sponsors.

God Bless

HI MFM,

You are caught lying again. I am in Shanghai in my office right now. I can access CNN and post my comments. I have had no problems reviewing CNN for the past years. Just look at how many posts I posted. I have no problem at all to access CNN, BBC, etc. What are you talking about.

I am sorry ivy league graduated somebody like you. I shall not be suprised because Bush is also a Ivy league graduate and he is a lier too. Yeah, right. Both you and Bush are lawyers too.

Do you know that lawyers are rated lowest in terms of honest among all professions in the US?

What a waste of human life of you. God save you!

My dear friend Chen,

My statements on the actions of the government of the People's Rebupblic of China are factually evidenced in every nation state and objective media and academic forum dealing with freedom of speech and expression, most recently in the blockage of You Tube and Google to prevent the realtime coverage of the "cultural genocide" in Tibet, after their military had thrown out all indepented news organizations.

So, when you say, my dear friend, Chen, that you are working in an office in Shanghai, I have to wonder about the veracity of your statement, "I have no problem at all to access CNN, BBC, etc. What are you talking about.".

Thank you, my friend, Chen, for providing us, with an even better laugh, then your bretheren, Peter, this morning, "I am sorry ivy league graduated somebody like you. I shall not be suprised because Bush is also a Ivy league graduate and he is a lier too. Yeah, right. Both you and Bush are lawyers too. " Comparing me to GW Bush is like comparing John Stewart to Ann Coulter, funny stuff. Good work.

My friend Chen, "Do you know that lawyers are rated lowest in terms of honest among all professions in the US?" you are likely correct, I am not certain. But, do you know who is the least respected, most hated, and lowest rated government in the world and who happens to be hosting the forthcoming Olympic games? Answer, the government of the People's Republic of China for not only killing, raping, maiming, impisoning, and starving millions of its own people but by its whole scale refusal to accept copyright laws and human righs laws causing the deaths of millions of others around the world.

Please keep posting my dear friend, Chen, your ignorance, beligerance, and ferocity, only serves to undermine your own cause and reveal the complete lack of substance of the entire underpinnings of the belief as well as actual structure of the government of the People’s Republic of China.

In future, before posting knowingly false partisan rhetoric, understand that all of your postings are not only permanently recorded but also are already refuted by human rights and objective academic sources ranging from Human Rights Watch to the Lancet Medical Journal.

Christ the Lord spoke of peace and brotherhood for all of mankind not only for Christians.

Free Tibet. Free China. Boycott the Olympics and their sponsors.

God Bless.

Hi MFM,

Which objective media and academic forum and which blockage are you referring below. They are the same biased media and forum that brainwashed you. You are just a transmitter of their lies.

"My statements on the actions of the government of the People’s Rebupblic of China are factually evidenced in every nation state and objective media and academic forum dealing with freedom of speech and expression, most recently in the blockage of You Tube and Google to prevent the realtime coverage of the “cultural genocide” in Tibet"

My dear friend Chen,

Remember back before the "Freedom Fry" frenzy, when the entire world tried to stop the xenophobic mania that had gripped the GW Bush administration, and no fatual or ethical argument or evidence would deter them from their intended plan to deystroy an innocent nation and culture. And, now in 2008, we in the world are realizing the lifelong economic and political reprucussions of that extremist folly?

Well, my friend, Chen, discourse with you, is about as effective as anti-war communication with the administration of GW Bush and their "freedom fry" supporters would have been back then, so, without any insult, I simply lay down my proverbial sword.

May you find a life filled with happiness and health.

Free Tibet. Free China. Boycott the Olympics and their sponsors.

God Bless.

Dear MFM, i read many of your comments, they are simply insightful!!! Free China, Free Tibet! Let’s hope and pray that those poor peasants (over 70% farmers of the Chinese population) in China can keep their crops for themselves and there is some equal rights for them sometime in the near future.
cheers

Hi MFM,

I just finished a civil case in a US court. I know these lawyers, or any lawyers in that matter. The only tactic they know is lying, lying, denying, denying, lying again, and lying again. This is how they try to win their case.

Fortunately, mose of people in the US don't like and believe lawyers. And I have enough of those US, or CA in this matter, lawyers. US lawyers have a very very low moral ground in my mind.

Just let you know the final verdict of my case. I won with a 12 to 0 jury verdict. Can I tell you what I won without any lawyer representing me? I just showed my evidence.

MFM, Your tiresome long-winded rantings remind me of an old cassette player on auto replay-mode. Have you got new things to say?
You keep on repeating those same old lies and fabrications of yester years.
The present day China and the CCP government is not the Cold War image you were told by your Western media.
Move on girl.

Any significance taking it all the way up to the top of Everest? Think thats being on top of the world? I did read some comments in here on that!

Yet another simple illogical step though small a wrong example in all and a spot on all the white efforts to save the mountains and climate!
God knows what purpose this endeavour "above the world"
I mean around the world is not enough?