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by Eirik Granqvist, a foreign expert in Shanghai who visited Tibet in 2006

"The western medias announced that China had cut all information and that articles about the riots could not be sent out! I got mad about all the apparently incorrect information and wrote this article and two other similar ones although I am not a journalist but just because I could not stand all the bad things about China that was told. I sent them by e-mail without problems and they arrived well but two newspapers did neither respond neither publish what I had written. The third answered and wanted a shorter version that was published many days later as a normal 'readers voice'. What Dalai Lama had said was largely published every day together with a real anti-China propaganda. What I had written was apparently too China friendly for the 'free press'."

I was very shocked by what I had seen in the television and been reading in China daily about the riots in Lhasa. The most that shocked me was anyhow may be not the cruel events by themselves but how the medias in my country of origin, Finland, reported the events. A friend has scanned and sent me articles and I have checked also myself what can be found at Internet.

Very few Finnish people have ever visited Tibet, but I was there together with my wife in 2006. This was private persons and not as a part of a group-travel. I have seen Lhasa with my own eyes. I have been talking and chatting with people there. This was without any restrictions. Okay, we had a lovely and very competent guide that helped us much and took us where we wanted to go in the mornings but in the afternoons we were alone. Therefore I think that I have something to tell.

I am also interested in history and know more than people in general. When writing this, I do not have any reference books so I write out of my memory. If I do a small mistake somewhere, I beg your pardon. Anyhow, I think that this gives my writing an objectivity. I am well aware of that I will be accused for this and that for writing what I think is the truth. I will be accused by those who think that they know but do not know and by those that haven't seen by their own eyes.

Tibet was for centuries an autonomous concordat between Nepal and China. Sometimes China ruled Nepal as well. The king of Tibet used therefore to have one Chinese wife and one Nepalese and then a number of Tibetan ones.

With the fifth Dalai Lama, the religious and the political power were unified under the rule of one person, The Dalai Lama. Tibet became a theocratic dictatorship and closed itself for the rest of the world. No foreigners were anymore allowed in.

At the end of the nineteenth century, the famous Swedish traveller Sven Hedin made an attempt to reach Lhasa but was sent politely back, out of Tibet by Dalai Lama.

A French woman, Alexandra David-Néel was more successful. She visited Lhasa dressed as a Tibetan pilgrim and she was fluent in the Tibetan language. She told how she was afraid many times that she should be discovered and then she knew that she like other suspects or opponents should "happen to fall down" from the walls of the Potala palace.

Tibet was not a paradise. Tibet was an inhuman dictatorship!

The weakened Chinese Qing Dynasty had more and more lost its influence in Tibet. Tibet became more and more interesting for the Russian empire in the north and the British in the south.

In 1903 a British army expedition directed by the colonel Younghusband reached Lhasa. The British lost 4 soldiers but slaughtered more the 700 Tibetans that tryed to stop them, mainly by magic. The British installed "a commercial representation" in Lhasa. The Chinese evacuated Dalai Lama to the Qinghai plateau where he hade limited rights of move, probably for preventing him from having contacts with the British occupants.

The Finnish national hero, Marshal Mannerheim, visited him there in 1907 during his famous horseback trip through central Asia. He was then a colonel in the Tsar Russian army and his trip was in reality a spy trip. Therefore the 13th Dalai Lama was interesting.

The power of Dalai Lama was weakened. In 1950 the PLA marched in to Tibet without war. The 14th Dalai Lama seems at the beginning to have accepted this just as a security for his power as the theocratic dictator he was. He enlarged and restructured the Norbulingka Summer Palace in a luxury way in 1954.

The Chinese decided anyhow to finish with the cruel theocratic dictatorship under which the opponents fell down from Potala. The borders where during this dictatorship closed for all foreigners and the only schools where the religious ones. It is well known that it is easier to rule a population with a low education and is ignoring the outside world. In Tibet, about 5% of the population owned everything and the rest literally nothing. About 40% of the Tibetans were monks and nuns living as parasites on the rest of the population that had to feed them. Tibet was not a paradise!

Now China decided that the Tibetans should have the same rights and place in the society as the rest of the country's population. The monasteries should be emptied from their excessively large monk and nun populations.

Tibet could earlier be reached only by some horse trails and was for the rest insulated. The Chinese built rapidly a trafficable road. The insulation was broken.

In 1959, the young Dalai Lama caused a peoples upraising, using the religion as power since he was loosing his own powerful position. The upraising was however stopped, may be in not a too clever and smooth manner. Dalai Lama then left Tibet and his fellow citizens and escaped to India wherefrom he has continued to fight for his come back and reinstall the theocratic dictatorship that China will never allow again.

Then followed the ten years of Cultural Revolution that was an unhappy time for all China that closed itself to the rest of the world.

Now Lhasa has a modern airport and a railway. China has invested a lot in Tibet. The standard of living has been raised a lot in Tibet and last Xmas I have seen Tibetans spending sun-holidays on Hainan Island! Very lucky looking old women in traditional dresses walking on the beach with their husbands and the youngsters dressed like other young people enjoying the beach life.

The possibilities for Dalai Lama to take back his power has diminished and he does not anymore have the population with him. China and India are developing their cooperation and with the closer friendship, India will for sure also not more admit Dalai Lama to disturb this development. His possibilities to act against China will be diminished.

Therefore he undertook recently an around the world diplomatic travel since he has seen the possibility of harming the now good international image of China and provoking boycotts of the Olympic games in Beijing.

The Lhasa riots where very well prepared. Curriers where crossing the borders illegally for to see Dalai Lama and get his orders. A group of foreign mountain climbers filmed recently across the border an unlucky incident when one of these curriers got shot and another that crossed the border openly declared that he wanted to go to see the Dalai Lama. I have seen that in television just before I left for China in November.

China is no longer a closed country. There is no need for illegal border crossings if you are not doing something illegally! You just ask for a passport and take the necessary visas and cross the border at a legal border crossing or better, just take a regular flight from Lhasa to Kathmandu!

There where no peaceful demonstrations in Lhasa that where brutally knocked down! Young men went to action after a well prepared scenario at many places at the same time so that police and fire brigade should be taken by surprise and unable to act everywhere at the same time. This was successful! People where just knocked down without differences and all what could be broken was broken in the shortest possible time. With Molotov cocktails, fires where lit and fire cars where stopped. 18 normal citizens where killed without feelings and one police. The police had order to not respond with firearms for not being internationally blamed!

When I have seen the filmed riots in television, my diagnosis was immediately clear. The scenario was the same that I had seen many times of organized riots in France since more the forty years of tight familiar contacts and 21 years of living there. The difference was only that less ordinary people seemed to take part in Lhasa. The rioters where surprisingly few but well organized! China's positive image in the world should be damaged!

Dalai Lama is acting as the friendly and peaceful father. This is an old trick that also dictators like Hitler and Stalin used. I am not comparing him with them but he is acting like a demon when he tries to take back his power at any cost, not once caring for human lives and against Buddhistic non-violence principles. It was a try to do a coup d'ètat that failed. Now he is asking for international help for to stop the violence that he, himself had planned!

When I visited Tibet in 2006, I was surprised by the relaxed atmosphere and the few policemen in Lhasa. All that I have seen were Tibetans. Not the Han-Chinese. The atmosphere was remarkably peaceful and gave a picture of general well living. There was no oppressed feeling like I had seen so many times in the Soviet Union and its satellites before all that non-human system collapsed. People in Lhasa where friendly and wanted to speak to me, mostly without success since I do not speak Chinese nor Tibetan but up and then somebody could speak some words in English. Their wish for contact was just out of normal curiosity towards the foreigners.

I had heard that the religious life should been oppressed but it was flowering! I had also heard that so many Han Chinese where moved in that the Tibetans where now very few in Lhasa. I did however see much more Tibetans there. May be that the Han Chinese where hiding?

The western medias announced that China had cut all information and that articles about the riots could not be sent out! I got mad about all the apparently incorrect information and wrote this article and two other similar ones although I am not a journalist but just because I could not stand all the bad things about China that was told. I sent them by e-mail without problems and they arrived well but two newspapers did neither respond neither publish what I had written. The third answered and wanted a shorter version that was published many days later as a normal "readers voice". What Dalai Lama had said was largely published every day together with a real anti-China propaganda. What I had written was apparently too China friendly for the "free press".

Mia noto: Tiun ĉi artikolon kun traduko mi trovis en ĉina retejo, mi ne komprenas la anglan, tamen mi kopias ĝin al mia blogo por aŭdi vian reagon, kompreneble mi esperas en Esperanto. ^_^

Fabrice Duche akceptas la intervjuon

在藏法国人法布雷斯:你可以不报道但不可说谎

      中新网拉萨4月2日电 (作者 韩相泽)拉萨“3.14”打砸抢烧暴乱事件发生后，西方某些媒体发布了所谓“中国政府镇压和平示威”等不实报道，受到广泛质疑。近日一位名叫法布雷斯的法国人在接受笔者采访时，用自己的亲身经历反驳了西方某些媒体歪曲事实的报道。

[Laŭ raporto de Chinanews.com en la 2a de aprilo] (aŭtoro: Han Xiangze) Post la okazo de la 3.14 evento en Lasao, en okcidentaj amaskomikiloj aperis fasaj raportoj nomitaj "Ĉina registaro subpremi pacan manifestacion", kio ricevis vastan dubon. Lastatempe mi intervjuis kun francano Fabrice Duche, kiu rifutis la raportojn distordintajn la faktojn de okcidentaj medioj.

      石块满街横飞，暴徒们打砸抢烧很“crazy”

     Ŝtonoj flugas sur strato, perfortuloj tre "crazy" en la batado, frakasado, rabado kaj bruligado

　　法布雷斯，法文名字“fabrice duche”，一年多前来到拉萨，在色拉路北段经营着一家小小的咖啡馆。他回忆说，3月14日下午，他和女朋友等人去冲赛康一带准备吃晚饭，突然看到街上行人在奔跑，法布雷斯还以为当天街上在举办什么促销活动，但很快就发现事情不对，一帮人手持长刀、棍棒、石块在攻击路人、砸抢店铺，混乱中旁边藏餐馆的老板在对他们喊：“快进来，这里安全。”于是他们赶紧躲进了一家藏餐馆躲避。

Fabrice Duche venis al Lasao antaŭ pli ol unu jaro, kaj sin okupis pri malgranda kafejo en nordo de Sela Strato. Li rememoris: Posttagmeze de la 14a de marto, kiam li kun sia amatino kaj aliaj iris al Chongsaikang por vespermanĝo, li subite vidis ke la irantoj ekkuris surstrate. Siatempe Fabrice ankoraŭ opinias, ke ie en la strato okazis vendo-rabaton, tamen tuj baldaŭ li vidis, ke la fakto ne estas tia, aro da homoj kun longa tranĉilo, bastolo kaj ŝtono atakis preterirantojn, batis kaj rabis butikojn. Dum la ĥaoso mastro de apuda tibeta restoracio vokis al ili: "Eniru rapide, sekura ĉi tie." Do ili tuj sin kaŝis en la tibeta restoracio.

　　法布雷斯说，他们在餐馆内目睹了骚乱分子的凶残：暴徒们疯狂地进行破坏，好几家清真餐馆起火，石块“嗖嗖”地砸向行人，满脸是血的平民在奔跑逃命，警察也受到暴徒攻击……。晚上20：00点左右，法布雷斯一行人离开藏餐馆返回住所，看到仍然有暴徒在攻击平民，一个年龄不到20岁的汉族小伙子被4、5个暴徒用刀、石块打倒在地。“我想那个小伙子已经死了”，法布雷斯说，“不好，这样非常不好！”虽然事情已经过去了10几天，但法布雷斯印象中还是暴徒的疯狂与满街横飞的石块，对暴徒们的打砸抢烧法布雷斯用了“crazy”(注：疯狂的)这个词来描述。

Fabrice diris, ke en la manĝejo ili propra okule vidis la kruelecon de la tumultanoj: La perfortuloj freneze detruas, pluraj muzulmanaj restoracioj fajriĝas, ŝtonoj batis al perterirantoj kun riblo, ordinaraj popolanoj kun sango plena sur la vizaĝo forkuras por sia vivo, policanoj ankaŭ estas atakitaj... Vespere ĉirkaŭ je 20:00 Fabrice kun siaj amikoj forlasis la tibetan restoracion por reveni al sia leĝejo, tiam ili vidis, ke la perfortuloj ankoraŭ atakas ordinarajn popolanjn, iu junulo de han-nacio malpli 20jara estas batita surtere de 4~5 perfortuloj per tranĉilo kaj ŝtono. "Mi penas ke la junulo jam mortis", diris Fabrice, "Ne bona, tia estas tre ne bona!" Kvankam la afero jam pasis pli ol 10 tagoj, tamen en la cerbo de Farice restas ankoraŭ la frinezo de la perfortuloj kaj flugantaj ŝtonoj sur la stratoj. Al la batado, frakasado, rabado kaj bruligado farita de la perfortuloj Fabrice uzis la vorton "crazy" por priskribi ĝin.

　　“你可以不报道，但不可以说谎”

       "Vi povas ne raporti, sed ne povas mensogi"

　　法布雷斯说，事情发生后有几家法国媒体打电话来，张口就让他介绍一下中国政府镇压藏人游行示威的情况。法布雷斯告诉他们说没有，骚乱分子在攻击平民，警察只有盾牌和警棍，没有枪，警察很年轻，他们其实也很害怕。

Fabrice diris, ke post la evento kelkaj francaj amaskomunikiloj telefonis al li kaj postulas ke li prezentu la okazon pri ĉina registaro subpremi la manifestacion de tibetanoj. Fabrice diris al ili, ke la registaro ne subpremis, fakte tumultanoj atakas ordinaraj popolanojn, policanoj portas nur ŝildojn kaj policaj bastonoj, sen pafilo. La policanoj estas tre junaj, kaj ili fakte ankaŭ timiĝas.

　　法布雷斯并且告诉他们中国(政府)其实对西藏挺好的，可是法国的媒体不相信，还问他收了中国(政府)多少钱。后来法布雷斯看到了西方媒体的一些不实报道，他气愤地说：“说谎，他们在说谎，没有来西藏、不了解真实情况，你可以不报道，但不可以说谎，法国的，意大利的几家媒体都在说谎。”

Fabrice ankaŭ diris al ili, ke ĉina registaro fakte faras tre bone al Tibeto, tamen la francaj medioj ne kredis pri tio, ili eĉ demandis al Fabrice, kiom da mono li ricevis de ĉina registaro. Poste Fabrice vidinte kelkajn nefaktajn raportojn de okcidentaj medioj, Fabrice klere diris: "Mensogis, ili mensogis. Ne veni al Tibeto por koni la fakton vi povas ne raporti, sed ne povas mensogi. Pluraj medioj de Francio kaj Italio ambaŭ mensogas."

　　“关于拉萨事件，我不再接受西方任何媒体采访”

       "Pri Lasaa evento, mi ne plu akceptas intervjuon de ajna okcidenta medio"

　　看到太多关于拉萨事件的歪曲报道，法布雷斯对一向标榜“客观、公正”的西方媒体感到非常失望。从此，他决定不再就拉萨发生的事情接受任何一家非中国媒体的采访。

Vidinte tro da falsaj raportoj pri Lasaa evento Fabrice tre malesperas je okcidentaj medioj, kiuj sin fanfaronis "objektivan kaj justan". Ek de tiam li decidis ne plu akcepti ajnan intervjuon de ne ĉinaj medioj pri Lasaa evento.

　　法布雷斯同时呼吁一些西方人不要支持“藏独”分子。他说，我们法国也有一些小岛，如果你们中国人跑到那里喊这里不属于法国，我们肯定也不会高兴。

Fabrice ankaŭ alvokas al certaj okcidentanoj ne subteni tibetajn secesiistojn.  Li diris, ke ankaŭ estas insuletoj en ni Francio, se vi ĉinoj veturus al tie kaj krius, ke tie ne apartenas al Francio, ni fracoj certe ankaŭ ne ĝojas.