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Inhuman disorders

"A hell on earth," says the Buddhist monk and freedom fighter Ven. Backstage about time in Chinese prison.




(THIS ARTICLE IS MACHINE TRANSLATED by Google from Norwegian)

[occupation] 17. In October this year, the Dalai Lama received the highest congressional award from the United States Congress for its work for international peace and reconciliation. The award is a recognition of Dalai Lama's persistent efforts to find a solution to the Tibet conflict through dialogue with the Chinese leadership. President George W. Bush presented the gold medal to the Dalai Lama, and this is the first time the two have performed together in an official context. It is now 57 years since the occupation of Tibet.

Tibet was attacked by an economically motivated China in 1950, which marked the start of a years-long struggle between violence and non-violence. The worst was that of those who resisted, those who, through peaceful protests, fought for their country and identity. Monasteries were destroyed, monks were brutally abused and killed and many thousands of Tibetans became China's political prisoners in cruel torture prisons. One of those who has come to know these places on the body is the Buddhist monk Ven. Bagdro.

On April 18, 1988, he was arrested by Chinese soldiers and charged with leading demonstrations and killing a police officer. Today he travels the world and tells his story. He has written several books and is active in the struggle for a free Tibet. New Time he meets in Dharamsala, a small town in northern India where the Dalai Lama and his people live in exile.

Learned about Mao

Surrounded by Himalayan white peaks and Tibetan bean flags, I wait for this special man with the special story. After 30 minutes and two cups of tea, it turns out he had been waiting for me for a while on another floor of the restaurant. We both get a good laugh.

- Can you tell us a little about your upbringing under Communist-China rule?

- When I was young, I knew nothing about Tibetan history or culture. I did not even know about Tibetan Buddhism. I did not trust the spiritual because I went to Chinese propaganda school where we were brainwashed. They also came to our home to teach us about communism, about Stalin and not least about Mao. We had to hang pictures of Mao, while pictures of the Dalai Lama were banned. Slowly but surely I realized that the Communists were destroying Tibetan culture. It is not just our culture that is falling, but even their own Chinese traditions. Our family had a great shortage of food. I ate breakfast, needed lunch, but thought about dinner. I do not know why they let us suffer. We only got poorer and poorer, while the Chinese themselves became richer.

When I first met Bagdro, he was calm as a brooding brook. Now he roars like a fierce river, clearly committed to saving his country and culture.

- What made you realize the madness?

- In 1983 I went to a convent. A few years later, I met some American tourists who gave me a book by the Dalai Lama, My Country, My People. Shortly afterwards, I participated in my first demonstration for a free Tibet. The Dalai Lama's book woke me up, it opened my mind. I continued strong protests against China and was imprisoned. Almost four years in hell on earth. They asked how much the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government had paid me? "No one has paid me money!" I answered.

They also asked about the name of my friends. I gave no name, all my friends want is a free Tibet. 'Then you better take my life. I'd rather suffer myself than be the cause of my friends doing it! " I told them. The soldiers became very angry and started the torture. They put electric shocks in the head, behind the ears and even in the buttocks. It was horrible.

Bagdro is clearly marked by memories, but he is unstoppable.

- This is our country, and the only thing we want is a free Tibet. Freedom is a fundamental human right. They called me a terrorist. If I'm a terrorist, maybe Nelson Mandela or Mahatma Gandhi is. They also wanted freedom. I used to joke with the Chinese soldiers and say that only the Chinese government is not a terrorist.

Bagdro leans back firmly in the chair and smiles a warm laugh, clearly pleased with the comment.

- I told them exactly what I thought about them. I thought I was going to die anyway.

Cruel hell

Bagdro has the morning sun in his eyes. There is something magical about him, sitting in the cherry red monk costume. He bends forward again, puts his elbows on the table and clasps his hands. It is obvious that information of a serious nature must be released.

- Chinese prisons are so cruel that I can not describe it in words. If there is a hell, it's in China's prisons, he says, and goes on to say about the atrocities he had to go through:

- I had to stand outside barefoot on the ice for an hour until my feet were full of blood. They hit me with an iron bar in the stomach. They also had a specially made torture machine where they tied me naked and immersed me in icy water. It was surreal. They shot me in the foot and broke three ribs, but I never gave them a name. I would rather suffer myself, than be the reason why others suffer. In prison I found human skulls and bones. For a while they starved me so I started eating my clothes.

In the book A Hell On Earth, Bagdro tells about how they blunted cigarettes in his face and that he had to do away with his trousers because he was in solitary confinement with handcuffs.

Bagdro and the other Tibetan prisoners were also not allowed to speak in court. When they tried to say something in their defense, they were pulled out and beaten. No evidence was presented against the defendants and they were refused to speak about the torture.

- The prisons also took a lot of blood from us prisoners. We were promised medical visits for illness and injury, but all they did was steal our blood.

- What were they doing with the blood?

- I have heard that it was transported into China, where it was sold to the hospitals there.

- What did you learn after your stay in China's prisons?

- It was hard to come to India, I had been through so much and had no family there. But now I have grown and have a hope for a free Tibet and a good life. The first time I had an audience with the Dalai Lama, I was very angry with the Chinese government. There has been so much torture and pain. We had talked to China, we just wanted peace through non-violent solutions. But China has no respect for either the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan government or the people of Tibet. They just wanted our country, which is also the truth today. I told the Dalai Lama that we must fight to take back our land! Then the Dalai Lama replied, "We will not use violence, but peaceful methods, it is more powerful."

Olympic spirit

- Are you angry with the Chinese government now?

- I'm not angry anymore. China needs more power and they need more land. That is why they occupied us in 1950. It is sadder that the Tibetan government is not doing anything about the situation. It's just meetings.

- What is the biggest challenge now?

- China is an economic superpower, and for that reason other countries cooperate with China. See for example USA: Bush and the Dalai Lama were in a meeting and we had a hope that there would be progress, but nothing happened. Bush is afraid of losing China as a trading partner. Bush and the United States are only talking about Iraq and not China. What the world does not know is that China produces nuclear bombs in northern Tibet and tests them in the world's most beautiful landscape. But no one is talking about these Chinese projects. The whole world is afraid of the Chinese because they are so big in the market. Unfortunately, their large sums of money create fear in the international community.

- What can be done?

- There are many international meetings, but there are only words and no action. We must act on our thoughts if there is to be a change.

- And now all eyes are on China and the Olympics in Beijing?

- This will be an important time for Tibet, and China is afraid that the world will know what is going on. Not only in Tibet, but also their major violations of human rights and the environment. If nothing is done now, our culture will die out. The media will have a strong focus on China and the authorities will do everything they can to cover up their dark secrets.

He gently touches the herbal tea.

- The Chinese talk about friendship and peace, but it is only on the outside. It's just to sell a product. Those who host the Olympics also know about the Chinese's relationship to human rights, but for them it is also about money and not the Olympic spirit. The Chinese have used bribes in the fight for the Olympics. All sports have become money machines with less focus on real values. Those who pay the most can do whatever they want with the sport. We must take the iron mask off the Chinese, then the situation can be improved. Peaceful weapons must be used now.

A nice dream

- What is the most important thing for Tibet now?

- We must not put our trust in others to save us. Each Tibetan must rely on his own power and fight. We must act now, then there is hope for a free Tibet. Look at Gandhi, he went to prison many times, he fought for his people and was never afraid of the British. We must do the same. We can not have a Gandhi just sitting in the office relaxing. The Tibetan government in exile must take a better grip on the situation. If you really want to make a difference, you have to act.

- Do you believe in a free Tibet?

- Yes, a free Tibet is coming! The Chinese must be held accountable for their political misdeeds. It is not only Tibetan culture that is affected by this, but the whole world.

- How do you influence people?

- The human mind is changing rapidly. Just like a cell phone, as if only one or two years are out of the market and a new one is becoming popular. So are our cultures, because they are connected to our minds and our minds are in constant motion. I travel around the world and talk, wake up young people. I do not work for any organization, but for myself. I do not make money on this, I make my country.

- Last night I had a strange dream. It was so real. I was at home with my family in Tibet. The scenery was stunningly beautiful. The grass was green and the sky beautiful blue. Suddenly Bush comes walking down from the mountain. We welcomed him. Bush came to say that he supported Tibet and that we would soon become a free country again. It was a nice dream.

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