Tensions over the first visit of the Dalai Lama to the Obama White House indicate China's mounting domestic concerns even as it exercises growing global clout, says Tibet expert Robert Barnett.
The Cultural Palace of Nationalities in Beijing has a new exhibit commemorating the "50th Anniversary of Democratic Reforms in Tibet," a sweeping masterpiece of propaganda that provides one of the few available glimpses of contemporary China.
Fifty years after a failed revolt against Chinese rule, many Tibetans continue to push for greater freedoms. But their claims are plagued by mistrust, and hope for resolving the conflict seems remote as ever.
Robert J. Barnett, a leading expert on Tibet, says the Chinese government, which had hoped for a honeymoon period with the new Obama administration, is nervous as the fiftieth anniversary of the 1959 Tibetan revolt approaches.
Robert Barnett reviews Pico Iyer's account of the Dalai Lama. Barnett writes that while the book focuses on the Dalai Lama’s modern spirituality it has metamorphosed in light of the May 2008 Tibetan protests. The book now seems to touch on the question: "can a leader who aims to serve the spiritual yearnings of a world community deal with the specific needs of his nation?"
The unrest that is currently plaguing Tibet is only beign exacerbated by recent uprising and events that show how much influence the Chinese governement has over the domestic and international perception of the conflict in Tibet.
Edward Friedman, an expert on Chinese nationalism, says China’s ethnic Han majority views minorities like Tibetans and Uighurs as "people who should be incorporated into the larger Chinese state."
Problems, prosepects and U.S. Policy that invovles Tibet has slowly been coming into the national spot light, while many beleive that the death of the Dalai Lama will cause the Tibetan's movement to disintegrate.
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