http://agamsgecko.blogspot.com/2008/03/international-scholars-of-tibetan.htmlhttp://www.tibetopenletter.org/A Statement by Concerned Tibetan Studies Scholars on the Current Crisis in Tibet
A STATEMENT BY CONCERNED TIBETAN STUDIES SCHOLARS ON THE CURRENT CRISIS IN TIBET ADDRESSED TO PRESIDENT HU JINTAO AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA
President Hu Jintao
People’s Republic of China
Zhongnanhai, Xichengqu, Beijing City
People’s Republic of China
Dear Mr. President,
Over the course of the last two weeks the world has witnessed an outbreak of protests across the Tibetan plateau, followed in most instances by a harsh, violent repression. In the majority of cases these protests have been peaceful. The result has been an unknown number of arrests and the loss of numerous lives, which have been overwhelmingly Tibetan. This has understandably triggered widespread concern and anguish across the globe. As scholars engaged in Tibetan Studies, we are especially disturbed by what has been happening. The civilization we study is not simply a subject of academic enquiry: it is the heritage and fabric of a living people and one of the world’s great cultural legacies. We express our deep sorrow at the horrible deaths of the innocent, including Chinese as well as Tibetans. Life has been altered for the worse in places with which we are well acquainted; tragedy has entered the lives of a people we know well. At the time this statement is being written, continued arrests and shootings are being reported even of those involved in peaceful protest, the accused are being subjected to summary justice without due process and basic rights, and countless others are being forced to repeat political slogans and denunciations of their religious leader.
Silence in the face of what is happening in Tibet is no longer an option. At this moment the suppression of political dissent appears to be the primary goal of authorities across all the Tibetan areas within China, which have been isolated from the rest of China and the outside world. But such actions will not eliminate the underlying sense of grievance to which Tibetans are giving voice. As scholars we have a vested interest in freedom of expression. The violation of that basic freedom and the criminalization of those sentiments that the Chinese government finds difficult to hear are counterproductive. They will contribute to instability and tension, not lessen them.
It cannot be that the problem lies in the refusal of Tibetans to live within restrictions on speech and expression that none of us would accept in our own lives. It is not a question of what Tibetans are saying: it is a question of how they are being heard and answered. The attribution of the current unrest to the Dalai Lama represents a reluctance on the part of the Chinese government to acknowledge and engage with policy failures that are surely the true cause of popular discontent. The government’s continuing demonization of the Dalai Lama, which falls far below any standard of discourse accepted by the international community, serves only to fuel Tibetan anger and alienation. A situation has been created which can only meet with the strongest protest from those of us who have dedicated our professional lives to understanding Tibet’s past and its present; its culture and its society. Indeed, the situation has generated widespread shock among peoples inside and outside China as well, and we write in full sympathy with the twelve-point petition submitted by a group of Chinese writers and intellectuals on 22 March.
Therefore, we call for an immediate end to the use of force against Tibetans within China. We call for an end to the suppression of Tibetan opinion, whatever form that suppression takes. And we call for the clear recognition that Tibetans, together with all citizens of China, are entitled to the full rights to free speech and expression guaranteed by international agreements and accepted human rights norms.
Jean-Luc Achard (Centre National de La Recherche Scientifique, Paris)
Agata Bareja-Starzy?ska (Warsaw University)
Robert Barnett (Columbia University)
Christopher Beckwith (Indiana University)
Yael Bentor (Hebrew University, Jerusalem)
Henk Blezer (Leiden University)
Anne-Marie Blondeau (École pratique des Hautes Études, Paris)
Benjamin Bogin (Georgetown University)
Jens Braarvig (University of Oslo)
Katia Buffetrille (École pratique des Hautes Études, Paris)
José Ignacio Cabezón (University of California, Santa Barbara)
Cathy Cantwell (University of Oxford)
Bryan J. Cuevas (Florida State University)
Jacob Dalton (Yale University)
Ronald Davidson (Fairfield University)
Karl Debreczeny (Independent Scholar)
Andreas Doctor (Kathmandu University)
Thierry Dodin (Bonn University)
Brandon Dotson (School of Oriental and African Studies, London)
Georges Dreyfus (Williams College)
Douglas S. Duckworth (University of North Carolina)
John Dunne (Emory University)
Johan Elverskog (Southern Methodist University)
Elena De Rossi Filibeck (University of Rome)
Carla Gianotti (Independent Scholar)
Maria Gruber (University of Applied Arts, Vienna)
Janet Gyatso (Harvard University)
Paul Harrison (Stanford University)
Lauran Hartley (Columbia University)
Mireille Helffer (Centre National de La Recherche Scientifique, Paris)
Isabelle Henrion-Dourcy (Université Laval, Québec)
Toni Huber (Humboldt University , Berlin)
Ishihama Yumiko (Waseda University)
David Jackson (Rubin Museum of Art, New York)
Sarah Jacoby (Columbia University)
Marc des Jardins (Concordia University)
Matthew T. Kapstein (University of Chicago; École pratique des Hautes Études, Paris)
György Kara (Indiana University)
Samten Karmay (Centre National de La Recherche Scientifique, Paris)
P. Christiaan Klieger (Oakland Museum, California)
Deborah Klimburg-Salter (University of Vienna)
Leonard van der Kuijp (Harvard University)
Per Kvaerne (University of Oslo)
Erberto Lo Bue (University of Bologna)
Donald Lopez (University of Michigan)
Christian Luczanits (University of Vienna)
Sara McClintock (Emory University)
Carole McGranahan (University of Colorado)
Ariane Macdonald-Spanien (École pratique des Hautes Études, Paris)
William Magee (Dharma Drum Buddhist College, Taiwan)
Lara Maconi (Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales, Paris)
Dan Martin (Hebrew University, Jerusalem)
Rob Mayer (University of Oxford)
Fernand Meyer (École pratique des Hautes Études, Paris)
Eric D. Mortensen (Guilford College)
Paul Nietupski (John Carroll University)
Giacomella Orofino (Università degli Studi di Napoli “L’Orientale)
Ulrich Pagel (School of Oriental and African Studies, London)
Andrew Quintman (Princeton University)
Charles Ramble (University of Oxford)
Françoise Robin (Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales, Paris)
Ulrike Roesler (University of Freiburg)
Geoffrey Samuel (Cardiff University)
Kurtis Schaeffer (University of Virginia)
Cristina Scherrer-Schaub (University of Lausanne)
Peter Schwieger (Bonn University)
Tsering Shakya (University of British Columbia)
Nicolas Sihle (University of Virginia)
Elliot Sperling (Indiana University)
Heather Stoddard (Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales, Paris)
Robert Thurman (Columbia University)
Takeuchi Tsuguhito (Kobe City University of Foreign Studies)
Gray Tuttle (Columbia University)
Emily Yeh (University of Colorado)
Ronit Yoeli-Tlalim (University College, London)
Michael Zimmermann (University of Hamburg)
Signatures added online:
Lisa S. Keary ( Independent Scholar)
Karl-Heinz Everding ( Academy of Sciences Göttingen)
Lobsang Sangay ( Senior Fellow, Harvard Law School)
Ferran Mestanza ( Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona)
Steven Weinberger (Research Assistant Professor, University of Virginia)
Marc-Henri Deroche ( Doctoral Student, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Paris)
Veronika Ronge ( Bonn University)
Seiji Kumagai ( Doctoral Student, Kyôto University)
Jann Ronis ( Doctoral student, University of Virginia)
Maud Morin ( Doctoral Student, Département d’anthropologie Université Laval)
Sarah Haynes ( Ph.D., Western Illinois University)
Anne-Laure Cromphout ( Doctoral Student, Université Libre de Bruxelles)
Cynthia Col ( Lecturer (Brandeis University))
Thupten Jinpa, PhD ( Adjunct Professor, McGill University)
pema dolma ( master student)
Nicola Schneider ( École pratiques des Hautes Études)
Derek F. Maher ( Ph.D., East Carolina University)
Ronald Schwartz ( Professor, Memorial University, Canada)
sangpo ( University of Bologna)
thupten Tenzin ( MD University of Bologna)
Rajeev Ahuja ( Ph.D ( Delhi University ))
Tenzin N. Tethong ( Distinguished Fellow, Tibetan Studies Initiative, Stanford University)
Alexander Gardner ( Ph.D, University of Michigan)
Tashi Tsering ( Ph.D. student student, University of British Columbia)
Michelle J. Sorensen ( Doctoral Student, Columbia University)
gareth sparham ( Lecturer in Tibetan University of Michigan)
Sarah Johnson, PhD ( Curator, Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art)
Joshua Schapiro ( Doctoral Student, Harvard University)
Thupten Tsephel ( Student)
Rémi Chaix ( Doctoral Student, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes)
Kathryn Selig Brown ( Independent Scholar)
Kunsang Namgyal Lama ( Doctoral Student, Paris IV Sorbonne)
Anders Højmark Andersen ( Masters Student, University of Copenhagen)
John Barrett ( Harvard University)
Marco Antonio Karam ( President, Casa Tibet México)
Trine Brox ( Doctoral Student, Copenhagen University)
Susan Chen ( Doctoral Student, Emory University)
Kevin Vose ( Assistant Professor, College of William and Mary)
Andrew Fischer ( Fellow, London School of Economics)
Stacey Van Vleet ( Doctoral Student, Columbia University)
Leigh Sangster ( Doctoral Candidate, Emory University)
Michael Balk ( Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin)
Tom J.F. Tillemans ( Professor, Section de langues orientales, Université de Lausanne)
Jonathan C. Gold ( Assistant Professor, Drew University)
Kurt Tropper ( University of Vienna)
Jan-Ulrich Sobisch ( Associate Professor, Copenhagen University)
Nicole Willock ( Doctoral Student, Indiana University)
John Newman ( John T. and Catherine D. MacArthur Associate Professor of Asian Studies, New College of Florida)
Joseph McClellan ( Doctoral Student, Columbia University)
Alice Travers ( Doctoral student (University of Paris X-Nanterre and INALCO))
Mati Bernabei (Doctoral Student, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada)
Choegyal Tenzin ( Buddhist University, Budapest)
Dr Alexander Studholme ( Affiliated Lecturer, University of Cambridge)
Volker Caumanns ( Wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter, University of Munich)
John R. B. Campbell ( Doctoral Student, Columbia University)
Eveline Yang ( MA, Columbia University)
Klaus Löhrer ( Student, Copenhagen University)
Marie Friquegnon ( Prof. of Philosophy and of Asian Studies, William Paterson University)
Nawang Thokmey (University of Virginia)
Birgit Kellner ( Visiting Assistant Professor, UC Berkeley)
John Brzostoski ( Independent Scholar New York City)
Cheng Maio Wen (Masters Student)
Nathan McGovern (Doctoral Student, University of California, Santa Barbara)
Yangdon Dhondup ( Research Associate, School of Oriental and African Studies, London)
Jongbok Yi ( Ph.D. candidate, University of Virginia)
Yangdon Dhondup ( Research Associate, SOAS, London)
Andrew Erlich ( Masters Student, University of Toronto)
John Brzostoski ( director,Center of Oriental Studies,NYC)
Rachel Guidoni ( Instructor, Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales, Paris)
Mary-Kate Oreovicz ( Masters Student, Indiana University)
Holly Gayley ( Instructor, University of Colorado)
Alex Catanese (PhD Student, UC Santa Barbara)
Michael Schuman ( MTS Student, Harvard Divinity School)
Joel Gruber ( Doctoral Student, UCSB)
Peter-Daniel Szanto ( Doctoral Student, University of Oxford)
Delporte Corinne (Master Degree Student, Paris 8 University)
Marijo Demers ( doctoral student, University of Ottawa)
Ralf Kramer ( Bavarian State Library, Munich)
Federica Venturi ( Ph.D. candidate, Indiana University)
Albion M. Butters (Ph.D., Columbia University)
Isrun Engelhardt ( Independent Scholar)
Kadri Raudsepp ( Doctoral Student, Tallinn University)
Gulnar Kendirbai ( Assistant Prof. Columbia University, New York)
( ??)
David Cooper ( Doctoral Student, University of California, Santa Barbara)
Harry Wightman ( Msc Student, Boston University)
Karen Nelson Villanueva ( Doctoral Candidate, California Institute of Integral Studies)
Yun-Han Hsu ( Doctoral Student, University of Hawaii)
Yu-Chih Hsiao (Student, California State University Northridge)
Katarina Turpeinen ( Doctoral Student, University of Virginia)
Philip Lin ( Masters Student, University of Westminster)
( Student,China Medical University,Taiwan)
T D Gonkatsang ( Instructor in Tibetan, Oxford)
Markus Viehbeck ( Doctoral Student, University of Vienna)
Mika Wallen ( PhD, University of Tampere)
Alexander Schiller ( Doctoral Student, University of Hamburg)
Carlos Mondragon ( Associate Prof., El Colegio de Mexico)
Daisuke Murakami (Independent Scholar Ph.D, SOAS, University of London)
Bruce Carstairs ( BA As Stud Murdoch University)
Karma Lekshe Tsomo ( Associate Professor, University of San Diego)
Lhakpa Chungdak ( Independent scholar)
Yang Ching hui ( Masters Student, Chengchi University)
Kammie Takahashi ( Doctoral Student, University of Virginia)
Jeffrey Hopkins ( Emeritus Professor of Tibetan Studies)
Sophia Zhang GuiBi ( Master Student, Tamkang University, Taiwan)
Maria Przyjemska ( Doctoral Student, Humboldt University of Berlin)
Karma T. Ngodup ( Lecturer, University of California, Berkeley)
Tracy Zhang ( PhD Candidate, Simon Fraser University)
Kensaku OKAWA ( Assistant Professor, University of Tokyo)
Geoff Barstow ( Masters Student, Harvard Divinity School)
Shojiro Nomura ( Research Fellow, Otani University)
Alexandra Schultheis ( Assistant Professor, University of North Carolina)
Ayako Sadakane ( Asia University)
Jared Lindahl ( Doctoral Student, University of California-Santa Barbara)
Elena Pakhoutova ( Doctoral Student, University of Virginia)
Karma Phuntsho ( University of Cambridge)
Chung Tsering ( Researcher and editor of Education department. CTA. Dharamsala India)
Kathryn Ottaway (Masters Student, Indiana University)
Bawa Kalsang Gyaltsen ( Researcher and translator)
Chung Tsering ( Researcher and editor)
Maggie Hui ( Doctoral student, The Chinese University of Hong Kong)
Alex McKay PhD ( University of London (retired))
Andres Montano ( Doctoral Student (U. of Virginia), Casa Tibet Guatemala)
Carola Roloff ( Doctoral Student, University of Hamburg)
Diana Finnegan ( Doctoral Student, University of Wisconsin-Madison)
Barbara Brower ( Professor, Portland State University)
Tashi Rabgey ( University of Virginia)
Sara Shneiderman ( Doctoral Student, Cornell University)
Seonaigh MacPherson ( Adjunct Professor, Ph.D., Insitute of Asian Research, UBC)
Martijn van Beek ( Associate Professor, University of Aarhus)
Lobasng Wangden Shastri ( Masters Student, CIHTS, Sarnath)
Alyson Prude ( Doctoral Student, University of California, Santa Barbara)
Kunga Lama ( MA, University of Colorado at Boulder)
Maret Kark ( Tallinn University, Doctoral research)
Fuyuko Ruetenik ( Lecturer, Hiroshima University)
Shojiro Nomura ( Researcher, Otani University)
Andreas Bründer ( Independent Scholar, MA)
Shin'ichiro MIYAKE ( Lecturer, Otani University)
Valeria Donati ( Ph.D, Independent Scholar)
Andreas Bründer ( Independent Scholar)
Sten Anspal ( Doctoral Student, University of Tartu)
Eric Jacobson ( Lecturer, Harvard Medical School)
Stéphane Arguillère (part-time lecturer, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Paris)
Juha A. Janhunen ( Professor and Chair, East Asian Languages and Cultures, University of Helsinki, Finland)
Thomas Kauffmann (Doctoral Student, University of Oxford)
Roberto Vitali ( independent scholar)
Maho Iuchi ( Otani University)
Francesco Sferra ( Associate Professor, Università degli Studi di Napoli “L’Orientale”)
Clara Rossetti ( Doctoral student, University of Napoli “L’Orientale”)
Amelia Hall ( Doctoral Student Oxford University)
Ananda Massoubre ( Master student, École Pratique des Hautes Études, Paris)
Maret Kark ( Institute for Tibetan Studies, Estonia, Director)
Chok Tenzin Monlam ( Head of Research and Translation Department, LTWA)
Tenzin Nyinjey ( Managing Editor, the Tibet Journal, Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, Dharamsala, India)
Tsondue Samphel ( Emory University)
Sangye Tandar Naga ( Editor: Tibetan Publication, Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, Dharamshala, India.)
Jampa Dawa ( Ph.D, Library of Tibetan works and Archive)
Nicole Martínez Melis ( Professor, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona)
Cecile Ducher ( Masters Student, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Paris)
Rebecca Frilund ( Doctoral student, University of Turku)
Nicole Martínez Melis ( professor, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona)
Robert Beer ( Independent Scholar, Oxford)
Riccardo Maisano ( Professor, Università di Napoli “L’Orientale”)
Tenzin Chodon ( Masters Student, Delhi University)
Dominique Townsend ( Doctoral student, Columbia University)
Ralph Litzinger ( Associate Professor, Duke University)
Martin Boord ( Ph.D. SOAS)
Fei-Wen Cheng ( Assistant Pro., Tunghai University, Taiwan)
Yamanaka Yukio ( Research Assistant, Bukkyo University)
Petra Maurer ( Academy of Sciences, Munich)
Jonathan Vandewiele ( Masters Student, Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales, Paris)
Elli Fellner ( Masters Student University of Vienna)
Geoff Childs ( Associate Professor, Washington University)
Roviello Francesco ( Student, Orientale Naples)
Frances Garrett ( Assistant Professor, University of Toronto)
Danny Fisher ( Doctoral Student, University of the West)
Sonam Gyaltso ( Student, Northampton University, UK)
giulia castello ( student universita’ degli studi di Napoli “L’Orientale)
Tenzin Wangmo ( PhD candidate, University of Kentucky)
Giulia Castello ( student, universita’ degli studi di Napoli “L’ Orientale”)
Atsuki Murakami ( Independent Scholar, Ph.D, Tokyo University)
Jürgen Schörflinger ( Masters Student, University of Vienna)
Barbara Jo McLaughlin ( Professor, Pima College, Arizona)
Trude Lind ( Master’s degree, University of Oslo)
PEAMA DORJA ( scholars and lotus sutra center)
Rachael Stevens (Doctoral Student, University of Oxford)
NYNMA CHERING ( scholars and lotus sutra center)
Nick Swann ( Lecturer, Roehampton University, London)
NAN CAR DOR JAA ( Tunghai University, Taiwan)
Bradley Clough ( Abdulhadi H. Taher Chair in Comparative Religion, The American University in Cairo)
This open letter is signed only by scholars who have a scholarly focus on Tibet (whether it is primary or secondary). Please provide your name, academic position, and academic institution, and your signature will be added. If you hold a PhD, but are not currently employed at an academic institution, simply put "Independent Scholar" for academic position and "Ph.D, XXX University" for academic institution. If you are a graduate student, put "Masters Student" or "Doctoral Student" for academic position.
