11 Apr 2008

Olympic Torch To Everest: Neo Red Guards Prevail
Chennai Centre For China Studies, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Extract: [typos present in the original paper are retained - ed.] "3. It is learnt that in the wake of the continuing unrest in the Tibetan-inhabited areas, the matter [of the Olympic torch - ed.] was considered by the party leadership in Beijing and a suggestion reportedly made by Prime Minister Wen Jiabo that the torch should be taken to Tibet only once between June 19 and 21 [2008 - ed.] and that the proposal for Chinese mountaineers to take it to the top of the Everest should be abandoned. This suggestion was reportedly accepted. [...] 4. However, this position has been changed and Chinese officials have been saying that they are determined to take the torch to the top of the Everest whatever be the consequences [...] 5. The reiteration of the plan to take the torch to the top of the Everest is reported to have been the outcome of a strong opposition from a group of Neo Red Guards consisting of Mr.Meng Jianzhu, the Minister for Public Security, Mr. Zhang Qingli, the head of the Chinese Communist Party in Tibet, and Mr.Qiangha Puncog, the head of the Tibetan Government. It is understood that the policy on Tibet is increasingly dictatred by this group, which enjoys the support of the People's Liberation Army (PLA). This group reportedly argued that any plans to abandon the climb to the Everest with the torch could be seen by the Tibetans as a sign of weakness and could further worsen the situation. Its views prevailed. [...] 8. Annexed is the text of an interview given by Mr. Zhang Qingli to "Spiegel", the well-known German journal on August 16, 2006." - b.raman
[The author of the paper, Mr B. Raman, is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India. - ed.]
[The C3SINDIA archive for the 'Tibet' Category (http://www.c3sindia.org/tibet/) now includes: * The Tibetan Card and the Tibetan Issue April 12, 2008, by B.Raman; * Olympic Torch to Everest : Neo Red Guards Prevail April 11, 2008, by Mr B.Raman; * Tibet: Dangers Of Backlash April 10, 2008, by Mr B.Raman; * Beijing-Vetted Tibetan Monks Turn Against Beijing April 7, 2008, by B.Raman; * Tibet Issue Ð China's Spat over Advani remarks; Broader Implications April 2, 2008, by D.S.Rajan; * China Mobilises Han Diaspora to Counter Tibetan Diaspora March 31, 2008, by B.Raman; * China: Military Media Attacks on India- A Tibet Issue Fall Out? March 28, 2008, by D.S.Rajan; * Flame of Tibetan Freedom March 28, 2008, by B.Raman; * China: Lessons from Tibet March 24, 2008, by B.Raman; * Making Sense of the Tibetan Imbroglio March 22, 2008, by B.S.Raghavan. - ed.]
URL http://www.c3sindia.org/tibet/230/olympic-torch-to-everest-neo-red-guards-prevail/
Internet Archive (www.archive.org) - the paper was not archived at the time of this abstract. However, in a few weeks time it will be available at web.archive.org/web/*/www.c3sindia.org - ed.
Link reported by: B. Raman (corde--at--vsnl.com)
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