Can Tibet in exile survive the current Dalai Lama?

I say the current Dalai Lama, of course, because it’s a title not a name, and I don’t say “current reincarnation of,” of course, because no such metaphysical event happens. But, the more serious question of what Tibet’s future will be is related in part to how today’s Tibetans in exile relate to the Dalai Lama’s reforms As the story notes:

In the past 20 years, the Dalai Lama has transformed the Tibetan government in exile from the semitheocracy he brought from Tibet to a relatively independent democracy. In doing so, he has invested it with more responsibility.

But, not all Tibetans in exile are comfortable with that. Some can’t comprehend the idea of questioning the Dalai Lama. (Think of traditional Catholics suddenly being encouraged to question the pope.)

Also, it’s not just Tibetans in exile. Many Tibetans, not just commoners but lamas, remained inside the country/region after 1959. As the years go on, even insiders who are anti-Beijing may drift apart more and more from the exiles. It’s been almost 50 years since the revolt and exile.

And, it’s not a moot question, as far as time frames, either. Tenzin Gyatso, the current Dalai Lama, is 72 years old. He won’t be around that much longer.

And, being in power since 1950, he’s the only Dalai Lama, as far as temporal powers, Tibetans under 65 know. Having been recognized as the “reincarmation” a decade before that, as far as spiritual counsel, he’s the only Dalai Lama just about any Tibetan knows.

So, you have the table set for massive psychic shock when Gyatso dies.

And, as far as the Tibet-China history, it’s not so one-sided as one might think. Yes, the Dalai Lama has promoted reforms today, but it required the original 1950 Chinese invasion to get him to basically move Tibet beyond being a feudal theocracy.

The initial People's Republic of China's military invasion of Tibet in 1950 met with high resistance in the heart of the country. The 14th Dalai Lama, on the urging of his elder brother, Gyalo Thondup, proposed reforms, including limitations on the land holdings of the monasteries, abolishing of debt bondage, and other government and tax reforms as a response to the invasion. These were designed to forestall expected revolutionary initiatives of the Communists. However these ideas found little support among the entrenched Tibetan power structure.

So, while the Richard Geres of the world may want to romanticize Tibet, let’s take that with a grain of salt.

As for the U.S., we aided the original Tibetan independence movement from 1950 on. Beyond that, the CIA gave arms and training to the Tibetan resistance in 1956 and until 1964. In usual CIA fashion, it wasn’t enough, other than to give Mao Zedong, like Fidel Castro, invaluable PR talking points.

As for cultural genocide, well, to the degree Communism in China is hostile to religion that may be true. But, if intermarriage is “genocide” or similar, well, I don’t think Han Chinese in Tibet are putting guns to the heads of ethnic Tibetans.