High Peaks Pure Earth presents the English translation of a blogpost that was re-posted on the site Sangdhor.com on January 11, 2012. Many thanks to Bhuchung D. Sonam of the website TibetWrites for this translation.
Earlier this week, we posted an open letter by a Tibetan cadre addressed to the Chinese leadership, criticising the Party Chief of Ngaba Shi Jun. This week, it happens to be the National People’s Congress in Beijing and we continue with discontent directed towards government officials. Today’s outspoken post was written by a Tibetan whose criticism seems to be aimed mainly at Tibetan government officials. It is unclear where this blogpost originated as the link to a site hosted by AmdoTibet is currently unavailable.
“To Some Government Officials and Leaders”
At a time when everything is awake bustling with life, there are many brothers and sisters who are raising their voices in order to protect our ancient land and others singing songs of suffering. This is something that one is to be happy about. However, from the steps of their warm staircases, a few officials and leaders, who have forgotten the welfare of the Tibetan people, consider these rising voices as meaningless words and songs of suffering as hollow sounds. Since such behaviour is causing wounds deep in our hearts, I want to call out to at them once:
1: You, the conceited ones who do not care for your own language; this is what I want to tell you. At a time when speaking one’s own language is highly considered, a few of you regard speaking Chinese as something great whereas you feel ashamed of speaking in your own language. How bad is this habit of speaking in a mixed language? You carry a shoulder bag, change your hair colour, put make-up on your face and then sit on the steps of your official quarters putting up an expression of contrived Chinese women. This is such a pity and yet they think this is happiness and dignity. The truth is that they have lost the value of thinking and their future path. This is very sad.
When I speak to you in Tibetan, you answer back in a mixed language. Put your hand on your chest, reflect and then please lose this old habit of yours. I didn’t mean to oppose your shoulder bag, hair colour or make-up. However, what I find funny is the fact that you pay so much attention on external outlook that you lose the inner essence.
2: Those who want to lay down the responsibility over their people:
Generally it is a matter of happiness if someone wants to shoulder responsibility over a people. Yet, the focus of this section is on those who disregard their responsibilities over their people. The leaders ignore the people’s rights and instead hold high positions and give speeches. And the fact that they never make efforts to get our language used daily in their offices causes us immeasurable loss. Isn’t it a mistake to fear that you will lose your position if you speak in Tibetan or panic that others will consider you illiterate if you speak in Tibetan?
To whom are you sending a message by not using and promoting our language that you know well?
Can’t you think about the harm being done on us by your act of abandoning our language and speaking in another tongue?
We say we have too many teachers and doctors who are highly educated but, because they have moved too long and too far away from using our language, they find it hard to practice their skills on our people. Isn’t this also the negative result of the self-serving leaders?
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