Confronted with Chinese might, the Indian government has decided to abandon its support for the Tibetan people’s rights.

The Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, is apparently a happy man these days. Indian media reports that his trip to Beijing has been hugely successful; that the Chinese newspapers do not seem to share this sentiment is another matter. We are told that Mr. Vajpayee has reestablished relationships with China that compare in amity, perhaps to the early days of Nehru.

As part of this relationship building process, India has recognized Tibet as an integral part of China. Although the Indian government claims it has not made any new concessions, it’s evident that India’s position on Tibet’s sovereignty has steadily eroded from recognizing the right of Tibetans to their homeland, to recognizing Tibet as an autonomous territory within China, to the current claim that Tibet is an integral part of China. In return, China has hinted that it might acknowledge India’s rights of Sikkim. Indian defence analysts contend that by giving formal recognition to trade routes through Sikkim, China has implicitly conceded Sikkim’s status as an integral part of India – a clear turnaround in its position (one wonders what the Indian government would be willing to do for China to recognize India’s position on Kashmir). That China has categorically denied any change in its position on Sikkim is relegated to the fine print.

Since winning its independence, India has morally supported people fighting for their independence from colonial powers. India, as such, has supported the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa and continues to recognize the Palestinian right to an independent homeland, despite recent cozying up to Israel.

In the past India has chosen to take such stances because it knows from its own history that international censure (or the lack thereof) affects the spirits of those fighting for independence, as well as the political will of the colonizers. In short, India has supported the cause of the colonized because it realizes that peace and justice in a global community will come through nations actively voicing their displeasure over inappropriate actions by another nation and backing up its words with policies.

And yet, a government by a party that claims to value Indic traditions has now taken a stance that legitimizes oppression of the most revered living Buddhist leader in the world and his people. On the one hand, the present government claims to be inspired by the bravery of the Marathas and the Rajputs who, as the stories go, protected the helpless – and yet its actions are quite to the contrary. Confronted with Chinese might, this government has decided to abandon its support for the Tibetan people’s rights. Or perhaps, it has decided to barter them for opportunistic political gains.

The external affairs minister has already said that the Dalai Lama is only a ‘guru’ – a religious teacher – thus divesting his historically held political role. The Dalai Lama can only give sermons now. He cannot be a leader of a struggle for independence without becoming a “separatist” leader in the eyes of the Indian government. The Chinese government can now demand that “separatist” activities from within Indian borders be stopped. Tibetan people living in India are no longer refugees from colonization – they can be redefined as individuals wanted by the Chinese government for seditious acts.

That the Tibetan freedom movement will be affected is not in doubt. The Dalai Lama, in his wisdom, says he is unaffected. He recognizes that struggles go through various stages and the llifetime of one human is too short to proclaim the success or failure of a movement. But for the people of India, who have taken pride in supporting various freedom struggles, it is time for serious reflection. For the first time, their government now officially supports a colonizing nation against the colonized, the oppressor against the oppressed.

Sanat Mohanty