Global Voices

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The world is talking, are you listening?

The April 2012 special “Hot Spots” online issue of the academic journal Cultural Anthropology focuses on the recent self-immolations in Tibet with a comprehensive background page. It features an impressive collection of scholarly responses to the self-immolations by well-known Tibet scholars such as Tsering Shakya, Janet Gyatso and Elliot Sperling. Netizens and bloggers are highlighted, such as the contributions by high-profile Beijing based Tibetan blogger Woeser, High Peaks Pure Earth and Khabdha. The editorial board of the Tibetan Political Review analyze the Exile Tibetan Government handling of this phenomenon.

A number of Tibetans activists launched a signature campaign urging Tibetans to cease self-immolation and to cherish their lives in a time of oppression. Via Woser's blog.

A series of self-immolations happened in Tibet since early October. Tibetan poet Sengdor wrote a poem, “Mourning” to commemorate his fellows. High Peaks Pure Earth translated the poem and some of the comments.

“The Story Behind the Story” on Radio Free Asia looks at recent video footage that was taken by a Tibetan citizen journalist. The footage, smuggled out of Tibet, appears to have been taken using an iPhone and was received by RFA in QuickTime format. It refutes China's state media pronouncements that the situation in Ngaba, Eastern Tibet, is “normal”.

A young Tibetan blogger based in the US, who goes by the name of “Jhutok” (one of those untranslatable Tibetan words that describes someone who is nosy and likes to interfere, gossip and busybody all in one), has written a blogpost about written Tibetan, arguing for language reform to written Tibetan to include spaces between the words. She calls it “breathing space”. (Part I, Part II and Part III)

Tibetan bloggers have been breaking the news about the arrest of Tibetan writer Tashi Rabten who writes under the name “Therang”. So far the only news about this arrest has come from Tibetan bloggers, for a translation of one blogpost into English, see this post on High Peaks Pure Earth with many links to Tibetan blogs.