If you can't beat them, sell them...

China to turn Tibet into world's top tourist destination: report
Phayul [Tuesday, May 18, 2010 12:02]

Dharamsala, May 18: Chinese communist authorities have reportedly drawn ambitious plans to turn Tibet into world's top tourist destination thereby amassing total tourism revenue to the tune of 20 billion yuan (2.9 billion dollars) in the next ten years, according to media reports.

According to the roadmap, by the end of 2020, the number of annual visits to Tibet should reach 20 million and tourism revenue should reach 20 billion Yuan, making Tibet a world class tourism destination, PTI reported, citing China's state media as saying.

What most tourists these days do not realiza is that nearly all the 'beautiful old' monasteries they see had to be re-built after the Cultural Revolution razed virtually all of the them to the ground.
They also often do not realize that the Chinese force the monks to charge money to visit or photograph their monasteries, as if they are musea...
The monks are allowed to recite prayers - but only because the tourists like this.
Behind the scenes monks are often forced to study Chinese propaganda, and actual Buddhist teachings are discouraged.
Things are not always what they seem - most certainly in China these days...

Love & clear light,
Rudy

Nepal becoming a Chinese province? 5 - Perhaps the people don't like it?

A huge crowd of Nepalese are going on the streets to protest, but now against the Maoists who are trying to paralyze the country. "We’re mad as hell and we’re not going to take it anymore". See the article with photo's at the Mikeldunham blog.

Strangely enough, Nepal is the only country in the world where people live who are still enthusiastic about communism, or even worse, maoism... Perhaps the majority of the Nepalese are finally waking up?

Of course, Nepalese have a lot of reasons to protest against a corrupt government, but with Maoism they would only go from bad to worse. I pray they will wake up to their confusion. OM MANI PADME HUM

Love & clear light,
Rudy

China's bullying tactics - 18 - Sri Lanka blocked cricketers from meeting Dalai Lama

Phayul [Wednesday, May 05, 2010 13:47]

Dharamsala, May 5: Sri Lanka, a key Buddhist nation, had stopped its national cricket captain Kumar Sangakkara and another player from calling on His Holiness the Dalai Lama out of fear that a meeting would anger China, media reports said Tuesday.
Sangakkara was advised against paying a courtesy visit to Dalai Lama in India (Photo: AFP)Sangakkara and former skipper Mahela Jayawardene were asked not to join their Indian Premier League (IPL) teammates of Kings XI Punjab, who paid a courtesy call on the exiled Tibetan leader last month in Dharamsala, the seat of Tibetan Government-in-Exile in North India, a top Sri Lankan cricket official told media in Colombo.
"Kumar and Mahela were instructed not to visit the Tibetan leader. It was a foreign ministry directive that was issued to us, via the sports ministry," Sri Lanka cricket secretary Nishantha Ranatunga told AFP. ...
"We were made to understand that we should not upset relations with China," Ranatunga said.

Apparently cricketers are the latest security threat for China...

Love & clear light,
Rudy

Big Brother steps up communication paranoia

AP [Wednesday, April 28, 2010 17:00]
By GILLIAN WONG

BEIJING – China is poised to strengthen a law to require telecommunications and Internet companies to inform on customers who discuss state secrets, potentially forcing businesses to collaborate with the country's vast security apparatus that stifles political dissent.
...
In China, state secrets have been so broadly defined that virtually anything — maps, GPS coordinates, even economic statistics — could fall under the category, and officials sometimes use the classification as a way to avoid disclosing information.

The new draft maintains that wide scope, defining state secrets as: "information that concerns state security and interests and, if leaked, would damage state security and interests in the areas of politics, economy and national defense, among others," Xinhua said. Reports did not say what penalties for violations would be under the amended law.

But its passage is unlikely to result in a significant change as communications companies are already often compelled by powerful authorities to comply with investigations.

Love & clear light,
Rudy