Sam Farr: “In mid-March, the Chinese government conducted a bloody crackdown, grossly violating the human rights of the peaceful…”

“In mid-March, the Chinese government conducted a bloody crackdown, grossly violating the human rights of the peaceful protestors in Tibet. The protest by the Tibetans touched a nerve and rapidly spread beyond the capital city of Lhasa into other areas of Tibet and around the world. The peaceful protest drew a violent and disproportionate reaction from the Chinese government who sought to tamp down the Tibetan desire for autonomy and self-determination. Not only did the Chinese government react with terrible force upon the protesters, the authorities also tried to discredit the Dalai Lama and his movement for a free Tibet. The Dalai Lama is as determined and committed to nonviolence as he is to seeing the emergence of a peaceful, prosperous, autonomous and self-determined Tibet. The brutal crackdown that seeks to derail the inevitable movement toward a free Tibet resulted in the deaths of more than 100 Tibetans and caused a great deal of social upheaval. While we live a safe distance away from the struggle, comfortably ensconced in a liberal democratic society, we cannot act as though we do not have a role to play to support the Dalai Lama. We do. I am enormously grateful to Speaker Pelosi, who has offered this House resolution which calls upon the Chinese to end this crackdown. This violent reaction is shortsighted and unproductive and, furthermore, it's not the long-term solution that respects the human rights and dignity of every Tibetan.”