The Right to Speak

Language is our soul.
(Aunty Rose Fernando, Gamilaroi Elder, 1998)

Image by Alex Simpson, flikr

Thousands of Tibetan Students gather in Western China to protest the proposal to eliminate Tibetan language from schools. From Beijing to the Western, Tibetan Plateau students and activists are gathering peacefully, in the name of preservation. The curbing of indigenous languages in schools is not a new, nor novel occurrence -

The sheer elevation that makes up the Tibetan plateau makes it the highest region on earth, often described as the 'roof of the world.' It is home to the indigenous Tibetan people, among an increasing diversity of others - and operates as 'autonomous areas' within the People's Republic of China. Invasions of this antiquated, culturally astounding home to Tibetan Buddhism and way of life have been occurring for centuries - and from many directions. Prior to and throughout the span of the 20th and into the 21st century the Tibetan people have been subjugated by outside forces. Despite proclaiming Independence in 1915, China has kept a strong-hold rule on the region's people, culture, and now, economy.

The decision to wane the use of Standard Tibetan in schools is just another incarnation of Chinese cultural domination. It is a gradual removal of the very heart of the Tibetan People. To speak your mother tongue is to be empowered. China has been making efforts to strengthen the economy with greater expanse, throughout more regions. However, we live in an era in which the knowledge economy is a deep component of economic development. Thus, the perpetuation of mother-tongue languages in schools could actually empower the people themselves, within their own communities. Issuing freedom is a profound passageway to development - whilst fostering self-determination.



This is a very unshrinking Tibetan blogger's view.