Por Gillian Wong – Associated Press
The Miami Herald
12 of January of 2013
The Miami Herald
12 of January of 2013
BEIJING – El artista Liu Yi, resident in Beijing, is working on a series of black and white portraits that he knows will never be exhibited in a Chinese gallery. Its varied themes – men and women, young and old, smiling and thoughtful – they have one thing in common: They are Tibetans who have set themselves on fire in protest of the repressive Chinese regime.
Liu wants to paint a portrait of everyone around him. 100 Tibetans who have committed self-immolation in the last three years, as a way to bear witness to one of the largest waves of fierce protests in recent history. With every brushstroke, Liu is making a sincere supplication: the burning must end.
"Cuando estoy pintando, I'm thinking: "It just is, it just is, don't do this anymore. Paren.”, said the soft-spoken artist who has completed 40 until now. "Ya es suficiente".
Liu is unusual among his contemporaries for tackling the taboo subject. Only a handful of activists from the Han Chinese majority have spoken out, among them the prominent jurist Xu Zhiyong.
At the heart of the silence is the indifference of the Han Chinese, or even hostility towards the Tibetan cause, despite some overlap with liberal Han activists who irritate authoritarian controls. "Somos víctimas nosotros mismos," Xu wrote in a recent op-ed in which he apologized for the silence..
Many among the majority (ethnic) They see the immolations as part of attempts to break with China and wonder why Tibetans are not more grateful for the development the government has brought to their region., with railway connections, highways, houses and factories.
Han Chinese also tend to see Tibet, with its impressive grasslands and mountains and the yaks raised by nomads, like a wild and unknown region, but one that fascinates despite everything. Throughout the year, Chinese tourists flock to famous Tibetan Buddhist temple in Beijing to offer incense, before you run out of cheap Tibetan jewelry or artifacts in many stores in town.
Although Han Chinese activists increasingly advocate for the preservation of Tibet's pristine environment, the majority cross the line on political issues, remaining mute as Tibetans drink and douse themselves with gasoline before burning themselves, asking for religious freedom and autonomy.
Liu hopes to change that..
“I also hope that everyone does not look at this in an ideological or ethnic way.”, but paying attention to it from a humanitarian perspective”, said.
Liu decided to paint close-ups of his subjects' faces, offering an intimate impression of every wrinkle, fold, frown or smile, using thick black and white brush strokes. Many of the subjects are looking directly at the viewer, creating a stunning effect, especially when the portraits are arranged as a single large montage.
"Se puede ver que muchos de ellos son muy jóvenes", Liu said as he showed his paintings to Associated Press reporters., in a recent interview. The works were presented on the floor of his studio in five rows of eight portraits each.. He pointed to two youthful-looking faces in the bottom row., and said: "Este tiene 15, and that 16"
Tibetan poet and activist Woeser says that self-immolations “express a form of misery and are a frank protest.””
"Muchos de los intelectuales Han no están dispuestos a aceptar las demandas políticas", Woeser said., known by one name, in an interview. "En su conciencia, “Tibet is part of China”. They think: “If you have political demands, maybe what they want is independence, and so on "
Tibetan activists say protests stem from frustration over China's stifling security presence, restrictions on religion and demonization of their beloved spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. China has said the Dalai Lama instigated self-immolations to undermine Beijing's economic assistance to the region.
The number of protests soared in November as China's Communist Party held a conclave to install its new generation of leaders..
"En este desafiante momento, we not only need the attention of the international community, sino también la de la sociedad china", Woeser said.. "Es muy importante que los intelectuales Han digan algo y tengan claras expresiones acerca de este problema."
On a deeper level, said, many Han feel alienated by the Tibetan way of life and spiritual philosophy.
“Tibetan and Han culture differ in that one is spiritual and the other material.. This difference is currently an abyss, difficult to create a bridge” said. “Many Han people can't believe how Tibetans do things out of spiritual desire.”, even setting themselves on fire.”.
Among the Han who have taken up the cause, there are human rights defenders Hu Jia and Liu Shasha, residents in Beijing, who have posted messages on Twitter about the immolations, urging an end to repressive policies.
Xu, the jurist, took a significantly riskier step, trying to visit the family of a self-immolator named Nangdrol, in the strictly controlled Aba prefecture, in october.
“I apologize because we Han Chinese have been silent while Nangdrol and his fellow Tibetans are dying for freedom.”, Xu wrote in an article published in the New York Times last month. “We ourselves are victims, living in distance, the internal struggles, hate and destruction. We share this land. It's our shared home, our shared responsibility, our shared dream, and it will be our shared salvation.”.
For the artist Liu, who is half Han, half-Manchu and follower of Tibetan Buddhism, there is a personal and spiritual element in your project.
“When I'm painting them, I always feel like I'm receiving blessings. I become sweeter, gentle” Liu said about the portraits. “These people are not attacking others, “they are completely sacrificing themselves.”-
Known as Phuntso
OFFICE DEL TIBET NY
Email: phuntso@igc.org
