More fur burning reported in Tibet

Fur burning incidents in Gansu

Sources in Tibet report more recent incidents of mass public fur burning in far
eastern Tibet. This confirms the regions role as stronghold of the movement that has developed following the appeal the Dalai Lama made urging Tibetans to stop using wildlife skins as clothing or to decorate outfits worn during festivals. The first incident occurred on 11 March 2006, close to Labrang Tashi Kyil (Chin: Xiahe), one of Tibets largest monasteries. The second incident occurred on 14 March 2006 in Tsoe (Chin: Hezuo). Further similar, small-scale incidents are said to have taken place in these two counties around the same time, (for example, in the village of Drongmar.) The two counties are part of todays Gansu province.

Few details are available about the incident in Labrang. Sources report that four monks were arrested, but their identities and what happened to them afterwards remains unknown. In contrast, there is comprehensive documentation about the event in Tsoe, a city with a sizeable population. The event was organised by a group of 50 to 60 committed individuals, including both monks and laymen, some of whom hold administrative positions within the local government.

It was initially planned for the 10 March 2006, but this coincided with the anniversary of the Lhasa Uprising of 1959. This date was felt by the organisers to be politically sensitive and was perceived to be a potential deterrent to people attending. They therefore shifted the date to 14 March 2006, the 15th day of the first month of the Tibetan lunar calendar, and the day on which traditionally one of the largest Tibetan festivals, 'Choenga Choepa', is celebrated. During this festival, it is customary for people take offerings to the surrounding monasteries.

The venue for the event was an open area at the front of Tsoera Kharguthog monastery in Tsoe city, one of the most popular monasteries in the region. It was chosen because it allowed for large gatherings in a religious setting which, it was thought, would be less likely to embarrass the authorities.

The event lasted four days. On the first day, furs and skins alleged to be worth approximately 10,000,000 Yuan (£713,555; $1,246,960; 1,037,280) were reportedly burned, and the value of furs burned the next day was alleged to have grown to 20,300,000 Yuan (£1,443,536: $2,530,894; 2,091,740).

Although the high values reported here are impossible to validate, they might as well reflect the sheer scale of the event, individual fur items are indeed very costly, and their purchase often exceeds a familys regular income, leading to years of indebtedness. This underlines the significance of their destruction. Witnesses report that public reactions to the event were very enthusiastic.

Each time new skins went up in flames on the pyre, people shouted kida, a phrase commonly used to celebrate the successful accomplishment of an important endeavour. The burnings continued on the third and fourth days, but the number of furs burned was far less, indicating that the vicinity had been
cleaned-up. While the furs were burning, some people were seen chanting prayers for the Dalai Lama, while others shot videos and stills of the scene with the express intention of letting the outside world know about the event.

The general consensus in Tsoe is that the main purpose of the event was to
please the Dalai Lama, and people asked that reports about the event be communicated to him. After the burning, Chinese police appeared, but kept their distance. No one was arrested or questioned.

While similar fur burning activities in other places have been triggered by Tibetans returning from India after attending the Kalachakra ceremony where the Dalai Lama condemned the wearing of wildlife products, this does not appear to have been the case in Tsoe. Apart from one elderly man, nobody in Tsoe could get the necessary papers to travel to India.

People in Tsoe also speak a very different dialect to that spoken in Central Tibet, making it more difficult for them to understand the Dalai Lamas exact words. This suggests that the Dalai Lamas message reached Tsoe from outside the region by word of mouth.

In the planning phase of the event, it was suggested, in accordance with the actual words of the Dalai Lama, to dispose of the wildlife products by simply selling them instead of burning them. However, people objected to this on the grounds that the items might be resold later on and used again. Therefore, this option was rejected and, it was thought, if the problem was to be eradicated once and for all, burning was the only solution.

Although no further similar action is currently planned in Tsoe, public opinion in the city remains committed to discouraging the wearing of animal skins. Some days ago, a young woman who was wearing a wolf skin hat on the street was insulted and ridiculed.

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