Peking & Tibet

IT is not surprising that the arrival in the US of a Tibetan song and dance ensemble should have provoked China into sending what has been described as the most strongly worded protest to Washington after President Nixon’s visit to China in 1972. The Chinese note said that it was “most clear” that the US Government “openly connived and supported the Tibetan activities using the US Constitution and the law as pretexts.” The implication of the note evidently was that the dance troupe was sponsored by supporters of the Dalai Lama, whom the Chinese continue to regard as a dangerous and wily enemy. While rejecting the Chinese note, Washington has sought to underplay the episode. A spokesman for the State Department has said that none of the US policies had as a premise that Tibet was not part of China, and that the Chinese statement was apparently based on a misunderstanding of the American political system. Not all Americans, however, are inclined to take the Chinese note lightly. Senator Goldwater, for instance, has urged President Ford to drop his plan to visit China and go to Taiwan instead. In recent times, China has been becoming increasingly sensitive about Tibet. Early this month, Chinese Vice-Premier Hua Kuo-feng paid a visit to Lhasa and called upon all Tibetans to be in “readiness at all times to wipe out all enemies that dare to intrude.” The Vice-Premier’s statement came at the 10th anniversary celebrations of Tibet’s formal integration with China. Although he did not specify who the potential intruders were, it was assumed that he meant the Russians. The Soviet media had been directing its attack lately against Peking’s policy of repression in Tibet.