Maozilla: It's big, it's ugly, and it's coming to Tibet.
It's big, its grey, and it's just arrived in Tibet.
This
month has seen the arrival of something new and exciting in the
isolated mountain kingdom of Tibet; a giant statue of China's late
Chairman Mao which is to be erected in 贡嘎县 (Gonggar County), 山南地区
(Shannan Prefecture), close to the Tibetan capital of 拉薩(Lhasa/Lasa),
where it is to stand pride of place as part of efforts to commemorate
the 30th anniversary the Chairman's death
According to Xinhua,
China's state controlled news agency, the statue has been carved from
granite and, when erected, will stand 7m meters tall and be mounted on
a 5 meter pedestal; making it the largest carved representation of Mao
anywhere in China.
The statue, which weighs in excess of 30 tons
and took 9 months to carve, is to be the centerpiece of a newly
constructed public square, which itself will measure an impressive
40,000*2 meter, and is scheduled for completion this summer.
It's base is said to have been been hardened sufficiently to withstand both earthquake and bomb attacks.
Sponsorship?
Part
of the cost of the statue and the square is being born by sponsorship,
with 6.5 Million Yuan coming from the people of 長沙市 (Changsha City) 湖南省
(Hunan Province).
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"[The statue] is a gift from Changsha
Official, 長沙市 (Changsha City), 湖南省 (Hunan Province) |
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長沙 (Changsha) was Chairman Mao's home
during his teenage years and it is claimed that he developed his ideas
on 'collective action' while studying there.
A New Look?
Although
the statue depicts Mao wearing his customary 'Mao Suit' it differ
slightly from most previous statues of the Chairman in that its
features have been adjusted to better suit the present day mood, and
the region it which it will be based.
According to Zhu Weijing, the President of the Changsha Sculpture Institute, and the statue's creator, Mao's image has been give a rounder face in order to better fit with Tibetan cultural preferences.
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“I
tried to understand how Tibetans feel towards Mao. Because they have
deep feelings about Buddha, I tried to make Mao more like that, with a
plumper face.'”
Zhu Weijing, President, Changsha Sculpture Institute. |
Zhu also stated that he tried to make
Mao look more at ease, by giving the statue a more 'intimate' posture,
that was designed to meet the needs of the present day, rather than to
reflect those of the past.
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"I
noticed that [Mao] liked standing with both hands behind his back. It
made him look more intimate and more easygoing. [In earlier statues]
Chairman Mao either waved his hand to lead us forward or stood to
receive the Red Guards. But now the times are different and this statue
is especially for Tibet."
Zhu Weijing, Designer, Mao's Statue |
Hail the Conquering Hero
Officially,
Mao's statue is being built with the full support and cooperation of
the local people, who showed a great eagerness to host a tribute to the
former Chinese leader.
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"Many Tibetan people suggested we should have a statue of Chairman Mao to show our gratitude,"
Communist Party Official speaking though Xinhua |
Unofficially though, news of the
statue's construction has received a far colder welcome from some
group, who have pointedly noted that Chairman Mao was the Chinese
leader who ordered the invasion of Tibet during the 1950s, and the
destruction of many of its temples during the Cultural Revolution.
Meaning that many Tibetans see him as a Conqueror, rather than a liberator.
As such some China watchers have decryed the statue as being 'a blatant piece of Han triumphalism', designed to 'remind Tibetans that they are a conquered people living under foreign rule'.
Such
has been the feeling that some have even gone further; describing the
raising of a statue of Mao, within a stone's throw of the Tibetan
capital, as being ' an insult on a par to erecting a statue of a 東条英機 (Tojo Hideki) over the mass grave of Nanking'.
State of Play
At
the official level, Tibet is guaranteed a high level of independence
under Section 6 of Chinese constitution; which provides the sub state
with the legal right to maintain its own cultural and religious
identity.
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“In
the past 40 years or so, Tibet has inherited and developed its cultural
heritage, Tibetan customs and religions have been fully respected, and
people have enjoyed full freedom of religious faith”
Xinhua
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In reality though, Beijing commonly encourages native Tibetans to
take on Han traits, under the claim that they are advancing by
discarding their own 'outdated cultural epitaphs' in favor of 'more
advanced' Chinese practices, and routinely bans any aspects of Tibet’s
indigenous culture that separates Tibetan and Chinese identities, or
which Beijing fears could be used to encourage Tibetan nationalism.
These
cultural restrictions include a blanket prohibition on the possession
of images of the Dalai Lama, or a recording of his voice.
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"The
Dalai Lama is not a simple or a pure religious figure. He is a
political exile who undertakes secessionist activities abroad"
Liu Jianchao, Spokesperson, Foreign Ministry, China (2005) |
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Often, the only aspects of traditional Tibetan culture which are
allowed to be practiced freely are those practiced in remote rural
areas that remain outside of direct Han control, and those in Han areas
which hold little bearing on modern day life and thus can be used both
to promote tourism or to spread the idea that Tibetan traditions are
‘relics of the past’ that is maintained only out of respect.
On
top of the erosion and prohibition of Tibetan culture, it is currently
Chinese policy to encourage Han Chinese to migrate to Tibet, where they
are often offered jobs that are unobtainable to Tibetans, and to
provide 'sweeteners' to Han industries, including land confiscated from
Tibetans, if they relocate to Tibet.
Even though a substantial
amount of industry has relocated to Tibet, few jobs have been created
for Tibetans, with many jobs going to Han migrants, and senior
positions only being offered to Tibetans collaborators who are seen as
being 'sufficiently Han-like'.
Current statistics do however
indicate that there are now over 7.5 million Han Chinese in Tibet, and
that they now outnumber the native Tibetans population by at least so
500,000 people.
Such figures exclude the 'floating population';
Han who are resident in Tibet, but who have not officially registered
as being residents.
Head Count
In total,
over 1 Million Tibetans are said to have died as a result of
'maltreatment' Since the PLA takeover of the region in 1951. However,
these figures are disputed, and accurate statistics are almost
impossible to obtain.
Original Article: Maozilla: It's big, it's ugly, and it's coming to Tibet
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