Tibet: railroad to the roof of the world
THE FIRST STAGE OF what is perhaps Asia's most controversial rail scheme has been completed: the railroad from China to Tibet, at a projected cost of over US$3 billion.
Tibetan pro-nationalists (and their overseas sympathisers) fear the worst for their autonomous homeland on the roof of the world. They tend to view the mighty endeavour (this is not exactly railroad country) as a direct manifestation of the Beijing gerontocracy's integrationist policy, who - from their perspective - consider Tibet an ancient province of China.
Tibet is formed by a plateau in western China. It is the most sparsely populated area of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The culture is based on Lamaism (a form of Buddhism). Independance was declared in 1913; in 1959, the by then communist China invaded.
In 1965, China again invaded Tibet to suppress the fledgeling nationalist movement (the Dalai Llama chose flight into exile.)
In the decades since, the clash of cultures in this remote but strategic area has had disastrous political consequences for Tibet. Although the link would surely bring economic benefits to the region, the erosion of Tibetan culture is sure to follow (rail link or no rail link, some would way).
A highway of steel through precipitous gorges and raging Himalayan rivers, the first section (120 km) of the 1,100-km rail link between the Chinese city of Golmad and the Tibetan capital of Lhasa has recently been completed.
At this altitude (the plateau averages over 13,000 ft) the air is thin, and pressurised rail carriages are needed in the way of airline cabins.
The railroad, scheduled for completion by 2007, is part of a strategy by the Beijing authorities to develop the remote western regions. As such, the strategy is tied in with a resettlement policy of Han Chinese, who form over 90 per of China's one billion-plus population. © James A. Oliver 2003
Posted: 8 January 2003
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