A little bird tells me that the “reactionary” music is possibly the recordings of a New York-based Rap singer Namgyal Yeshi. Here is how one of the songs No Next Time starts:

The rest of the lyric is in the Tibetan language. You can find a Chinese translation HERE. There is also a recording of the song performed at a pro-Tibetan demonstration in New York on 10 March 2008:

Report: 5,335 students dead/missing in China quake
AP[Friday, May 08, 2009 17:40]
By AUDRA ANG

BEIJING — China on Thursday released its first official tally of students who died or went missing in last year’s Sichuan earthquake — 5,335 — but denied allegations of corruption and shoddy construction — a politically charged issue that has been an enduring source of grief to parents. Tu Wentao, head of the Sichuan’s provincial education department, said 5,335 schoolchildren died or went missing in the massive May 12 quake, and another 546 have been certified as disabled from injuries they sustained. “The numbers have gone through several checks by our department,” said Tu, whose remarks at a press conference in Sichuan’s capital, Chengdu, were carried on a provincial government news Web site. No reason was given for the release of the figures on Thursday — days before the one-year anniversary of the disaster, which left nearly 90,000 people dead or missing and another 5 million homeless. But some say it could be a sign that the government is attempting to stem ongoing discontent. Authorities began a count of victims within hours after the magnitude-7.9 temblor razed a major section of the mountainous province. But they have refused until now to say how many students were killed, many of them crushed when thousands of classrooms collapsed while other buildings around them remained intact. Officials have said that compiling and confirming the names of the students was a complicated process, and blame the sheer force of the quake as the main cause of the number of flattened schools.

In this photo taken on April 13, 2009, Xu Changyun holds a picture of his son Xu Mengtao,who was 15 when he was killed after his middle school collapsed in the May 12, 2008 earthquake, at her home Qushan town, Beichuan county, China.The death of so many children has touched a nerve nationwide, raising questions about official corruption, mismanagement, government responsibility _ the underside of fast-paced economic growth. The political sensitivity of the issue has spawned many instances of government attempts to intimidate the parents and activists fighting to get the truth out. (AP Photo/ Elizabeth Dalziel)

“According to our investigations and samples we have taken, we have not found any case of buildings that collapsed in the earthquake zone mainly because of construction quality,” Yang Hongbo, head of Sichuan’s construction department, said at the news conference.

He said “once there is concrete evidence to prove that problems exist in building designs and construction, relevant departments will investigate according to law.”

But parents insist the schools crumbled so easily because corruption and mismanagement led to slipshod construction methods and weak buildings that were not up to code. Some say materials meant for school construction projects were sold on the side by contractors for personal gain.

So far no one has been held responsible or punished.

The childrens’ deaths have sparked national outrage and have fueled unrest among parents. Many have petitioned and protested, only to be detained or warned against speaking out. Activists sympathetic to their cause have been harassed or taken away by police.

Si-si Liu, a Hong Kong researcher with Amnesty International, said the rights group welcomed the release of the new figures, but added that fundamental questions such as why so many schools collapsed have not been answered.

“We hope that the government will make public, explain to the public what efforts they have made and what’s the progress of the investigation,” Liu said. “They need to be a government that is accountable to its people. Authorities have to make these efforts transparent.”

The London-based group released a report last week chronicling instances in which dozens of parents were questioned or detained by police while seeking answers from courts and local officials.

Grieving parents took little solace and were skeptical of the toll.

“Announcing the numbers won’t bring us any consolation,” said Liu Xiaobin, whose 11-year-old son was killed when the three-story Fuxin No. 2 Primary School sank into the ground and the rest of the neighborhood remained standing.

“We want the government to investigate the situation at the schools … or we will petition again because that is our legal right,” said Liu, who traveled to Beijing last week to take his case to the central government — only to be sent home by local officials.

Ai Weiwei, an avant garde artist and high-profile critic of Beijing’s policies, said Thursday’s disclosure was an empty gesture.

“There’s no significance to this announcement because it didn’t give any names or any other information on where they died, which schools or which classes they were in,” Ai said in a telephone interview. “This is nonsense.”

In his blog, Ai has confirmed almost 5,000 student names and estimates that the toll could reach 8,000. At least 20 of his helpers have been detained by local authorities, he said.

Tan Zuoren, another activist who conducted his own investigation into 64 schools in the quake zone, estimated that more than 5,600 students died or were missing. Tan, who has since been detained on suspicion of subversion, said that number was incomplete.

In Beichuan, a valley town so shattered it is being rebuilt in a new location, Liang Sifa insists “the government’s number is definitely smaller than the actual figure.”

“In Beichuan Middle School alone, the estimated student deaths are about 2,000,” said Liang, whose 18-year-old son was killed in a school collapse. “I feel uneasy because the government is still lying.”

Chinese lawyers instrumental in Tibetan monk’s release
Phayul[Thursday, May 07, 2009 14:42]

Dharamsala, May 7 - Two Chinese human rights lawyers, Li Fanping and Jiang Tianyong, have hands in the release of Jigme, 42, a monk who spoke on camera of his ordeals after the last year’s March unrest, reported Times Online.

Li Fangping was quoted by Times Online as saying, “He was released partly because there was insufficient evidence. Even though he spoke about how he was tortured after the March 14 incident, this was insufficient to make a criminal case. He is now released on bail.”

Mr Li said that the appearance of lawyers to argue on Jigme’s behalf was vital factor in his release.

“When the police told him that lawyers had come forward to help him, he said he wanted legal representation. Before we even had time to see him, he had been released.”

Acording to Times Online, Jigme was released on May 2 and returned a day later to his monastery, half a year after dozens of police raided his quarters and took him away for the second time in a year.

The duo also represent Trulku Phurbu Tsering, a prominent Tibetan Buddhist leader facing charges of illegal possession of arms. It is the second time in recent weeks that the two lawyers have come forward to help a detained Tibetan.

Chinese Scholars Discuss Tibet with the Dalai Lama
Phayul[Wednesday, May 06, 2009 16:10]
by Bhuchung D Sonam

Waldorf Astoria, New York City: In his continuous effort to build a viable connection with Chinese people, His Holiness the Dalai Lama met with over 120 scholars and dissidents. They include Harry Wu, Dr. Yang Jian Li, Xu Wen Li, Hu Ping, and many others.

“My body looks the same, but one organ missing,” began His Holiness referring to his gallbladder operation last year. “But my health is very good.”
After a big round of applause, the Tibetan leader drove straight to the heart of the matter by appealing to the Chinese people to “investigate thoroughly” about Tibet-China problem by going to Tibet.

“If 60-70 percent of the Tibetans are happy in Tibet, we have nothing to complain,” the Dalai Lama said, who further mentioned that if that is not the case, then the Chinese Government must realize that things are not right inside Tibet.

Since the Chinese Communist Party refuses to accept the reality in Tibet, the 73-year-old Tibetan leader said that the Chinese scholars, intellectuals and students must make Tibetan issue clear to Chinese people living inside China.

Massive Chinese official propaganda has created a huge misunderstanding between the Chinese and Tibetans, sometimes leading to animosity.
“I always try to meet with Chinese intellectuals. Because the Tibetan problem must be solved between Han brothers and sisters and Tibetans and no one else,” the Nobel laureate said.

While responding to a question from Xu Wen Li about Tibetan demand for “Greater Tibet,” the Dalai Lama said that for a cultural survival and for practical realistic reasons all of Tibet must be united.

“We are not talking about independence. Hence if I talk only about a section of Tibet it will not be right. I am fighting for rights mentioned in the constitution [of China.] All of Tibet must be given equal rights in terms of culture and tradition,” His Holiness said.

According to the 1989Nob el laureate, it is important for China to gradually move towards a more open democratic society but not in the footsteps of Soviet Union.

“The Communist Party has reigned long enough,” the Dalai Lama said. “Now it is time for a retirement.”

China orders officials to smoke
BBC[Tuesday, May 05, 2009 17:10]

A Chinese county has rescinded a rule urging its government workers to smoke more in order to boost tax income. The authorities in Gong’an county had told civil servants and teachers to smoke 230,000 packs of the locally-made Hubei brand each year. Those who did not smoke enough or used brands from other provinces or overseas faced being fined or even fired. But the government has now backtracked from the policy, after a report in a local newspaper generated criticism.

China has an estimated 350 million smokers

U-turn

A million people die from smoking-related diseases in China every year, but the local authorities were initially undeterred by the health risks.

“The regulation will boost the local economy via the cigarette tax,” Chen Nianzu, a member of the cigarette market supervision team in Gong’an county, Hubei province, told the Global Times newspaper.

The paper said the measure was probably an attempt to shore up the Hubei brands against tough competition from cigarettes produced in neighbouring Hunan province.

On Tuesday, the local government’s website published a statement saying “We decided to remove this edict”, but declined to elaborate further.

Smoking is deep-rooted in Chinese culture - where more than half of all male doctors smoke - and there is still a general lack of awareness about the impact on health.

But the authorities have recently started encouraging smokers to kick the habit - even imposing a ban on smoking in public buildings in the capital, Beijing, in the run up to the 2008 Olympic games.

China warns Dutch Parliament not to welcome Dalai Lama
Phayul[Thursday, April 16, 2009 18:37]

Dharamsala, April 16: China is warning Dutch MPs not to invite the Dalai Lama to visit parliament when he comes to the Netherlands on June 4 and 5, according to a Dutch media report.

The government in Beijing has already made it clear it disapproves of the Tibetan spiritual leader’s Dutch trip, Radio Netherland reported Thursday.

The report said the Chinese ambassador in The Hague has now officially written to the country’s parliament objecting to the Dalai Lama being received by the speaker, Gerdi Verbeet, and other MPs. The letter says the move would not be conducive to good relations “in this time of economic crisis”, the report added.

China sent military troops to occupy Tibet in 1950 and, nine years later, the Dalai Lama fled to India. The exiled Tibetan leader is now seeking a meaningful autonomy for Tibet within the constitutional framework of the People’s Republic of China.