Tibet in Agony by Jianglin Li
Author:Jianglin Li
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Since Seshing goes on to describe the departure of the Dalai Lama “that night,” it seems clear that he is relating the events of March 17, despite his use of the mistaken date of March 8. He had probably confused the Tibetan and Western calendars, as the date of the Dalai Lama’s exodus was the eighth day of the month according to the Tibetan calendar. His memoir continues: “At approximately ten o’clock that night Lhasa time, the Dalai Lama, his mother, his sister Tsering Dolma, and others passed through the Norbulingka guard headquarters and fled Lhasa via the Rama Gang ferry. I did not have a chance to say good-bye to the Dalai Lama because I was too busy distributing advance pay to the cavalry in his escort.”31 Although Seshing’s memoir unfortunately does not specify the number of cavalrymen concerned, the fact that he was apparently distributing their pay at the moment of the Dalai Lama’s departure suggests that they may have been members of a rear guard, thus corroborating Phuntsok’s account.
At approximately 5:00 that evening, Phala sent a civil servant, Khenchung Tubten Tsepal, to the Indian Consulate with an oral message for the consul, Major Chiba: “As you know, the situation is dire, and the Dalai Lama may have to evacuate Lhasa. We will continue to negotiate with the Chinese. If we cannot come to an agreement with them, India is our only possible haven. Please report this to your government.” Major Chiba asked when and where the Dalai Lama would be crossing into India. Tubten Tsepal made a second trip to the Indian Consulate with Phala’s reply, which Major Chiba forwarded to the Indian government. All Phala could say, however, was that this rough preliminary notice would have to suffice because they had not worked out the details yet, and they would have no way to contact the consul again once they had left Lhasa.32
The sun sank slowly in the west and the sky grew dark. The turmoil of the day finally subsided.
All of a sudden, gunfire rang out at the riverside, startling Phuntsok, who was patrolling the palace grounds. He glanced at his watch. It was almost time for the first group of evacuees to slip out of the palace: the Dalai Lama’s mother, his sister Tsering Dolma (Phuntsok’s wife), his uncle, and his little brother Ngari Rinpoché were supposed to leave the south gate of the Norbulingka on the pretext of visiting a convent. Phuntsok hurried to their living chambers.
The garden was an oasis of peace. The birds had gone to roost, the fish lay low in the pond, and the green prayer flags fluttered in the breeze. Stars glimmered among the clouds in the sky.
Outside the Norbulingka, the multitudes—some in their tents and others in the open air—got ready for another sleepless night.
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