Thursday, March 27, 2008

News of the Day (March 27)

New report says Communists started the violence in Tibet: Gordon Thomas, citing sources with the British Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), says that members of the Communist military force, "posing as monks, triggered the riots that have left hundreds of Tibetans dead or injured" (G2 Bulletin via Epoch Times) in a move "deliberately calculated by the Beijing leadership to provide an excuse to stamp out the simmering unrest in the region." Meanwhile, several monks messed up the Communists' scripted press conference in Lhassa (BBC, CNN, and NRO - Media Blog); more Chinese intellectuals took the CCP to task for its brutality in Tibet (Epoch Times); and the Associated Press shamed itself (NRO - Media Blog).

Communist Ambassador to Canada blasts Dalai Lama - and uses Nazi propaganda for evidence: In one of the more embarassing moments in diplomatic history, Lu Shumin - Communist China's Ambassador to the United States, cited Nazi propaganda as evidence that Tibet was a violent and backward place before the cadres "liberated" it in 1950 (CBC and CTV). The farce had no real effect on Canadian public opinion (Embassy), but Communist Chinese media - aired in Canada by Rogers - amplified the nonsense (Epoch Times).

East Turkestan Uighurs also suffer under Communist China's thumb: Rebiya Kadeer discussed the plight of her people to the Toronto Star.

More calls for an Olympic Boycott: Blogger Rojas of the Crossed Pond (h/t Below the Beltway) adds his voice to the just-stay-home coalition, as does Juanita Giles (The Hook via Boycott 2008), while Human Rights Without Frontiers (h/t Boycott 2008) and Father Raymond J. de Souza (via Boycott again) call for a more limited boycott. The Belgians leave both options on the table (Canadian Press), while Sally Jenkins (Washington Post) wants the Games moved (another h/t to Below the Beltway).

News on "another Chinese province" (North Korea): South Korea demanded the Stalinists come clean about their nuclear weapons program (Washington Times); the cadres responded by kicking South Koreans out of Kaesong (BBC, CNN, and the Washington Post). Meanwhile, Stalinist-in-chief Kim Jong-il is blaming his intransigence on his military (and sadly, the Washington Post fell for it). Finally, One Free Korea comments on Kim's latest money-making scheme: "converting part of its embassy in Berlin into a (hotel)."

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