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"China and the Dalai Lama: Politically incorrect tourism"
A pilgrimage to the birthplace of a jackal in monk’s clothing
ON THE eastern edge of the Tibetan plateau lies a shrine that, according to China’s propagandists, should not exist. The house where the 14th Dalai Lama was born in 1935, under the name Lhamo Thondup, is tricky to find. It is tucked away in Hong Ya, a mountain hamlet of 200 people, which merges with the dusty crags to which it clings. Worshippers and tourists are not deterred. They seek out a pair of wooden doors with white prayer scarves draped through iron knockers. Inside, they pay their respects to a man China reviles.
The residence, with its throne room and prayer wheel spinning next to a portrait of the exiled leader, is a curious anomaly. It is there by Chinese government design. A casualty of the Cultural Revolution, it was rebuilt in 1986 when China was negotiating with the Tibetan government-in-exile. Xinhua, the official news agency, reported that it cost 350,000 yuan ($51,000) to resurrect, and boasts 61 rooms. In fact, there are six at a push. One stores a motorcycle. ...
The Economist print edition
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