Transcript
TIBETAN DIASPORA:
PERSPECTIVE OF YOUTH
Tenzin Seldon
The UN defines youth as people between the ages of 15 and 24 years
18% of the world’s population62% reside in Asia
1.2 billion youth in the
world
History of Tibet
1959:
1959: Destruction
In March of 1959, a
mass Tibetan
uprising
6,000 monasteries
destroyed
1.2 million innocent
people killed
Escape
80,000 Tibetans fled, following Dalai
Lama
1960-1990:
Reconstruction
Tibetans made an effort to
increase international
awareness about the situation
inside
Set up:
Central Tibet Administration
Education system
Economic, political, and
spiritual institutions
Refugee Community
Total 150,000 Tibetans in the total Diaspora
120,000 refugees remain in India today
Rest 30,000 live in Nepal, Bhutan, Europe,
and America
‘Model refugees’
Youth
2009 Demographic Survey:
62% under 34 years old
26,000 students Tibetan schools
DoE oversees a network of 73 schools
Central School for Tibetans (28 schools), Tibetan
Children’s Village (18 schools), Sambhota (12
schools), Snow Lion Foundation (12 schools in
Nepal) and Tibetan Homes Foundation (3
schools)
Empowerment
“to provide opportunities for young people to
develop the competencies they need to
become successful contributing members
of their communities”
(Pittman & Wright,1991)
STIMULI
YOUTH EMPOWERMENT PROCESS
PROCESS
voice giving
education
information sharing
training
...
citizen awareness
Self-esteem
...
RESULTS
participatory democracy
society
religion
politics
culture
economy
Research Question
What are the main intergenerational
differences in the Tibetan refugee community
in Dharamsala, India?
Diaspora/Transnational Identity
A dispersion of a people from their original
homeland.
Stuart Hall:
One group with shared culture and a shared
history or ancestry.
Methods
Qualitative, community-based participatory
research
30 individual and focus group interviews
Generation Definitions
Generation Y (young) – 15-35
Generation O (old) – 60+
Generation Y Generation O
Field sites
InterviewScholarshi
p
Global Phenomenon
Larger generational conflict globally
Work (problem-solving, management)
Related intergenerational conflict in Hmong,
Vietnamese, Indian and other Southeast
refugee communities
Findings
Religion
Language and Culture
Political
Religious Differences
‘Blind faith’ of adults in Buddhism and Dalai Lama Yeshi: “My father and so many of our older folks have
too much faith in His Holiness, the Dalai Lama to solve every problem… and it sometimes makes me think that this type of blind faith is detrimental to any form of true democracy in our society”
Dolma: “yes, we students don’t agree with this type of blind faith, we have our own opinions…”
Religious figure as political head stifle democracy
Language and Cultural
Differences
Who is your role model?
“Michael Jackson, Justin Bieber…”
Increasingly difficult to communicate
Effects of modernization (pervasiveness of
technology)
Political Differences
Youth facing apathy – lack of empowerment
(institutional and private)
“I have no way to express myself and there are not
many leaders in our community who represents my
ideas…you know? We can’t change anything either”
Freedom vs. autonomy
Separation of church and state
Implications
Policy impact
Education curriculum
NGO outreach
Domestic policy
Future scholarship
Public Service Plan
To use dialogue as a powerful and dynamic
tool which enriches community building and
solidarity.
Set a dialogue goal of 30-50 diverse
intergenerational participants.
Questions?
top related