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Conversation with Tenzin Shinyi La

Hosted by Tenzing Dhamdul, FNVA

In a heartfelt and enlightening conversation on the Unsilenced: Voices of Young Tibetans podcast series, we had the privilege to speak with Tenzin Shinyi la. A young Tibetan woman who shares her personal journey, experiences and future aspirations. 

Born in India and grown up in Tibet, Shinyi la’s life has been marked by cultural transitions, challenges and with a profound connection to her Tibetan heritage which she proudly dons and treasures it close to her heart. Her insights shed light on the complexities of identity, education and the resilience of Tibetans both in occupied Tibet, the diaspora and in exile.

She further shares her contrasting experiences of schooling and learning in higher academia from her Chinese schools in Chengdu to Tibetan Schools and Institutions she has and currently studies at in India. “As an outcome of discrimination, I was forced to try every method possible to look like a Chinese, to speak like a Chinese, to dress like a Chinese and even think like a Chinese – just to be accepted” says Tenzin Shinyi on the severe level of discrimination a Tibetan experience in Chengdu. All of which was a stark contrast when she returned to India for her further studies. Yet even in such an adverse environ she states that the Tibetans and their love for Tibetan Culture remain firm and thrives.

While studying she has simultaneously been leading and part of several pivotal organisations that are shaping the narratives on our Tibetan diaspora namely The Global Tibetan People’s Movement for Middle Way Approach (GTPMMWA), Tibetan College Students’ Conference and Monlam AI to name a few. She tells us how through these various agencies she has learnt a lot and her appreciation of being a Tibetan grows stronger each day being part of such bodies. Furthermore, she highlights some of the future initiatives which the GTPMMWA will be taking forward and how the Middle Way Approach is a viable solution for both Tibet and China in resolving the Tibet-China Conflict as both parties involved here win.

On her vision on the future of Tibet, she mentions that it is one where His Holiness the Dalai Lama imparts teachings at the Potala Palace in Lhasa, Tibet, where families are not forcibly separated, and where Tibetan culture thrives. Further stating that there are also avenues where our community can bring especially in the context of the patriarchal system we have. She narrates her own experience here and how certain Tibetan Civil Society bodies namely Drokmo and the Tibetan Women Empowerment Desk were of great help to her.

In her closing message, she urges and requests Tibetans to preserve their cultural identities and appreciates the continued support from global Tibet supporters. She emphasized the interconnectedness of humanity and how solidarity with Tibetans contributes to a more peaceful world.

Shinyi’s journey reflects the resilience and determination of Tibetans worldwide to preserve their culture and advocate for their rights.

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• Dr. Gyal Lo la, is a Tibetan activist, educational sociologist, and a leading expert on China’s assimilation and education policies in Tibet.

Hosted by Kate Saunders, FNVA

This session with Dr. Gyal Lo la on Colonial Boarding School is divided into two parts:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4PK2AxHqio 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7OFuTW2T2A 

Dr. Gyal Lo la was born in Tibet, he obtained his master’s degree from the Tibetan Language and Culture Department at Northwestern University for Nationalities in Lanzhou, China. Subsequently becoming an Assistant Professor in the same department, where he taught for the next decade and undertook extensive research on Tibetan education. He obtained his PhD at the University of Toronto, Canada, and returned home in 2015 but was refused his past employment due to political sensitives over his time abroad. However he eventually attained a professorship at Yunnan University in 2017. Yet, three years into his contract, his position was terminated amidst a worsening political climate in China. Dismissed on the grounds that he was a “foreign Tibetan with a western background,” which eventually pushed him to leave his home country in December 2020.  

The conversation with Dr. Gyal Lo la sees him engage about his life in occupied Tibet. He explains how he studied in Tibet and how he eventually was given faculty and professorship in universities in Tibet. Likewise, he tells us how he first came to notice about the creation of such Colonial Style Boarding schools which began in the late 1990’s and was accelerated when Xi Jinping became president of The People’s Republic of China. Furthermore, he states how in his own region in Tibet, it was on September 2016 that he witnessed Chinese Colonial Boarding Schools for Pre-School/Kindergarten Tibetan children, who had no choice but are forced to attend.

He is a key primary source of @tibetactioninstitute report “Separated from their Families – Hidden from the World: China’s Vast System of Colonial Boarding Schools inside Tibet” leading to various testimonies at several global institutions across the world. Dr. Gyal Lo la also testified in such spaces shedding light on this draconian system that is ‘Killing the Tibetan in the Child’ said by Lhadon Tethong during a testimony at @ChinaCommission . He also shares with us his engagement with different leaders of the world on this subject since being pushed to flee his own homeland of Tibet. His advice to India and the larger international community when it comes to dealing with the Communist Party led People’s Republic of China.

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