In the forty years since the flight of the Dalai Lama, more than 140,000 Tibetans have followed him into exile. Every year, and still today, some 3000 people choose to cross the Himalaya, despite the risks, rather than endure the Chinese presence. Though the Tibetan diaspora mostly resides in India and Nepal, it is now present on every continent. The Tibetan community in exile includes all types of refugees, freedom fighters of the early days, some living another life for the past 40 years and perhaps holding a foreign passport, others, newly arrived and povertystricken, must make their way in communities which do not anymore greet them with open arms. Then there are the third generation children who know nothing of Tibet, other than what they hear from their grandparents. The Tibetan community in exile is now an established society, with its diversity, its social ranks, its problems of unemployment, violence, delinquency, with its newly rich, its sub-groups reconstituted according to the social or geographic origins of its members. No more nor less than any other established society, but on foreign soil, with all the inherent obstacles. The leitmotiv of the heads of this community – preservation of the homogeneity and identity of the Tibetan people through the teaching of Tibetan culture – has helped postpone the inevitable. But we now see the first signs of disintegration of this society; a growing separation between the exiled and the six million Tibetans remaining in the country; a gap which is also widening between the generations, with young people more concerned with attaining western paradise than with preserving their identity. As for the fight for freedom, it is an ongoing reality for only a small portion of the population in exile, even though on March 10th every year, to commemorate the uprising of 1959, the entire community takes to the streets.
RHS2018772 - Tibet in exil, myth and reality © Pierre-Yves Ginet / RAPHO 13 rue d’Enghien 75 010 Paris (33) 1 44 79 31 30
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Students of the Tsering Art School during the painting class - Bodnath, Kathmandu, Nepal
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A Monk falling in the fire, during the 10th March demonstration, commemoration of the 1959 uprising of Tibetan people, Dharamsala, India
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10th March demonstration, commemoration of the 1959 uprising of Tibetan people, in Ladakh, Leh, Ladakh, India. 13 rue d’Enghien 75 010 Paris (33) 1 44 79 31 30
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Monlam Gyatso in his video store of Bodnath, Kathmandu, Nepal.
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Kharma Choesang, 19, in his room of Bodnath, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Members of the music band Lungta, during a rehearsal, Kathmandu, Nepal.
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A young girl, just arrived from Tibet in the refugee center of Dharamsala, Dharamsala, India. 13 rue d’Enghien 75 010 Paris (33) 1 44 79 31 30
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At the entrance of the camp, young Tibetan play Indian billiards, in Deckyiling refugee camp, Dehra Dun, India.
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New refugees in a lended home, in Deckyiling refugee camp, Dehra Dun, India.
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On the stadium of the school, procession of the students during ceremony of Mac Leod Ganj Tibetan Children Village 39th birthday, Dharamsala, India.
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In the nursery school , SOS Tibetan Children Village, Dehra Dun, India.
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Tenzin Sonam, owner of one of the biggest carpet factories of Nepal, close to his Four Wheel Drive, Kathmandu, Nepal.
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Dorjee Dugyal and his wife in their home of Swayambunath, Kathmandu, Nepal.
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Main street of Majnu Katilla Tibetan refugee camp, in the evening, Dehli, India.
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Japhok, old Tibetan soldier in his room of Deckyiling refugee camp. On the wall, his former gun of the Tibetan army, Dehra Dun, India.
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Ravangla refugee camp, Sikkim, India
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Old woman in the only room of her house, in Ravangla refugee camp, Sikkim, India.
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Believer burning incense around the great stupa of Bodnath, Kathmandu, Nepal. 13 rue d’Enghien 75 010 Paris (33) 1 44 79 31 30
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A nun, just arrived from Tibet, in the refugee center of Dharamsala, Dharamsala, India.
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Old Tibetan woman hanging up a piece of dry meat, in her house of Deckyiling refugee camp, Dehra Dun, India
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Portrait of Dalai Lama in hands of Ani Ngawang Yangchen, former political prisoner, Dolma Ling nunnery, Dharamsala, India.
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Praying altar inside a house of Tibetan refugees, Dharamsala, India.
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During Sechen monastery festival, in Bodnath, famous for the exceptional quality of monks performances, Kathmandu, Nepal.
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Young monk behind the door of the temple of Choeckyi Nyima Rinpoche, in Bodnath, Kathmandu, Nepal.
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Nagi nuns discussing under a tree covered by praying flags, Kathmandu, Nepal.
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Faithful Tibetan praying on the kora around Bodnath great Stupa, Kathmandu, Nepal.
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Mac Lead Ganj, Tibet capital city in exile, Dharamsala, India
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