Charlie

“You should teach people in the West the truth about Tibet.”

“Excuse me?” I replied.

“It’s up to people like you and I to bring cultures together and open them up to the truth. You should teach Westerners the truth about Tibet.”

I was standing in my favorite Hong Kong pub talking to Charlie - a plump, half Chinese, half Japanese man pushing his late forties. Charlie spent a good part of his teens and twenties in California before returning to Hong Kong again for work. I guess being of Asian descent with an understanding of Western views qualified Charlie as a mediator between the two nations. Apparently my vice-versified situation gave me the same credentials.

One night as I was exploring the back alleys of Causeway Bay, one of Hong Kong’s not-so-surprising surprise downpours drove me into the bar. As I stepped in the door the Modest Mouse playing over the speakers made me do a double take. “Am I still in Hong Kong?” I asked myself. A quick look around at the rice covered plates and Tsing Tao beer confirmed that I was. I grabbed a stool and engaged in some conversation with the locals while I waited for the storm to pass.

Being the only white guy speaking Chinese in a “locals” bar in Hong Kong I quickly made friends with all the workers. And if the definition of a regular is “everyone knowing you by name and the drink you like” then I think I reached that status by the time the two-hour downpour was over. As a regular, one acquires certain obligations; for example, occasional drop-ins to catch up with old friends and meet new ones. It was during one of these visits that I came to know Charlie.

“So what is the truth about Tibet?” I asked, curious to hear a new side of the story.

With his “I’m glad you asked” smile, lifted chin, heightened stance, and relaxed “I’m about to take you to school” demeanor, Charlie began to educate me on the “truth” about Tibet.

“Most of the people were slaves to the Dalai Lama and the other elites of the country,” he said. “The underlying idea of communism is equality; you know, equal portions for all, right? Well the Chinese communist party wasn’t happy with the way the Tibetans were running that part of China and that was one reason they went into Tibet, to rid them of slavery and establish equality in the society.”

Searching for a parallel to help me understand better I asked, “So you’re saying it is similar to what people say was the driving conflict of America’s Civil War?”

“MUCH worse!” Charlie replied with a bit of a chuckle, suggesting the ridiculous nature of my question. “The Tibetans would torture and severely abuse their slaves. It was a horrible situation. But all the rest of the world ever hears is about Tibet being devastated by attacks from the Chinese. That place was in a bad situation before the communist party ever moved in.”


I am intrigued by varying points of view. In a foreign country I have to remind myself that the environment in which one is raised is the breeding ground of opinions. Rather than criticizing the opinions of others and judging the validity of their opinions based on my own, I found it is important to take a step back and try to understand where they are coming from. I usually find that there is truth to what they have said. An open mind will open gates that lead to roads of wisdom and greater truths.