Wen Wei Po: Why "Dalai card" depreciated?

　　(Source: People's Daily Online)

　　BEIJING, Nov. 5 -- The value of "Dalai card" has largely devaluated indeed. It‘s a truth of world politics. Since it was only a "card", it can be abandoned like scruffy rags. President Obama wants to cooperate with China on a large variety of areas which has already become the main stream of Sino-U.S. relationship. Although China and U.S. still have a lot of contradiction on some issues, the pretense of "human rights" is really "out of fashion". If the American right-wing wants to play, they will have to seek a new one.

　　The Dalai Lama, who left his motherland 40 years ago, can only be regarded as a "card". 40 years is neither long nor short, but what we can be assured of is that over 40 years the "Dalai card" has depreciated step by step.

　　During the Taiwan Moracot Typhoon Disaster, the Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Ju wanted to play the "Dalai card", while the Dalai Lama was also glad to be a "card". However, people who used to be around him all tried to keep away. Thus, he was impeded everywhere and cannot talk about politics. Now, Obama initially refused to meet him when he visited U.S., which could be considered as the sign of the Dalai Lama‘s devaluation. We believe that it won‘t take long for his value to disappear entirely. If you don‘t believe, just wait and see.

　　The Dalai Lama gradually becomes a stray dog

　　Some may say the meaning of the Dalai Lama‘s returning to U.S. can not be ignored, for the United States Congress has awarded him human rights prizes, and the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Pelosi said at the presentation ceremony, "If we do not discuss human rights in China and Tibet, we do not have the right to discuss human rights in any other places across the world."

　　But president Obama didn‘t agree as he honored his commitment to support China‘s core policy on Tibet and Xinjiang issues when he met president Hu recently. Thus, this was the direct reason for Obama‘s refusal to meet with the Dalai Lama.

　　All "cards" for restricting China become devalued

　　Ironically, the world media has no interest in this prize and didn‘t mention it at all. This fact brutally refracts that the "Dalai card" has become deeply devalued. Before that, the so called "mainland pro-democracy activists" who are now thinking about how to spend the rest of their life, also saw their credibility depreciate.

　　The "Taiwan independence" activists Lee Tenghui and Chen Shuibian have faced the same fate. However, they were used to being insolent political clowns. As a result, many other "cards" which used to restrict China have had to experience the inevitable depreciation process.

　　Certainly, the White House couldn‘t admit the open secret that President Obama bent to China‘s pressure, and said Obama hadn‘t refused to meet with the Dalai Lama and would do that later. But the American media disclosed that an American official told the Dalai Lama‘s representative that U.S. needed China‘s cooperation in many important aspects, and did not want to upset Beijing.