On the 20th of October, the heads of around 35 Indian and Tibetan organizations met at the Suriya Hotel to convene a collective “meeting of the minds” in Dharamsala. Organized by the Tibetan Center for Conflict Resolution and the Dharamsala Tibetan Settlement Office, this meeting aimed to find constructive ways to “bond Indo-Tibetan friendship.”
The leaders of these organizations whose specialties ranged between social services, business, politics, protecting the environment, and transportation discussed the similarities and differences between the two communities in order to come up with innovative ways to promote unity and mutual understanding. “For the last 51 years there has been, for the most part, peace and harmony and relations have been very good,” said Tibetan Settlement Officer Sonam Dorjee. “But it’s very important for us to maintain these relations and to foster a better understanding between both communities.”
The meeting agenda consisted of three main topics: “cleaning and greening” the local environment, promoting inter-cultural awareness by analyzing the communities’ strengths and weaknesses, and coming up with new ideas and strategies to ensure better relations in the future.
On the environmental front, the Tibetan Settlement Office (TSO) currently runs the “Clean Upper Dharamsala” project. Volunteers and staff members organize the waste management for all of McLeod Ganj, and organize a mass clean-up each month. These efforts will continue with renewed enthusiasm, after the support they received from other community leaders at this meeting.
Several of the organizations present stressed the importance of not only understanding each other’s cultures, but respecting and even participating in them. Sharing festivals like Diwali and Losar would not only educate Indians and Tibetans about their neighbors, but also allow them to celebrate together and build alliances based on a strengthened sense of community. The importance of having a working knowledge of both languages was also presented as a means to promote mutual understanding, both linguistically and culturally.
Breaking down stereotypes through increased positive contact between members of the two communities was also stressed at the meeting. A legal education program was proposed to help inform Tibetans about Indian law, thereby reducing the likelihood of legal strife between the communities. Additionally, the Tibetan Center for Conflict Resolution (TCCR) has in the past organized projects in which Tibetan volunteers help Indian families in the wider Dharamsala area with yearly tasks, such as bringing in the harvest. “It’s about helping each other, and proving stereotypes wrong,” said Sonam Dorjee as he described his own experience helping an Indian family bring in their November harvest in Kanyaru, about 10 km from Dharamsala.
“It’s very important to make this a peaceful, harmonious place,” he continued. “Especially with His Holiness the Dalai Lama living here, it is essential that we create communal harmony between Indians, Tibetans, and visiting foreigners.”
A follow-up meeting is planned in the near future, to discuss the developments and progress made so far. The community leaders attending are expected to discuss the current role of local organizations in protecting the environment around McLeod Ganj, as well as existing problems with the roads and electricity and their possible solutions.
This effort to work together to collectively improve the Dharamsala area is off to a positive start.”We do encounter problems within a family, so why not within two communities?” said Sonam Dechen, Associate Director of TCCR and host of the meeting. “But we should be aware of our differences, respect those differences, and look forward to greater friendship and peace in the society.”
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