Jinzong Gyaincain Puncog:Rock-firm Support for the Central Government

NYIMA CERING

"I Will Live 100 Years" Jinzong Gyaincain Puncog is still spry despite his advancing age. He is easy going and enjoys high prestige. "I will be able to live to be 100," he predicts. "I have so many things to do." Indeed, Jinzong still works with might and main for the progress and development of Tibet, and for the unification of the motherland. He is often seen visiting ordinary Tibetans, explaining State policies for freedom of religious belief and for economic and social development. Based on his investigation and study, Jinzong has often made good suggestions to the Party Central Committee and the Central Government. He has been honored by the State Council and the government of the Tibet Autonomous Region as a model in national unity.

"I Am Now a Public Servant" July 1, 1997 was memorable day for Jinzong Gyaincain Puncog. As a representative of more than two million Tibetans, he attended the ceremony marking Hong Kongs return to the motherland. As the PRC national anthem was played, he clapped his hands together repeatedly. When he saw Deng Pufang, son of Deng Xiaoping, in the hall, he went over to shake his hand. "I came from Tibet," Jinzong said. "May Deng Xiaoping rest in peace!"?He failed tosleep that night. "I was one of the exploiting class," he said. "But I am now a public servant!"

In 1950, when the PLA 18th Army marched into Tibet, a young monk standing by the Jinshajiang River was anxiously pondering whether the PLA troops ate human flesh as the Gaxag government had claimed. This was Jinzong Gyaincain Puncog. CAUGHT BY PLA. When the PLA troops initially failed to win the peaceful liberation of Qamdo in October 1950, the PLA issued a memorandum to the Gaxag government. Major officials of the latter had fled from the Potala Palace in Lhasa to Yadong, where they made radio contact with the Tibetan army entrenched by the Jinshajiang River. Before long, Qamdo was liberated, and Jinzong was caught by the PLA troops. However, it was a day that changed his life. Now, he is a Member of the CPPCC National Committee and Vice-Chairman of CPPCC Tibet Committee.

PEACE ENVOY. When the PLA liberated Qamdo, Jinzong found the soldiers did not eat human flesh and, instead, were very disciplined. Many local people risked their lives to support the PLA troops. Jinzong was gradually won over and he asked to deliver peace letters to Lhasa so that Tibet as a whole could be peacefully liberated. The PLA officers agreed. Taking the letters from them, he and some others rode on horseback day and night and made a round trip in only a dozen days.

MARSHAL HE LONGS SUGGESTION. On May 23, 1951, the Central Government and the local government of Tibet signed the Agreement for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet, also known as the 17-Article Agreement. Celebrating the event, the Central Government threw in a banquet to entertain the Tibetan delegates. Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai and other State leaders met with Ngapoi Ngawang Jigmei and other members of his Tibetan delegation. Jinzong attended the banquet as a follower of Ngapoi Ngawang Jigmei. When Marshal He Long went over to toast the Tibetans, he declared: "That is a good name. Jinzong in Chinese means golden China. New China will have a bright future and so will Tibet." As a matter of fact, the Chinese version of his name should be Zezong instead of Jinzong. The Chinese translation was wrong. But since Jinzong is a good name, he decided to adopt it.

ROCK FIRM CONVICTION. Jinzong warmly supported the 17-Article Agreement, and did a lot for its implementation. When he was magistrate of Doilungdeqen County in Lhasa, he took the lead to mobilize his men to take an active part in the Democratic Reform. While this eventually led to the promoted the Democratic Reform of 1959 in Tibet, he harmed the interests of the old forces who vowed to kill him. However, the man is rock-firm and works hard for the bright future of both China and Tibet.

FIGHTING RIOTS. In 1986, when riots erupted in Lhasa, Jinzong fought tenaciously against Tibetan separatists who wielded the banners of "religion" and "human rights". He denounced them publicly and vowed support for the Central Government. In 1998, when the CPPCC held its first national session of the 9th Committee, he delivered a speech entitled Defending the Unification of the Motherland and Opposing Separation. He denounced the 14th Dalai Lama, who had announced his confirmation of the 11th Panchen Erdeni, a move that went against Tibetan Buddhist tradition.