http://www.unpo.org/news_detail.php?arg=52&par=2006
Tibet had pockets of Muslims entrenched within its
borders, although there is no documentary evidence on
how they first came to settle there. In fact,
information on Tibetan Muslims is scarce. But the
existence of Tibet appears to be known to the Muslim
world from the earliest period of recorded history.
Arab historians like Yaqut Hamawi, Ibn Khaldun and
Tabari mention Tibet in their writings. In fact, Yaqut
Hamawihas, in his book Muajumal Buldan (Encyclopaedia
of Countries), refers to Tibet in three different
ways: Tabbat, Tibet and Tubbet.
Kashmir and Eastern Turkestan are the nearest Islamic
regions bordering Tibet. It is said that Muslim
migrants from Kashmir and Ladakh first entered Tibet
around 12th century. Gradually, marriage and social
interaction led to an increase in the population until
a sizable community came up around Lhasa, Tibet's
capital.
Muslims are known to the Tibetans as "Khache". This is
perhaps because the earliest Muslim settlers had come
from Kashmir which was known as "Khache Yul" in old
Tibetan texts.
The arrival of Muslims was followed by the
construction of mosques in different parts of Tibet.
There were four mosques in Lhasa, two in Shigatse and
one in Tsethang. Tibetan Muslims were mainly
concentrated around the mosques, which also served as
the centres of Muslim social life in Tibet.
It was actually the Fifth Dalai Lama (1617-1682), who
played a seminal role in helping to pave the way for
the flourishing of Muslim community in Tibet's
Buddhist environment. He issued a decree, granting
Tibetan Muslims special privileges, which they enjoyed
until the Chinese occupation of Tibet in 1959. In
accordance with this dercee:
The Muslims were permitted to handle their affairs
independently, according to the Shariat Law. The
Muslim community was permitted to elect a five-man
committee, known as "Ponj", to look after their
interests.
They were free to set up commercial enterprises and
were exempted from taxation.
They were also exempted from the "no-meat rule",
enforced on the Buddhist populace during the holy
Buddhist month.
They were also exempted from removing their hats in
deference to Buddhist priests during a period in a
year when the priests held sway over the town.
In addition, Muslims were given their own burial
place. There were two cemeteries around Lhasa: one at
Gyanda Linka, about 12 km from Lhasa town, and the
other at Kygasha, about 15 km away. A portion of
Gyanda Linka was turned into a garden and this became
the place where the Muslim community organised their
major public events. Gyanda Linka is said to contain
unmarked graves believed to be those of foreigners who
came to preach Islam to Tibet.
As the community grew, Madrasas (primary schools) were
set up to teach Islam, the Koran and the namaz
(prayers). Urdu language was also part of the
curriculum. There were two such Madrasas in Lhasa and
one in Shigatse.
After finishing their studies in these Madrasas,
students were sent to India to join Islamic institutes
of higher learning such as Darul-Uloom in Deoband,
Nadwatul-Ulema in Lucknow and Jamia Millia Islamia in
New Delhi. The annual report of Darul-Uloom for the
year 1875 mention the presence of two foreign students
there: a Burmese and a Tibetan. Jamia Millia Islamia
received its first batch of Tibetan students in 1945.
In those days, transportation within Tibet was
undeveloped. Students were sent along with Muslim
merchants making their annuals trip to India. This
took months as they had to walk or ride horses or yaks
for most of the way. Therefore, once the students got
admitted to an institution in India, they usually did
not return home until the completion of a stage of
their education.
Quite a few Tibetan Muslims successfully completed
their studies in India, achieving proficiency in
Arabic, Urdu and Persian. The most famous among them
was Faidhullah, who undertook the ambitious task of
translating into Tibetan Gulestan and Boastan, Persian
poetry of Sheik Sadi. Faidhullah is well known among
Tibetans for his popular book of aphorisms, Khache
Phalu (A Few Words of Advice From a Muslim).
Even today, Tibetans quote from his book in support of
a point of view in secular debates. An English
translation of Khache Phaluh has been done by Dr. Dawa
Norbu and published by the Library of Tibetan Works &
Archives.
Tibetan Muslims have also made significant
contribution to Tibetan culture, particularly in the
field of music. Nangma, a popular classical music of
Tibet, is said to have been brought to Tibet by
Tibetan Muslims. In fact, the very term Nangma is
believed to be a corruption of the Urdu word Naghma,
meaning song. These high-pitched lilting songs,
developed in Tibet around the turn of the Century,
were a craze in Lhasa with musical hits by Acha Izzat,
Bhai Akbar-la and Oulam Mehdi on the lips of almost
everyone.
After the failed Tibetan National Uprising of 1959 His
Holiness the Dalai Lama went into-exile in India,
followed by a significant number of Tibetans.
However, the majority of Tibetan Muslims, particularly
those residing in Lhasa, were able to leave only a
year later. In between they, like their Buddhist
compatriots, had to suffer extortion, repression and
other acts of cruelty at the hands of Chinese
occupation forces.
During this critical period, Tibetan Muslims organised
themselves and approached the Indian mission in Lhasa
to reclaim Indian citizenship, citing their Kashmiri
ancestry. At that time, the head of the Tibetan Muslim
community, Haji Habibullah Shamo, was under Chinese
detention along with other Muslim leaders like Bhai
Addul Gani-la;.Rapse Hamidullah, Abdual Ahad Hajj,
Abdul Qadir Jami and HajiAbdul Gani Thapsha. While
Bhai Abdul Gani-la was charged with putting up
anti-Chinese wall posters, Rapse Hamidullah was
arrested on account of his connection with a senior
Tibetan official.
The initial response of the Indian Government to the
Muslim request was lukewarm. It said only those who
had permanent domicile status in the Indian state of
Jammu and Kashmir and those who visited India from
time to time, and those whose parents or one of the
grandparents were born in India, would be considered
potential citizens of India.
But some time later, in late 1959, the Indian
Government suddenly came out with the statement that
all Tibetan Muslims were Indian nationals and entitled
to citizenship.
Meanwhile, the Chinese authorities duped the Muslims
into selling their property to the government in
return for permission to emigrate to any Muslim
country. Seeing this as a possible way of saving their
religion and culture, many Tibetan Muslims willingly
parted with their property. But the authorities
reneged on their promise and instead orchestrated a
campaign of social boycott against them. Nobody was
allowed to sell food to Tibetan Muslims. Many old and
weak Tibetan Muslims as well as children died of
starvation.
Such Tibetan Muslims as were able to cross over to the
Indian border towns of Kalimpong, Darjeeling and
Gangtok gradually moved to Kashmir, their ancestral
homeland, from 1961 to 1964. The Indian Government
sheltered them in three huge buildings in Idd-Gah in
the Kashmiri capital city of Srinagar. His Holiness
the Dalai Lama sent his Representative to Idd-Gah look
into their conditions.
During the first two decades of their life in exile,
Tibetan Muslims attempted to rebuild and re-organise
themselves. Lack of proper guidance and community
leadership proved to be an obstacle in their
development. Also, housing in Idd-Gah was inadequate
to meet the requirements of a growing family. In the
process, Tibetan Muslims began to scatter, emigrating
to Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Nepal. Some moved to
other parts of India in search of better livelihood
opportunity.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama continued to keep himself
informed of conditions of Tibetan Muslims in Idd-Gah.
In 1975 he visited Srinagar and raised their problems
with the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir.
Following a request from him, the Chief Minister
provided the Tibetan Muslims with land for their
resettlement.
His Holiness also encouraged the formation of a
Tibetan Muslim Refugee Welfare Association. This
Association began to chalk out projects for the
economic and educational upliftment of the community.
With the seed money from His Holiness, followed by
assistance from Tibet Fund in New York, a handicraft
centre, a co-operative shop and a school were
established. A group of young Tibetan Muslims were
invited to Dharamsala to learn the trade of
carpet-weaving and marketing.
The Department of Health in Dharamsala has set up a
primary health care centre to look after the medical
needs of the Muslims.
Saudi Arabia provided funds for the construction of
144 houses and a mosque in the new settlement.
Construction was completed in 1985 and the houses
distributed among the people. Not all people could be
accommodated and some continued to reside in the old
settlement.
There is now a Tibetan Muslim Youth Association which
plays an important role in the social upliftment of
the community, and maintains contact with the
mainstream Tibetan Youth Congress.
Nothing much is known of the present condition of
Tibetan Muslims inside Tibet. According to one report
there are around 3000 Tibetan Muslims there.
The total population of Tibetan Muslims outside Tibet
is around 2000. Of them, 20 to 25 families live in
Nepal, 20 in the Gulf countries and Turkey. Fifty
families reside in Darjeeling-Kalimpong areas
bordering Tibet in eastern India.
They continue to look up to their Muslim brethren
throughout the world for support to the cause of Tibet
so that they can one day return to their homeland and
enjoy the life of dignity that they once enjoyed. A
young Tibetan Muslim in exile, when asked whether he
would return to Tibet in the event of a solution,
responded, "It is better to live under a bridge in
one's own homeland than to live as a refugee in an
alien land."
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