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A Tibetan Revolutionary: The Political Life and Times of Bapa Phüntso Wangye 1st Edition

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 13 ratings
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This is the as-told-to political autobiography of Phüntso Wangye (Phünwang), one of the most important Tibetan revolutionary figures of the twentieth century. Phünwang began his activism in school, where he founded a secret Tibetan Communist Party. He was expelled in 1940, and for the next nine years he worked to organize a guerrilla uprising against the Chinese who controlled his homeland. In 1949, he merged his Tibetan Communist Party with Mao's Chinese Communist Party. He played an important role in the party's administrative organization in Lhasa and was the translator for the young Dalai Lama during his famous 1954-55 meetings with Mao Zedong. In the 1950s, Phünwang was the highest-ranking Tibetan official within the Communist Party in Tibet. Though he was fluent in Chinese, comfortable with Chinese culture, and devoted to socialism and the Communist Party, Phünwang's deep commitment to the welfare of Tibetans made him suspect to powerful Han colleagues. In 1958 he was secretly detained; three years later, he was imprisoned in solitary confinement in Beijing's equivalent of the Bastille for the next eighteen years.

Informed by vivid firsthand accounts of the relations between the Dalai Lama, the Nationalist Chinese government, and the People's Republic of China, this absorbing chronicle illuminates one of the world's most tragic and dangerous ethnic conflicts at the same time that it relates the fascinating details of a stormy life spent in the quest for a new Tibet.
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  1. ISBN-10
    9780520249929
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0520249929
  3. Edition
    1st
  4. Publisher
    University of California Press
  5. Publication date
    September 4, 2006
  6. Language
    English
  7. Dimensions
    6 x 0.88 x 9 inches
  8. Print length
    400 pages
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

"These extraordinary memoirs dictated by a key figure in the history of 20th century Sino-Tibetan relations are essential reading for all interested in understanding this important subject. The founder of the Tibetan Communist Party recalls vividly his personal role in the epic struggle of the Tibetan people over tradition and modernity, and the hopes, betrayals and tragedies that have marked it. The idealism, honesty and courage that have defined his life are in full evidence in this gripping personal narrative."--John L. Holden, President, National Committee on U.S.-China Relations

"This is one of the great untold stories of modern Tibet. Phüntso Wangye is a man who has never stopped fighting for his people, and the story of his life is both heartbreaking and inspiring, and essential for understanding what has happened in Tibet since the 1930s. Tibetan history has never before been as exciting to read as it is here."--John Ackerly, President, International Campaign for Tibet

From the Back Cover

"These extraordinary memoirs dictated by a key figure in the history of 20th century Sino-Tibetan relations are essential reading for all interested in understanding this important subject. The founder of the Tibetan Communist Party recalls vividly his personal role in the epic struggle of the Tibetan people over tradition and modernity, and the hopes, betrayals and tragedies that have marked it. The idealism, honesty and courage that have defined his life are in full evidence in this gripping personal narrative."―John L. Holden, President, National Committee on U.S.-China Relations

"This is one of the great untold stories of modern Tibet. Phüntso Wangye is a man who has never stopped fighting for his people, and the story of his life is both heartbreaking and inspiring, and essential for understanding what has happened in Tibet since the 1930s. Tibetan history has never before been as exciting to read as it is here."―John Ackerly, President, International Campaign for Tibet

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0520249925
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ University of California Press; 1st edition (September 4, 2006)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 400 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780520249929
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0520249929
  • Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 1150
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.15 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.88 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 13 ratings

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Melvyn C. Goldstein

Melvyn C. Goldstein

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Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
13 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Steven Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars This is a wonderful book concerning the head of the Tibetan Communist Party
Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2018
Verified Purchase
This is a wonderful book concerning the head of the Tibetan Communist Party. It discusses why the Chinese Communist Party arrested him and kept him for 16 years in isolation because of a minor mistake. He was eventually freed and went back to politics. He even debated that the Marxist/Leninist thought was not being used correctly in China especially concerning minority issues. All his life he stood up to high government officials and never backed down.
This is a story of great courage and drive to control the Chinese Communists in Tibet to adhere to what the Party in Beijing had formulated for nationalities.
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Tian He
5.0 out of 5 stars While reading this book, it occurred to me that ...
Reviewed in the United States on March 20, 2015
While reading this book, it occurred to me that many parallels can be drawn between TE Lawrence and Phunwang. Both were mid-level figures who played a pivotal role in major historical events, and the impacts of these events have been profoundly felt till today. Both, at some point, found themselves in a situation of double allegiance. Both were visionary idealists whose causes were eventually engulfed by realpolitik. Of course TE Lawrence did not suffer from imprisonment, thanks to his nationality. And compared with TE Lawrence, Phunwang was less sophisticated, or even naive with respect to political game. It is such a shame that Phunwang's life was much less studied and written about. Certainly such researches will be tremendously difficult, since most of the primary sources are likely to be kept inaccessible by Beijing.

I think Phunwang's conversion to communism was a quite representative case among revolutionaries in the third world. Many of them have been influenced by egalitarianism and nationalism before their exposure to communism, which claimed to have provided a theoretical framework for accommodating both sentiments. Phunwang viewed himself as an internationalist, but this might be misleading for interpreting his initial drive to join the communist movement. Another appeal of communism in the early 20th century, in my opinion, came from the Bolshevikian political machinery that could integrate and mobilize a large population to specific goals, something much needed by these third world countries (including China) marooned in civil war, foreign interference, and lack of functional state (using Huntington's term, political decay). And Phunwang must have been impressed by the sweeping victory of Chinese communists, in sharp contrast to the dormant Tibetan ruling class. By the way, it somewhat surprised me that he was so obsessed with his role as a theoretician. Such a character trait is more likely to be found in religious leaders. Perhaps most people have multifaceted potentials, and what will grow depends on the circumstances. Overall he was a fascinating figure, and I would consider it a treat to see more related works published and distributed.
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Hongfeng Zheng
3.0 out of 5 stars The professors and their editors probably are not best at Pinyin because they mistook Qingcheng (prison) as Qingchen ...
Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2015
Verified Purchase
Not extremely deep. The professors and their editors probably are not best at Pinyin because they mistook Qingcheng (prison) as Qingchen and mistook Chen Yun (senior leader after 1977) as Chen Yi (who died in early '70s). It would be great if they could have provided Chinese characters for a Chinese reader who doesn't understand Tibetan.
2 people found this helpful
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Joseph Mellon
5.0 out of 5 stars Phüntso Wangye: a remarkable man.
Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2008
One's respect for Phüntso Wangye grows as one reads this book. This remarkable man went from simple origins to grounding the Tibetan Communist Party, held important posts in the Chinese Communist Party, finally becoming a leading Marxist dialectician. He was closely involved with all the important figures in the Tibet-China question over 5 decades including Mao, Zhou Enlai and the Dalai and Panchen Lamas. He was a fearless proponent of the Tibetan and Khampa identity throughout, while remaining an internationalist, suffering for his integrity with 18 years in solitary confinement. He finally has gained the respect of parties on all sides of the question, while being very clear about his alignment with the CCP.
5 people found this helpful
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Mirapeerance
5.0 out of 5 stars Tibet not Shangrila
Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2006
This is a book of unique interest to anyone more concerned with Tibet than with Shangri-la. Phuntso Wangye reveals himself to Melvyn Goldstein as a man of unique vision, courage and energy. The picture he creates of Eastern Tibet in the forties and fifties is fascinating in its detail for anyone seriously interested in how things came to their present pass in Tibet today. His qualities of creativity and endurance and his ability to hold and explicate complexity are dazzling. He was there. He acted. He learned, thought, studied and survived.

It is also one of a number of records of those who matured through the experience of solitary confinement. His personal courage and clarity make him a natural brother to Nelson Mandela and others who have found their own sanity in the most extreme of conditions.

I have read the book twice now and appreciated its richness more the second time around. Read it and you'll see.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on November 15, 2017
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A very thoughtful book!
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lupo
5.0 out of 5 stars Spannende Lektüre für Tibet-Interessierte
Reviewed in Germany on February 6, 2015
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Tibetans are ruined by hope
Chinese are ruined by suspicion

bod re bas 'phung
rgya dogs pas 'phung
- Traditional Tibetan saying (Seite V)

Die oben angeführte "Synopsis" (der Klappentext des Buchs) gibt den Inhalt des Buchs sehr gut wieder. Hinzufügen möchte ich, dass es eher eine abenteuerliche Autobiographie als ein Geschichtsbuch eines akademischen Historikers ist. (Phuntso Wangye tritt hier als Ich-Erzähler auf, er hatte aus seinem Leben auf Band gesprochen, was die oben genannten Autoren übersetzt und geordnet haben).
Es ist ein gut lesbares schönes Englisch. Es werden auch sieben Gedichte von Phuntso Wangye zitiert (inkl. der Tibetischen Texte).
Phuntso Wangye erzählt nur seine eigenen Erlebnisse eingebettet im historischen Kontext, den man verstehen kann ohne besondere Vorkenntnisse zu haben.
Er wollte eine kommunistische Revolution im alten Tibet initiieren, organisierte eine Kerngruppe aus Freunden und schmuggelte Waffen nach Kham und versuchte Unterstützung von indischen Kommunisten zu bekommen.
Die chinesischen Kommunisten kamen jedoch 1949 seiner Untergrundpartei zuvor. Darin sah oder wollte Phuntso Wangye eine Chance zum Guten sehen und es begann seine erstaunliche Karriere innerhalb der Chinesischen Kommunisten Partei.... bis zur ersten Säuberungswelle. Weil er ein Tibeter war, dem plötzlich nicht mehr zu trauen war, bekam er 18 Jahre Einzelhaft.
Nach der Entlassung (nach Maos Tod) und seiner Rehabilitierung lesen wir im nächsten Kapitel "A New Struggle" von neuen Schwierigkeiten und Kämpfen für eine echte Autonomie Tibets......
Wer sich für die Geschichte Tibets im 20. Jahrhundert interessiert sollte diese Schilderungen nicht auslassen.
Es ist eins der Bücher von einem Augenzeugen (abgesehen während der Kulturrevolution - da war er im "Isolationsgefängnis") während der wohl dramatischsten und folgenschwersten Epoche Tibets - und es ist ein Buch darüber was ein einzelner Mensch in einem Leben alles bewirken kann - und erleiden kann.
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