Back from the brink

As a young man who grew up in Nepal, Naryan Bell has seen more than the average 18-year-old. Caught in the recent tide of Tibetan protests, Bell has witnessed first hand the brutal beatings and arrests that have been widely reported in the international media since the beginning of this year.

In April, Bell Joined his Tibetan school friends in front of the Chinese Embassy and the UN Office in Kathmandu.

With the Beijing Olympics approaching, exiled Tibetans had begun staging regular demonstrations in an effort to bring international attention to their plight.

But Nepalese authorities had vowed to crush any anti-Chinese activities.

"The police started to charge everyone. Old Tibet women were trying to push the police back. I got whacked with a baton pretty hard," he said pointing to a scar.

"It really hurt and I was complaining until I looked over and saw a woman who was smashed in the face. Mine hurt, but not that badly."

Arriving in Vancouver last week to begin classes at the University of B.C., Bell is eager to tell the public about the atrocities he has seen while living in Nepal.

Home to thousands of Tibetans, Kathmandu has become a major staging ground for anti-Chinese protests.

"Police left white protesters alone however Tibetans were thrown into a van which had bars on the windows," Bell said, referring to the April protest at which 500 demonstrators were arrested.

"You could see through the windows police whacking the Tibetans with batons.

"After the protest, I went for some food. All of a sudden you could hear shots and all the workers in the restaurant ran to the front and shut the doors and windows.

The police were firing tear gas. A small can got into the restaurant. There were young kids that were picking up the cans and throwing them back at the police."

After the crackdown on Tibetans, Olympic torch relays were disrupted around the world by Tibetan sympathizers.

Authorities have had to beef up security, adding a seemingly dark side to what has typically been a light-hearted celebration.

In the face of mounting political pressure, China has made nice with the world, highlighting its efforts to assist foreign media, despite recently restricting full Internet access, and using a velvet hammer to crush political dissidents.

While Chinese authorities did not immediately take down Tibet banners that had been hung near Bird’s Nest Stadium by four foreign activists on the eve of the Olympic Games, within the week, they did deport seven Canadians linked to pro-Tibetan protests to Hong Kong.

Human rights have undoubtedly become a point of contention for the Communist government.

Many had hoped the Olympics would spur positive changes within the country but so far, China has been all talk and little action, according to Liberal MP and human-rights critic Irwin Cotler.

On the eve of the Olympics, he presented a report that details what he says are 11 areas of human rights violations in China, including: Tibetans; Falun Gong practitioners; the crackdown on press freedom; mistreatment of prisoners; the death penalty; and complicity in genocide and rights abuses in countries such as Darfur, Zimbabwe, Burma, and Nepal.

At a press conference on Capital Hill, MP Cotler told local media: "There is a persistent and pervasive assault on human rights in China today and a betrayal of the Chinese government’s own undertaking to respect the Olympic charter and Olympic Games and the rights of its citizens."
Several attempts were made to get a comment from Vancouver Consul General Yang Qiang, but there was no reply before press time.

Despite warming relations between China and Canada, Prime Minister Stephen Harper did not attend the opening ceremony on Aug. 8, attributing his absence to a conflict in schedules.

He is one of several high ranking state officials, including Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel and Britain’s Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who took a pass.

Standing in front of the Vancouver Art Gallery last Thursday, Bell looked about in amazement, as a group of demonstrators got ready to march to the Chinese Consulate General on Granville Street.

This was his first Western protest. And despite the heated passion shown by the crowd, there were no arrests and — perhaps even more perturbing for Bell — no fear of violence.

"Here, police work with you, not against you," Bell observed. "I was at a protest once in Nepal where . . . a shot [was fired] to kill.

I have even heard stories about how police once traded a truck of Tibetans for a truck full of whiskey."

Growing up in Kathmandu with Tibetan friends, it wasn’t long before Bell started to accompany them on a number of protests.

It’s safe to say that Bell’s passion for social justice is inspired by his mother, Viva, who is a prominent activist in the community.

With her spare time and money, Viva runs Umbrella, a number of schools in the Kathmandu area that provide free education to children who have been orphaned, trafficked and/or abandoned because of the country’s 10-year civil war.

"Bell grew up helping out at the orphanages," says Mati Bernabei who taught him as a young boy and is a friend of Viva’s.

"He’s got 18-year-old boy in him but he’s a pretty extraordinary young man who is an activist at heart."

It’s no surprise Bell has dedicated so much of his time to social activism. His grandparents fled to Canada after being persecuted in Northern Ireland as one was Protestant and one was Catholic.

An unusual mix of Irish, Canadian and Nepali, Bell was raised by his Canadian mother who met Bell’s father during a spiritual journey through Asia.

"Bell’s mom was a hippie and his dad was some kind of a swami," laughed Bernabei.

"I think it was a real romantic religious experience."

Bernabei, who is the director of the Canada Tibet Committee, an independent group of Tibetan and non-Tibetan Canadians, says Bell will no doubt join her group as soon as he settles in.

Having only been here just over a week, Bell says he is still getting adjusted to life in Vancouver.

Last Monday, Bell moved into his dorm room on the UBC campus and stared the two-week Jump Start program for foreign students.

He intends to earn his degree in political science and international relations.

While Bell has already become accustomed to certain customs like the bus system, he is still baffled by Canada’s corrupt-free bureaucracy.

Last Wednesday, he received his social security card and as he walked away in a dream-like state, a quiet smirk spread across his face.

He simply couldn’t believe he didn’t have to bribe anyone.