Jonathan Green (7)

In 2006 a video began circulating on YouTube showing Tibetan refugee's escaping across the border into Nepal while being fired upon by Chinese army goons. In the distance a lone figure falls dead on the mountain. This became known as the Nangpa La shooting, which is the story behind investigative journalist Jonathan Green's book Murder in the High Himalaya. It seems like a minor incident now, but Green draws in many facets and people to build a gripping and important contemporary story about show more Tibet, and a very personal profile of exactly what "human rights abuse" means.

Green begins with a brief introduction to the history of Tibet and the Chinese occupation in 1950. He then threads a braided human interest narrative about two main characters: Kelsang Namtso, the 17-year old girl murdered on the mountain; and Luis Benitez, an American mountain climber who witnessed it and whose life would be changed forever. Each chapter switches back and forth between the two, moving forward in time until their paths finally cross that fateful day. It reads like a novel. The book then moves forward from the incident showing how it effected everyone involved.

I don't like to use the Nazi analogy, but its true, Tibet today is like occupied Europe under the Nazis. Not Western Europe, but Eastern Europe, where things were much tougher. It makes for thrilling if not chilling reading with late-night escapes, dogs, searchlights and check-points. Sadistic guards, torture, bribes, safe houses, underground railroads, etc.. it's all real and happening today. Green's book is one of the few reliable accounts since the wall of secrecy and Tibetan culture still keep most people silent.

Murder changed how I view Tibet, its clearly a very bad situation. As well it changed how I see wealthy mountain climbers who hoard the peaks every year in feats of egoistic bravo, while at their feet Tibetans are trying to escape to freedom and being shot. It makes climbing Everest seem somewhat banal and anti-climatic and strips it of its romanticism. The true story of Tibet is clearly not good business for China, or mountain climbing companies, all of whom collaborate to keep silent. The book is full of pseudonyms, people are afraid of being ostracized for speaking out, either from the tight-nit climbing community or by Chinese authorities. The book has been optioned to be made into a film for release in 2012, hopefully this powerful story will reach a wide audience.

--Review by Stephen Balbach, via CoolReading (c) 2010 cc-by-nd show less

Murder in the High Himalaya is one of those rare non-fiction books that elicited a myriad of emotional responses from me. I love mountain climbing and had for years heard rumors of the Tibetan plight. Yet, I had no real idea what exactly their hardships were outside of knowing the Dalai Lama was exiled and the Chinese occupied their otherwise peaceful country.

Jonathan Green compiled an incredible amount of data from the few witnesses willing to come forward and confirm the murder they show more witnessed on Cho Oyu. He brings the stories of the survivors, the deceased, and the witnesses together in alternating stories, weaving a timeline of events.

From this book, I was able to grasp the extreme hardships these peaceful people go through to leave Tibet, go to India, and meet their exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. Pilgrims die, they lose limbs, are imprisioned, beaten, tortured, threatened, separated from their families, and murdered. Despite the hardships of little food, water, clothing, shoes, and experience, a few make it through the Himalayas. Sadly, most do not make it.

I listened to the audio version of this book. While listening my emotions varied from sadness to hope, anger to tears.

At the center of the story the main focus bounces from a young nun names Kelsang and her best friend Dolma to American mountain guide, Luis Benitez. Luis and a few other westerners risk their careers and lives to get the story out. Romanian journalist Sergiu Matei had the wisdom to break out the camera and start filming once he heard gunshots. He smuggled the footage out of the country and refuting the Chinese press release on the incident, proved the coverup with irrefutable evidence.

The stories of the Tibetan refugees and pilgrims were heartbreaking but I sincerely appreciate the effort of Jonathan Green, and all of the climbers who came forward as witnesses to such a cold blooded murder of a young nun. show less

This is one of those books whose shortcomings in the literary area is compensated by the weight of the story.

In 2006 something happened in Tibet, something that probably happens many times per year, but for once it was caught on film, film that was later spread outside China.

This book tells the story of those months, of those people, on all sides except the Chinese Army (which I guess were not interested in talking about what they had done) and it's a story that would make everyone sad, that show more would make almost everyone angry, would make most people disappointed.

The reason you should be angry is that this talks about how China treats Tibet and the Tibetan people. It's a very remote area of the world and little news leave or enter that area that isn't controlled by the Chinese government. That has sadly allowed them to treat the people living there in a terrible way without much proof.

China is a dictatorial one-party state. They torture and kill their own people. They lie, cheat and use subterfuge to prevent information from coming out. And the sad part, everyone in the western world knows this deep inside, but with the increasing power of the Chinese state, and increasing wealth, the greed overcomes the conscience and we ignore it. Sad. Very sad.

But this book is a reminder. A useful reminder. Not a great literary work but very useful to be reminded about these things. show less

A very important book for anybody interested in Tibet, modern China, human rights, and climbing.

It deals with an incident which became known as Nangpa La shooting/murder. In this incident, a 17 year old nun was attempting to cross the border to Nepal when she was shot at from behind and killed. The incident, in itself not so rare, was for the first time captured on camera and therefore documented, and subsequently made headlines and brought awareness to the plight of Tibet around the world. show more

There are many issues that are dealt with in the book. The murder itself is symptomatic of human rights abuses by the Chinese occupying Tibet, and the glimpse we get of the ordinary life in the Chinese part of Tibet is quite appalling. Another big part of the story deals with commercialization of climbing and what seems to be loss of ethics and/or lack of sensitivity to the suffering of others in some climbing expeditions and their leaders.

The story follows two people as their fates intertwine very closely over the period of a few weeks, even though they know nothing about each other- a close friend of the shot nun- Dolma Palkyi and an American guide and expedition leader, Luis Benitez. Their lives will be changed forever by what happens on Nagpa La pass.

It is especially interesting in light of another book that I just read, also about Tibet, The Snow Leopard. It’s amazing how much has changed in the last 40 years. Unfortunately, it does not seem to have changed for the better.

Here are the links to the real footage of the killing, and the documentary that was made of it.
The trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFw-GmmuR4s

Murder in the Snow Part 1/6
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrj9JOOvlos

(follow the links for further parts) show less