DAY OF ACTION | REFUTING THE “PEACEFUL LIBERATION”

On July 13^th,  while Washington D.C. is abuzz with Kalachakra fever, over 50 Tibetans and Tibet supporters staged a protest in front of the Chinese consulate. 

Daily protests continue in Kardze—Eastern Tibet—while the Chinese government is commemorating 60 years since the “peaceful liberation” of Tibet.  Students for a Free Tibet called for a Global Day of Action to highlight the true reality of 60 years of failed Chinese policies in Tibet.

Watch AFP’s video coverage of the protest here: http://youtu.be/9wblX_aN3Es

 

The protest included speeches by former political prisoners Ngawang Sandrol and Phuntsok Nyidron, Amnesty International’s T. Kumar, Dorjee of RTYC, Ngawang Tashi, and Alim Seytoff of the Uyghur American Association.

The International Tibet Network’s “17 Points of Disagreement: 60 Years of China’s Failed Policies in Tibet” pamphlets were distributed.

View, download, and share the pamphlet here: http://www.chinasfailedtibetpolicies.org/

The protest was covered by AFP, and included quotes from SFT’s Executive Director Tenzin Dorjee.

Click here to read the article: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5j8JeRJKXvv23NDgu6i6W0RuZH0KA?docId=CNG.561caa8da42ba25c5ee1f3158a926c28.da1

Did you stage a Day of Action for Tibet on July 13th? Send us your stories, photos, and videos for us to post on our blog or website! info[at]studentsforafreetibet.org

It Was Not a Good Day to be a Chinese Official

In the early morning hours on Monday, May 9^th, a group of us drove from New York to Washington D.C., to raise our voices at the U.S. China Strategic and Economic Dialogue. When our van pulled up in D.C., Tibetans were already confronting four full buses of Chinese officials and military personal.

SFT board member, Tenzing Barshee, unveiled a Tibetan flag in the face of Deputy Chief of the People’s Liberation Army, General Ma Xiaotian. Tibetan palas and amalas placed flags over the windows of their buses as activists confronted the Chinese officials.

As Tibetans in Ngaba, Eastern Tibet continue to experience repression from Beijing, Tibetans in D.C., brought their voices straight to the Chinese leadership.

By 1:00 PM, we gathered in front of the State Department. As 20 of us began to raise our bull horns, voices, and flags, we were joined by the 8 Ngaba Peace Marchers. During the previous 7 days, the marchers had epically walked from New York to Washington D.C., and insisted on walking the distance from Capitol Hill, where they lobbied their congressional representatives, to the State Department.

For the next 3 hours, we had unprecedented access to limousines and buses full of Chinese officials. We hounded them.

It was reported,”…protesters chanted “Shame on China!” and held signs outside the building that read “China — Stop Military Crackdown in Ngaba, Tibet! (Huffington Post)” and “Tibetan protesters demanded that China ensure the freedom of monks at the Kirti monastery (AFP).”

Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton responded to the Dialogue by saying, the Chinese leadership “is trying to stop history, which is a fool’s errand” and called Beijing’s human rights record “deplorable.”

That night, back in New York, as I walked home, exhausted, my face burned by the sun, and my voice lost, I thought of the 8 marchers who tirelessly walked from New York to Washington D.C. I thought of the hundreds of monks, students, and lay Tibetans in Ngaba whose calls for human rights and freedom we delivered to the Chinese leadership.

It indeed was not a good day to be a Chinese official.

Click here to view photos from the protest.

A Reason to Hope: My Interaction with His Holiness in Los Angeles

On May 4th, Amnesty International honored His Holiness the Dalai Lama at its 50th anniversary event in Los Angeles. During the presentation, I had the opportunity to represent SFT and ask a question on stage.

As His Holiness exited with his entourage, he stopped to speak with a few of us. I held out a khata (traditional greeting scarf) and as I greeted him, he held my hands and said, “Don’t give up; you all must continue your work. Never lose hope, because change is definitely coming.”

He went on to say that in light of the increasing pace of change in China, it is important to work with the Chinese people – writers, intellectuals, artists, the opinion-makers of society.

The previous day, I had spoken at a conference bringing together Chinese dissidents, Tibetan activists, Mongolians, Uyghurs, and Taiwanese to discuss opportunities and develop strategies for advancing our respective struggles for freedom, democracy, and human rights.

I explained to His Holiness that our global network was engaging in strategic Chinese outreach by connecting with key democracy advocates, writers, artists, students, lawyers and intellectuals. He assured me our efforts will make a difference and that change is imminent.

In that moment, I felt the immensity of the work ahead of us, but also had the distinct feeling that victory was inevitable.

With your help we can bring about freedom in Tibet. Please donate today to support SFT’s work.

http://sft.convio.net/site/Donation2?df_id=1345&1345.donation=form1

As we build new and strategic alliances, we must continue to challenge China’s abuses in Tibet at every turn. I was reminded of this minutes after His Holiness left, when I joined Lobsang, the official videographer for the award ceremony.

Lobsang is from Ngaba, the county in Amdo, Tibet that is under attack by Chinese security forces. His 15-year-old cousin, Norbu, was shot dead by China’s armed police on March 16th, 2008 for taking part in a peaceful protest for Tibetan freedom.

Three years after the day Norbu was shot, Phuntsok Jarutsang, a 20-year-old monk, lit himself on fire in an act of protest against China’s repression, and troops have since laid siege on Kirti monastery.

Right now, U.S. Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, are meeting with Chinese officials in Washington, DC. Urge the U.S. Administration to raise Tibet and human rights during this week’s U.S.-China Strategic & Economic Dialogue.

Together, we can ensure that one day soon, people like Lobsang – and all Tibetans – are united with their families and homeland.

Please support SFT today: http://sft.convio.net/site/Donation2?df_id=1345&1345.donation=form1

Thank you for all you do for Tibet,

Tenzin Dorjee (Tendor)
Executive Director

Update: Tibetans, Supporters Rally for Tibet in New York

Thousands of Tibetans and Tibet supporters take to the streets in New York to commemorate the 1959 Tibetan Uprising in Tibet. Click here to view live updates via twitter.

Tibetans and supporters rally in New York on the 52nd anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising.

Click here to view more photos from NY on the SFT Flickr.

Tibet Haunts President Hu in Washington, D.C.

Last week, Chinese President Hu Jintao was confronted by the skeletons in his closet.

Tibetans and their supporters dogged the Chinese leader everywhere he went during his 3-day visit to Washington, D.C. Giant skeleton puppets representing Hu’s failed leadership and decades of repressive policies in Tibet haunted him in the streets of the U.S. capital. 
Watch a video roundup and view photos of the colorful protests.

From implementing martial law in Tibet in 1989 to his ongoing crackdown against pro-Tibet protesters, Hu Jintao has pursued policies that brutalize and marginalize the Tibetan people. Read the press release by Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) and the Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC) denouncing Hu Jintao’s failed leadership on Tibet and highlighting the Tibetan people’s enduring spirit of resistance.

SFT and TYC also jointly projected pro-Tibet images onto the Chinese embassy in D.C. during Hu’s visit.

On Wednesday, SFT’s Executive Director, Tenzin Dorjee (Tendor), spoke at a coalition rally in front of the White House alongside representatives from the Ugyhur, Taiwanese, Burmese, Chinese democracy and human rights communities. Each speaker echoed the call for long overdue change in Tibet and in China; Beijing must respect universal values of human rights and freedom if China is to be truly accepted as an equal among nations and a leader on the world stage.

Our Pressure is Working! Thanks to the consistent pressure on the Obama administration over the past two years, Tibet was raised as a central issue in the United States’ human rights agenda with China. President Obama pressed his Chinese counterpart to engage in a meaningful dialogue with the Dalai Lama and his representatives.

Through our continued efforts, we can ensure that our government leaders collectively stand up to China and press for an end to its illegal occupation of Tibet.

In the coming months, Tibetans and their supporters around the world will take part in what has become an annual Lobby Day for Tibet. On this day we visit our elected representatives, update them on the situation inside Tibet, and ask for their support of the Tibetan people’s nonviolent struggle for freedom.

If you are interested in taking part in the Lobby Day events, please contact: grassroots@studentsforafreetibet.org and we’ll send you more information pertaining to your country.

Support SFT’s hard-hitting actions for Tibetan freedom:
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Coalition Urges President Obama to Raise Tibet During US-China Summit

STUDENTS FOR A FREE TIBET

January 13, 2011
For Immediate Release

Contacts: Tenzin Dorjee, Executive Director, +1 646-724-0748

Kate Woznow, Deputy Director, +1 917-601-0069

Coalition Urges President Obama to Raise Tibet During US-China Summit

New York – A coalition of 39 Tibetan organizations and Tibet support groups across the United States sent a letter today to President Barack Obama asking that Tibet be a substantive part of the agenda during his meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao on January 19th.

“President Obama and his administration must publicly and vigorously raise Tibet and human rights when he meets Chinese President Hu Jintao,” said Tenzin Dorjee, Executive Director of Students for a Free Tibet.  “Human rights and freedom for Tibetans – and indeed all people – are universal values that Americans hold dear and want championed when our leaders talk to China.”

The letter states that the United States’ “long-standing history of supporting the Tibetan people creates an incumbent duty on this Administration to continue to raise the issue with Chinese leaders at the highest levels.” The visit comes at a time when Chinese leaders are escalating their violent and repressive policies in Tibet, including a full-scale attack against Tibetan writers, artists and intellectuals.

The letter argues that China’s failed policies in Tibet have consequences far beyond Tibet’s borders. China’s wide-scale construction of dams on the upper-reaches of Asia’s largest rivers originating on the Tibetan plateau that flow into India, Cambodia and other neighboring countries, are fast becoming a potential source of regional instability.

Students for a Free Tibet, along with the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress of New York/New Jersey and Washington D.C. and the Capital Area Tibetan Association, is planning a series of protests from January 18th-20th in Washington, D.C. to coincide with Chinese President Hu Jintao’s visit. A full schedule of the protests is available at: http://www.studentsforafreetibet.org/hujintao

The text of the letter and list of signatory groups are as follows:

January 13, 2011

The President
The White House
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

We, the undersigned Tibetan Associations, organizations and Tibet support groups, are writing to ask that you make Tibet a substantive part of the agenda when President Hu Jintao visits Washington on January 19.

You have spoken often of the universality of fundamental human rights, most recently to mark the awarding of the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize to imprisoned Chinese writer and democracy activist Liu Xiaobo.

As you are aware, for the past six decades, the Tibetan people have been denied their fundamental human rights.  President Hu Jintao’s visit to Washington is a unique opportunity to engage him meaningfully on the Tibet issue and showcase the ideals and values cherished by Americans, including openness, democracy and individual liberty.  These principles underlie your remarks about rights that are universal to all human beings.

The United States has a long-standing history of supporting the Tibetan people and their peaceful struggle for human rights and freedom.  This support has become institutionalized within the U.S. government through the development of policies and programs designed to help Tibetans preserve and promote their culture, identity and dignity.  You have commended His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s tireless efforts to negotiate a resolution for Tibet with the Chinese government, a position consistent with long-standing U.S. policy.

Tibet is an integral part of the U.S.-China relationship for moral, historical and strategic reasons.  The position the United States has adopted on Tibet creates an incumbent duty on this Administration to continue to raise the issue with Chinese leaders at the highest levels. Tibet must be on the agenda of your summit with President Hu.

The recent protests by Tibetan students objecting to the central government’s plans to subordinate the Tibetan language to Mandarin as the language of instruction are emblematic of China’s policy failures in Tibet.

Moreover, there is a growing recognition of the potential impact China’s infrastructure projects on the Tibetan plateau will have on access to water in downstream countries, as Secretary Clinton noted during her visit to Cambodia.  The role of Tibet, also known by scientists as the “Third Pole,” in global climate change is further evidence that developments in Tibet are anything but the exclusive internal affairs of the People’s Republic of China.  Without a multilateral framework to address these issues, Chinese policies in Tibet could exacerbate regional instability.  A just and lasting solution for Tibet that includes Tibetans as integral stakeholders will bring greater stability for China, its regional neighbors and indeed the world.

These points underlie the central message that we ask you to convey to President Hu – that the United States has, and will continue to have, a strong interest in Tibet and will remain committed to facilitating a just and lasting resolution for Tibet.  This commitment comes with an expectation that Tibetans must be freely able to exercise their basic human rights and freedoms, preserve their distinctive culture, and address the ecological, educational, political and economic consequences of the Chinese government’s failed policies in Tibet.

The U.S. government should continue to press China’s leadership for results-oriented negotiations to achieve a political solution for Tibet and engage China in topical areas, including education policies pertaining to Tibetans and regional discussions on water security.

Your proactive approach will demonstrate to the Chinese government that Tibet is an integral part of the U.S.-China relationship as are basic universal values of human rights and dignity.  Again, we thank you for your public expressions of support for the Tibet issue and for your leadership in raising it with Chinese leaders, and look forward to your continuing to exert this leadership when you meet with President Hu.

Sincerely,

Association Cognizance Tibet, North Carolina
Capital Area Tibetan Association
Indiana Tibetan Association
Northwest Tibetan Cultural Association
Tibetan American Foundation of Minnesota
Tibetan Association of Boston
Tibetan Association of Charlottesville
Tibetan Association of Colorado
Tibetan Association of Connecticut
Tibetan Association of Idaho
Tibetan Association of Ithaca
Tibetan Association of New York and New Jersey
Tibetan Association of North Carolina
Tibetan Association of Northern California
Tibetan Association of Ohio and Michigan
Tibetan Association of Santa Fe
Tibetan Association of Philadelphia
Tibetan Association of Southern California
Tibetan Association of Washington
Utah Tibetan Association
Wisconsin Tibetan Association
Bay Area Friends of Tibet
Boston Tibet Network
Committee of 100 for Tibet
International Campaign for Tibet
International Tibet Independence Movement
Los Angeles Friends of Tibet
Regional Tibetan Youth Congress of New York and New Jersey
San Diego Friends of Tibet
Santa Barbara Friends of Tibet
Seattle Friends of Tibet
Sierra Friends of Tibet
Students for a Free Tibet
Tibet Committee of Fairbanks
The Tibet Connection
Tibet Justice Center
Tibet Online
U.S. Tibet Committee
Western Colorado Friends of Tibet

-30-

Students for a Free Tibet Japan Protests Hu Jintao

Update from SFT Japan’s Director Tsering Dorjee:

On 13th November 2010, the APEC leaders gathered at Yokohama, Japan for the APEC Forum. A peace march and demonstration against China’s continued and brutal suppression of Tibet was organized by the Tibetan Community Japan with the support of Student for Free Tibet Japan.

The significant day began with speeches delivered by Zenkoji Temple Ven.Wakaomi, followed by the Vice President of the Tibetan community Ms. Dolma Tsering. In her speech, she explained the purpose of the demonstration:

“We are not here to protest against the countries participating in the APEC forum and we support a successful outcome. However, it is our appeal to the various world leaders gathered to raise the issue of human right and Tibet with China in a concrete way.”

Finally, everyone vigorously sang the Tibetan national anthem led by the Tibetan people. Makino Seishu, Japan ruling Diet member and ardent supporter of Tibet sent the following message:

“I firmly believe the core political agenda in the 21st century rests with the dilemma of human rights and poverty alleviation. With addressing and solving these issues, there will be peace in this world. And I am committed to addressing the Tibet issue in the spirit of non violence and dialogue with the people of the world. Being one of the politicians of Japan, I share my solidarity with the people protesting here today.”

The famous Japanese Alpinist Ken Noguchi also sent a message of support:

“According to China, Tibet is an internal problem and China always warns to other countries not to intervene in China’s internal affair. Until now, many Tibetan have been jailed, tortured and killed. Is this act of brutality not a human rights issues rather than China’s internal affair? I think human right issues have no boundaries.”

Around 140 people joined the protest which started near the APEC venue in Goshoyama Park and passed through Isezakicho mall, ending up at Yokohama Park. SFT Japan especially emphasized the recent Chinese language policy imposed on Tibetans and designed to eradicate the Tibetan language in Tibet. The protest was covered by various Japan media, including NHK.

The main objectives of the protest were to protest China’s continued and brutal suppression of the Tibetan people and culture, including the recent decision to make Chinese language the medium of instruction in Tibetan schools in eastern Tibet, a move aimed at eradicating the foundation of Tibetan language.

Yokohama city deployed 21,000 Japan police to avoid any disruptions to the G20 Forum.

Worldwide Solidarity Actions for Tibetan Students in Tibet

Beginning on October 19th, thousands of Tibetan students in Tibet and China took to the streets to demand “Equality of Races and Freedom of Language.” The students were protesting the Chinese government’s plan to replace Tibetan by Chinese as the medium of instruction.

Below are photos and videos from solidarity actions and lobbying initiatives held around the world. More actions have taken place and are being organized in Dharamsala, Mundgod, Bylakuppe, Belgium, Holland, Poland, Germany, Switzerland, New York, San Francisco, Portland, Utah, Wisconsin, Vermont, and many more.

Please email us with photos and videos of your solidarity actions or to request resources.

Madison, WI: Solidarity Video
The members of Madison SFT and RTYC Wisconsin compiled this video with the help of local children to show their support for the students in Tibet.

Chicago, IL: Protest & Solidarity Rally
December 2, 2010: About 50 Tibetans protested in front of the Chinese Embassy in Chicago against China’s recent educational reform. This protest was organized by the Wisconsin Tibetan Association of Madison. The RTYC (Regional Tibetan Youth Congress) and SFT (Students for Free Tibet) of Madison participated in the protest as well. Members of the Chicago Tibetan Community joined the protest.

Dharamsala, India: Tibetan Language Rights Solidarity Protest
On October 31st, Students for a Free Tibet India held a candlelight march and rally in solidarity with Tibetan students in Tibet.

New York City: Solidarity Rally
On October 20th, around 60 students and Tibetan community members gathered in NYC’s busy Union Square park to send a message of solidarity to the thousands of Tibetan students who have protested for “Equality of Race and Freedom of Language.” More from Young Tibet News.

Bard College, New York: Photo campaign and discussion

St. Paul Minnesota: “Rebkong Lobby Day”
On October 25th, members of the Tibetan community, the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress, and SFT delivered 28 letters to both the House and Senate – the Governor and Attorney General. Local Minnesotans ages 7 to 70 yrs stood in solidarity with the students in Tibet. More from the Tibet Express.

Portland, Oregon: Protest and Solidarity Rally
On October 29th, dozens of Tibetans and Tibet supporters, joined by SFT Portland State, came together in Portland’s Pioneer Courthouse Square to show their solidarity with Tibetan students in Tibet. Participants carried the letters of the Tibetan alphabet, passed out flyers, and held signs and banners.

Middlebury College, Vermont: Photo campaign

San Francisco, California: Protest at Chinese Consulate.
On October 29th, members of the Tibetan community of San Francisco protested in front of the Chinese consulate to show their solidarity with Tibetan students in Tibet.

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