Tibetans in NY Mark 2008 Uprising Anniversary
March 14th, 2010- Despite heavy rain around 100 Tibetans and supporters held a demonstration in front of the Chinese Consulate in New York to mark the anniversary of the 2008 uprising in Tibet. The protesters called for the release of Tibetan political prisoners and for an end to China’s occupation of Tibet. Activists also collected signatures for the release of Tenzin Delek Rinpoche. The protest was organized by the 5 New York Tibetan organizations.
Click here for video of the protest by RTYCNYNJ
Click here for more photos
Press Release: Global Demonstrations Mark Tibetan Uprising Day; New Resistance Movement Takes Root In Tibet Despite Continued Repression
STUDENTS FOR A FREE TIBET
For Immediate Release:
March 10th, 2010
Contact: Tenzin Dorjee, +1 646-724-0748
Kate Woznow, +1 917-601-0069
GLOBAL DEMONSTRATIONS MARK TIBETAN UPRISING DAY; NEW RESISTANCE MOVEMENT TAKES ROOT IN TIBET DESPITE CONTINUED REPRESSION
New York – Thousands of Tibetans and Tibet supporters in dozens of countries will take to the streets today, March 10th, to commemorate the 51st anniversary of Tibetan National Uprising Day and to show solidarity with a new nonviolent resistance movement gaining momentum in Tibet. Today also marks two years since monks began protest marches in Lhasa, Tibet’s capital, that sparked the largest uprising against Chinese rule in Tibet since 1959. Chinese security forces are now a permanent presence in Tibetan towns and villages and a new “Strike Hard” campaign was launched in Lhasa in advance of this sensitive anniversary with hundreds of Tibetans being interrogated and harassed in recent days.
Tibetans and Tibet supporters in at least 100 cities worldwide, including in the USA, Belgium, Poland, UK, France, Germany, India, Australia, and Taiwan are marking the historic day fifty-one years ago – when Tibetans rose against Chinese rule – with protests, marches, candle light vigils, and government lobbying initiatives. In response to a new “I am Tibetan” campaign originating from Tibet, Tibetans in exile will also be recording messages of support dedicated to Tibetans living inside Tibet as part of their Tibetan National Uprising Day activities (1).
“In spite of China’s repression, there is a powerful new movement being led by the young generation inside Tibet. They are using creative, non-violent tactics to empower themselves and their communities and to challenge Chinese rule,” said Tenzin Dorjee, Executive Director of Students for a Free Tibet. “March 10th is a day for Tibetans everywhere to be proud of being Tibetan – proud of our ancestors who died protecting our homeland, proud of our brothers and sisters inside Tibet who continue to resist Chinese oppression, and proud of the new generation of Tibetans who are raising the flag of Tibetan freedom around the world.”
China has heightened security in Tibet in advance of today’s anniversary with journalists and most foreigners effectively barred from the region. Tibet advocates have also noted increased efforts by the Chinese government to silence international support for Tibet in recent days. Tibetan refugees have been preemptively arrested in Nepal, and in the United States, Chinese officials have attempted without success to pressure municipal governments to revoke annual proclamations of support for Tibet.
“As the Chinese government continues its brutal repression inside Tibet, we call on leaders of free countries to take new, bold and coordinated approaches to help secure a just and fair resolution for the Tibetan people,” said Kate Woznow, Deputy Director of Students for a Free Tibet.”
Note to editors
(1) Examples of the “I am Tibetan” movement include a homemade video from eastern Tibet posted to YouTube in late December, 2009 titled “I am Tibetan” as well as poems and a hip hop music video posted online by Tibetans that have been translated here: http://www.highpeakspureearth.com/2010/03/new-generation-hip-hop-music-video-from.html and here: http://www.highpeakspureearth.com/2010/02/i-am-tibetan-by-woeser.html
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Media Round Up: Dalai Lama “Very Happy” With Obama Meeting
The Independent quotes SFT’s Executive Director Tenzin Dorjee:
“As the leader of the free world, President Obama is uniquely positioned to help broker a negotiated resolution that will give the Tibetan people the freedom they long for and deserve,” said Tenzin Dorjee, Executive Director
of Students for a Free Tibet: http://is.gd/8GMkN
The White House has released this great photo of this morning’s meeting between the two Nobel Peace laureates. View the photos and read CBS’s coverage of the meeting here: http://is.gd/8FVfx
SKY News has also posted a video of His Holiness applauding the United State for upholding universal moral values: “Since my childhood I always admire America – not economy but mainly as a champion of Democracy, freedom, human value, human creativity: http://is.gd/8G2eH
More celebrations reported in Tibet by Phayul.com: Thousands rejoice in Tibet as Obama meets Dalai Lama
SFTers in Delhi Call for Climate Justice in Tibet
SFT India joined the Global Climate Day of Action in Delhi, organized by Greenpeace,350.org and several other Indian organizations.
Chinese Consulate in Germany Faces Protests over Dhondup Wangchen
From Phayul.com
By Phurbu Thinley
Frankfurt, July 31: Some 20 Free Tibet activists on Friday gathered in front of the Chinese Consulate General in Frankfurt to call for the release of Tibetan filmmaker Dhondup Wangchen.
Chinese authorities arrested Wangchen and his monk assistant Jigme Gyatso in March 2008, amidst growing anti-China unrest in Tibet, for their role in making the documentary “Jigdrel” or “Leaving Fear Behind.”
The 25-minute film was intended to shed light on lives of Tibetans under the Chinese rule in run-up to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.
The peaceful protest before the Chinese consulate today came amidst fear that Wangchen could face trial in Chinese court anytime soon after spending more than 18 months under detention. If convicted, Tibetans and activists fear that Wangchen will face imprisonment sentence of up to 15 years.
The small group of protester displayed a huge Tibetan national flag and portraits of Dhondup Wangchen across the street facing the Chinese Consulate here as German police kept a friendly but close watch on them throughout the peaceful demonstration.
The protesters repeatedly shouted “Free Tibet”, “Release Dhondup Wangchen” and “Leaving Fear Behind- Nothing but the Truth!” slogans on loud speakers. Other slogans included “Shame on Chinese Government” and “Release the Political Prisoners”.
East Turkestan – an issue of nationhood for the Uyghurs
Most of the news coverage of the events in Urumchi over the past week reduced the unrest down to an issue of “ethnic tension” or “ethnic rioting,” completely glossing over the issue of occupation. China’s occupation of East Turkestan (what China calls Xinjiang), the Uyghur homeland, is at the root of the violent events that have transpired. No one is denying that the ensuing violence manifested itself along ethnic lines, but ultimately this is not a battle between “Han” Chinese and Uygur “Muslims;” it is a battle of survival for the Uyghur people against China’s systematic efforts to suppress the Uyghur nation and colonize the Ugyhur homeland.
Below are a few of the analysis pieces that are starting to address this issue:
Al Jazeera’s Steve Chao discusses how China’s “Go West” policy of Chinese resettlement has fueled the unrest:
The Guardian’s John Gittings talks about Uyghur separatism:
Until now, it has been Beijing that talked up the threat of ethnic separatism in its far north-west region of Xinjiang, while the attitude of most of the Muslim Uighur population has been one of quiet – though unhappy – acceptance of Chinese rule. But the latest outbreak of violence in the regional capital of Urumqi suggests that Uighur resentment at heavy-handed Chinese policies has begun to boil over. For Uighurs to challenge the authorities in what has become a largely Chinese city is even more remarkable.
Xinjiang has a history of only intermittent control from Beijing and the misfortune of being seen by the Chinese as a strategic buffer region against its neighbors. There were two short-lived independent “East Turkestan” republics in the 1930s and 1940s – the second under strong Soviet influence. After the 1949 Chinese communist victory, Beijing quickly moved thousands of soldiers to set up paramilitary state farms: Xinjiang became a favored location for penal centers, and later on for Red Guards who were “sent down to the countryside”. After subsequent waves of migration, Han Chinese now make up 40% of the population, not much less than the 47% of Uighurs.
Rebiya Kadeer: The Real Uighur Story
Uyghur exiled leader Rebiya Kadeer speaks out against Chinese government propaganda and the brutal crackdown taking place in East Turkestan. Read her Op-Ed in the Wall Street Journal.
When the Chinese government, with the comfort of hindsight, looks back on its handling of the unrest in Urumqi and East Turkestan this week, it will most likely tell the world with great satisfaction that it acted in the interests of maintaining stability. What officials in Beijing and Urumqi will most likely forget to tell the world is the reason why thousands of Uighurs risked everything to speak out against injustice, and the fact that hundreds of Uighurs are now dead for exercising their right to protest.
On Sunday, students organized a protest in the Döng Körük (Erdaoqiao) area of Urumqi. They wished to express discontent with the Chinese authorities’ inaction on the mob killing and beating of Uighurs at a toy factory in Shaoguan in China’s southern Guangdong province and to express sympathy with the families of those killed and injured. What started as a peaceful assembly of Uighurs turned violent as some elements of the crowd reacted to heavy-handed policing. I unequivocally condemn the use of violence by Uighurs during the demonstration as much as I do China’s use of excessive force against protestors.
Uyghur Women Call for Release of 1,400 detained
In a courageous and moving act of defiance, hundreds of Uighur women and children took to the streets today demanding the release of the more than 1,400 Uyghurs detained since unrest broke out on Sunday in Urumqi. Watch the BBC Footage of the protest.
China’s Re-election to the UN Human Rights Council
On Tuesday, May 12th, China was re-elected to the United Nation’s Human Rights Council in what can only be described as a step backward for human rights and a major blow to the integrity of the UN Human Rights Council.
In spite of China’s brutal human rights record and ongoing crackdown in Tibet, there was sadly little doubt that they would be re-elected to the Council. However, opposition to China’s membership did not go unnoticed.
Tibetan NGOs in Geneva joined forces with human rights organizations to challenge China’s re-election. Tibetans and their supporters also made sure our opposition to China’s membership was heard loud and clear outside of the UN General Assembly building here in New York City.
The Chinese government – likely feeling vulnerable about the upcoming 20th Tiananmen Square anniversary and its ongoing crackdown in Tibet – went out of its way to submit a 5-page propaganda paper to the UN General Assembly in an attempt to convince them that human rights have improved in China.
The very notion of China as a human rights defender is a complete farce. And as former president for the Czech Republic and Nobel Peace laureate, Vaclav Havel, suggests: China’s candidacy (and the candidacy of other human rights offending governments) for the Human Rights Council casts a dark shadow over the very purpose of the Council.
There are those who argue that engaging China on the Council will make a difference for human rights . In reality, China’s membership will only serve to embolden the Chinese government to use its position to deflect criticism of its human rights abuses and to silence any discussion about its ongoing military crackdown in Tibet.
The day after China’s re-election to the Council, Human Rights Watch released a video highlighting the Chinese government’s ongoing victimization and harassment of Tiananmen Square survivors, their families, and anyone who dares challenge the government’s version of history. Watch the video.
The message in Human Rights Watch’s video is clear and one that the Human Rights Council should heed: Unless the international community is willing to exert real pressure on the Chinese government, it will continue to violently oppress and disregard human rights in Tibet, China and other Chinese-occupied territories – violating everything the UN Human Rights Council is intended to protect.
Rights & Pride
W.G. Huang has a very interesting, thoughtful op-ed in the Chicago Tribune. Titled “Without Rights, Pride Is Empty,” Huang confronts Chinese nationalism in the absence of rights for protest and dissent.
Demonstrations by human-rights activists and pro-Tibetan groups outraged the Chinese government. In response, the news media controlled by the Beijing regime stirred up a nationalist frenzy. They depicted the protests as a ploy by pro-Tibetan separatists, the Western media and foreign governments to sabotage the Olympics and thus humiliate China.
In a recent speech, a senior Chinese Communist Party official called upon the Chinese public to start a “people’s war” against those who would dare to criticize and isolate China.
The hostile rhetoric, the ensuing nationwide demonstrations, the boycotts against Western companies, all of this is reminiscent of Chairman Mao and his mobilizing of young people to use violence against individuals who dared to challenge the communist regime.
The Chinese leadership is stirring up a nationalistic frenzy in part to justify its crackdown on internal dissenters. It also aims to distract people’s attention from the problems of rampant corruption and the widening gap between the rich and the poor. The leadership specifically exploits the passions of young people who, ignorant of the horrors in the country’s turbulent past, have become the regime’s willing tools.
The people’s war has since expanded overseas as well: Chinese nationals and even Chinese-Americans have shown up en masse at the Olympic torch relays, waving red Chinese flags and shouting pro-China slogans to drown out the voices clamoring for human rights.
I find this shocking. These “patriots” are terrorizing dissenters and trying to impose their views—as well as values associated with a totalitarian society—on people in the free world.
Huang goes on to highlight that the pro-Chinese nationalist rallies now taking place to counter protests of the Olympic torch and for Tibetan independence, regardless of their merits, exist because countries like the US do grant rights of assembly and speech to their citizenry. Huang’s op-ed makes a strong case that the Chinese nationalists taking advantage of their rights inside the US to support China’s suppression of rights inside Tibet and China are really missing the truth staring them in the face: people are better when they are given rights and those rights are protected.
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