Art for Tibet II Officially Opens!

SFT officially opened Art for Tibet II last night with a Gallery opening featuring a panel discussion on Tibetan art, culture and resistance. View the 100+ artworks including two works anonymously submitted from Tibet. The Art for Tibet Online Auction runs until 5PM EST on September 24th.

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SFT UK at the UK’s Biggest Student Festival!

Wales has many positive qualities, but its weather isn’t usually one of them. So I’m glad to say that stereotype didn’t hold true when we headed to Pembrey in Carmarthenshire for Beach Break Live, the UK’s biggest student festival. The sun shone down on our little stall all week making our time there all the better.

We went with two aims in mind – to sell our lovely range or merchandise and to spread the word about SFT UK’s fantastic work, hopefully getting lots of new people involved. Whilst our sales could have been better, we did meet lots of enthusiastic people and almost everyone that stopped at our stall signed our petition to free Tibetan filmmaker Dhondup Wangchen or joined our email list or stayed for a chat about what we do. Some of them were keen to start campaigning at their universities and colleges and one of them, Sophie, is starting a new SFT group at the University of Plymouth this year and left with a box load of leaflets, postcards and other great stuff to get the group off to a flying start. Watch this space to see how she gets on.

Whilst we worked hard making our stall the most beautiful on site and keeping it open for over 12 hours a day, there was still time for fun and the week was full of memorable moments. From the impromptu yoga class outside our stall, to dancing at the Granny Gaff, from our neighbours at On Your Beach accidentally making tea with vodka, to a barbeque on the beach at sunset.

Massive thanks go to our volunteers Fenya, Sonam, Gabby, Lizzie and Pete who were tireless throughout the week; we really could not have done it without you guys.

To find out more of our pictures click here

photos & report prepared by Ben Martin

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SFT Japan protests Wen Jiabao’s visit

SFT Japan helped coordinate protests marking the arrival of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao to Japan on Sunday. Check out the photos below:

SFT works to ensure that China’s leaders hear loud & clear from Tibetans and their supporters everywhere they travel around the world. While Beijing can use violence to silence the voices of Tibetans inside Tibet, they can not stop us from amplifying these voices in free countries.

Tibetans and Supporters deliver letter to the British Prime Minister and the Chinese ambassador

(Photos by Anna Branthwaite, Tibet Society, UK)

6th March, London: Tibetans across the world are preparing to mark the 51st anniversary of the Lhasa Uprising. In Tibet, various non-violent protests have been reported across the Tibetan plateau since Losar and the meeting between President Obama and the Dalai Lama in Washington. The Chinese government clearly fears more vigorous protests in March, and wary of the negative press it received in 2008 has attempted to preempt any such protests by launching a 'Strike Hard' Campaign in Lhasa, rounding up over 500 Tibetans. Protests have occurred in Ngaba, in the Tibetan province of Amdo, as well as Zachuka in Kham. In response, Tibetans and supporters in India held a candle lit vigil strongly condeming the act.

On the 6th March in London, around 500 Tibetans and supporters marched in the streets of London calling for the end of oppression in Tibet and expressed the need for immediate resolution to the Tibetan issue. Letters were delivered to the British Prime Minister and to the Chinese ambassador by the representatives of Tibet support groups in London.

watch the video footage from Reuters here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTM3-E60HHg

(Photos by Anna Branthwaite, Tibet Society, UK)

This March 10th hundreds of Tibet supporters from across the country will be converging on Parliament to lobby their MPs and we want you to be there. Meeting with your MP is one of the most effective ways to support human rights in Tibet and it couldn’t be easier.  To take part just follow the steps below:

1. Find your out your MP’s contact details at http://findyourmp.parliament.uk/commons or by calling the House of Commons Information Office on 020 7219 4272.

2. Make an appointment to visit them at Parliament by using email, post or telephone. Explain that you will in Westminster for the Tibet Mass Lobby on March 10th and would like to meet them as close to 2.30pm as possible (we would like everyone to be at Parliament at the same time!)

Please note that your MP or his or her representative will have to come to meet you even without a confirmation of your appointment. So come down to the Mass Lobby on 10 March even if your appointment is not confirmed.

3. Let us know the name of your MP, his or her constituency and the time of your appointment by contacting liam@sftuk.org. It is very important for us to know if you are coming to the mass lobby so that we can coordinate with others from your constituency and you can meet your MP together.

You will then receive a lobby pack containing:

* Logistical information – timings, directions, meeting points, etc
* What to expect on the day and from your appointment
* Information for you and for your MP about the primary concerns addressed by the mass lobby
* A lobby postcard with the key demands for you to hand to your MP
* Facts about Tibet including the current situation

If you have any questions or would like any more information please do not hesitate to contact liam@sfutk.org

Other Events on the day
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PROTEST & RALLY at CHINESE EMBASSY

Venue: Chinese Embassy, 49-51 Portland Place, London W1B 1JL Map
Nearest undergrounds: Oxford Circus, Portland Place, Regents Park
Time: 11am - 12pm

WREATH-LAYING at MEMORIAL TO COMMEMORATE THE 51st ANNIVERSARY OF THE TIBETAN NATIONAL UPRISING

Venue: Outside the West door, Westminster Abbey, London SW1. Map
Nearest undergrounds: Westminster
Time: 1.45pm

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The mass lobby is organised by The Coalition of UK Tibet Support Groups, made up of: Tibet Society, Free Tibet, Students for a Free Tibet UK, Tibetan Community in Britain and Tibetan Youth UK.

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Losar: Because we are Tibetan

Tibetans will mark Losar - the Tibetan New Year - on February 14th, 2010. In the Tibetan lunar calendar, this day marks the beginning of the Iron Tiger Year 2137, a time for change, hope, and renewal. On this day, we celebrate our history, our culture, our religion, and our future - because our history is great, our culture beautiful, our religion profound, and – in spite of our present suffering – our future is bright.

Since 2008, following the Tibetan uprising in all three historical provinces of Tibet, we witnessed an escalation in the imprisonment, torture and death of our fellow countrymen and women under Chinese rule. Because of this, last year, Tibetans united around the world and did not celebrate Losar.

This year, many Tibetans are planning to observe Losar for one reason only: because we are Tibetan. We will speak Tibetan language, wear Tibetan dress, and observe Tibetan customs, thus strengthening our identity and our spirit. Through this observance we will find new courage and opportunities to advance our struggle. In observing Losar with family and friends, Tibetans will reach for happiness, which, as much as suffering, is an integral part of a freedom movement.

Through all these years of occupation one thing is clear: the oppressor envies the spirit of the Tibetan people, which cannot be crushed by violence. This year Tibetans worldwide will nourish this spirit with the observance of Losar.

While observing this important cultural tradition, we ask Tibetans and supporters to light butter lamps and candles on their altars and in their windows on February 14th to honor the courage of the Tibetan people in Tibet who continue to resist the Chinese government's illegal occupation of their homeland.

Please take a moment to watch this inspiring video from Amdo, Eastern Tibet, where Tibetans, young and old, declare the myriad ways they are Tibetan:

Also you can watch a similar solidarity campaign video from Tibetans in India:

Included in the video are these statements:
I am Tibetan because I love Tibet.
I am Tibetan because I learn Tibetan.
I am Tibetan because I love my culture.
I am Tibetan because I wear only Tibetan dress.
I am Tibetan because Tibetan blood flows in me.
I am Tibetan because my mother is Tibetan.
I am Tibetan because I sing Tibetan.
I am Tibetan because I am a Tibetan nomad.
I am Tibetan because I love my land.
I am Tibetan because I am a herder on the plateau.
I am Tibetan because I never forget Tibet.
I am Tibetan because I love my Tibetan brothers and sisters.

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Tibet Activists Protest Empire State Building’s China Honor

On the eve of the 60th anniversary of the People’s Repbulic of China, the Empire State Building – possibly the most iconic building in the United States – will shine red and yellow in honor of communist China.

Tibetans, supporters and concerned New Yorkers took to the streets today to voice their outrage at the Empire State Building’s kowtowing before the totalitarian Chinese state. Read media coverage of the protest:

AP: Empire State Building honors China, riling critics

Fox News: Empire State Building Goes Red for Communist China, Sparking Protest

New York Times:  A Red and Yellow Glow for Celebration, and for Protest

Read SFT’s statement and watch footage of Tibet activists confronting China’s Consular General Peng Keyu. View more photos on flickr.

Activist Media Porn

From the great Hold Fast blog:

Above: Three kick ass activists who don’t have time to smile

The Globe and Mail, Canada’s largest national paper, had a huge, front page, above the fold article yesterday on three Canadian women who have been at the forefront of the Tibetan independence movement through Students for a Free Tibet: Kate Woznow, Freya Putt, and SFT’s Executive Director Lhadon Tethong. I had the privilege of working on staff at SFT with all three of these magnificent ladies for two years and am really happy to see them get this kind of recognition for their persistent leadership on behalf of Tibet. All three have taken part in nonviolent direct actions for Tibet in Beijing and continue to lead the global campaign to make Tibet the front and center issue as the Beijing Olympics approach. Go read the full article, as the full scope of its awesomeness doesn’t lend itself well to excerpting.

Video Shows China’s Brutal Crackdown in Tibet

[youtube R0zbIQdDylg ]

A brilliant Tibetan friend of mine who prefers to remain anonymous passionately responded to the video as follows:

I almost cried when I saw this. I’m speechless right now, about how incredibly powerful this video is. I really don’t know what to say… Tibetans on horseback, unarmed, risking their lives to tear down the Chinese flag and fly the Tibetan flag — to quote Tendor on Mt. Everest, “This is Tibet and I’m a Tibetan.” Wow.

And the Chinese soldiers’ response… so brutal… troops, death, guns, overwhelming force. I am overcome by the contrast between the unarmed Tibetans rallying for their country, and the massive armed might of the Chinese army.How can the world sit by without helping?

…And yet, despite all that force, the Tibetan protests go on. That is true courage and determination. It is the power to bring down empires. And that is what we’re seeing in Tibet. History is being made. Tibet will be free.