Tibetan Headlines
Dec 12: “Cover the Cold”
Tibetans living in India are distributing blankets and warm clothes to homeless and needy Indians in and around Tibetan communities in a “Cover the Cold” campaign. “Cover the Cold” is part of this year’s “Thank You India” initiative with Tibetans paying tribute to India’s support for Tibetans over the last 60 years of their exile.
Dec 12: An Uncle’s Message
A video has been sent to phayul, claiming to show a message from a man called Jampal Drakpa who says he is the uncle of Dhorbe, the young Tibetan man who self-immolated in Ngaba on November 4. Phayul reports that they have not been able to independently verify the video, which shows Jampal Drakpa saying his nephew died of burns after a motorbike accident, not self-immolation.
Dec 11: No Return for Karmapa
The Indian Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of External Affairs are reported by The Hindu as being in dispute with the Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje over his return to India. The Karmapa, citing former travel restrictions within India, has acquired a Dominican passport in the hopes of being able to travel more freely but has not been allowed to return to India using this passport.
Dec 11: Human Rights Day
Hundreds of Tibetans and supporters gathered in Tsug-lag-Khang temple in Mcleod Ganj to celebrate the 29th anniversary of the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to HH the Dalai Lama, with leaders of the Tibetan exile government and Indian guests in attendance. The day is marked as the International Himalayan Festival of Dharamshala. It is Human Rights Day, 70 years since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Dec 10: A Winner!
Tenzin Dawa Thargay, a young Tibetan man living in the United States, has won the 2019 Charles B Rangel International Affairs Fellowship – a prestigious two-year fellowship funded by the US Department of State which supports individuals wishing to pursue a career in the US Foreign Service. There is highly contested nationwide competition for the Fellowships.
Dec 10: Men-Tsee-Khang Fights Back
The Director of Men-Tsee-Khang, the Tibetan Medical and Astrological Institute based in Dharamshala, has condemned the move by UNESCO – the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation – to list Lum; medicinal bathing of Tibetan medicine as a nomination by China for the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. He has also condemned China for using the trademark Men-Tsee-Khang, which he says is illegal use of the name.
Dec 8: HR Commissioner in Tibet
Dr Bärbel Kofler, the German Federal Government Commissioner for Human Rights Policy and Humanitarian Aid at the Federal Foreign Office, is visiting Tibet to chair the German-Chinese Human Rights Dialogue in Lhasa on December 6-7. Her request to visit East Turkestan – or Xinjiang – was refused. She will be in China until December 10 and has expressed deep concern about the human rights situation in China.
Dec 8: Rehabilitation Policy Adopted
The Sikkim government is adopting the Tibetan Rehabilitation Policy 2014 which makes provision for improved livelihood opportunities for Tibetan refugees. It was set up by the Central Government of India and enables Tibetan refugees to undertake economic activity and to take professional jobs depending on their qualifications. It has been adopted in other Indian states including Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka and Uttarakhand.
Dec 6: Festival in Lhasa
Two festivals at the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, Tibet, have attracted a substantial police presence in addition to many Buddhist pilgrims, reports Radio Free Asia. The two-day Gaden Nga Choe festival celebrates the life of Je Tsongkhapa, the revered Buddhist teacher who died in 1419, while Shichoed marks the day Jamchen Choeje Yeshi died in 1443 – he was one of Tsonghkapa’s main disciples and founded Sera Monastery.
Dec 5: COP24 Summit
His Holiness the Dalai Lama has urged delegates at the United Nations climate change conference (COP24) to take “serious action” to tackle the deterioration of climate change and take preventive measures to protect human beings’ “only home”. The conference began on Dec 3 in Katowice, Poland with the goal of deciding how to implement the guidelines of the 2015 Paris Climate Change Agreement.
Dec 4: Celebration Cancelled
The celebration of the 29th anniversary of the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, scheduled for December 10 in Sydney, Australia, has been cancelled. The announcement was made by the executive members of the Tibetan Community of Australia, New South Wales, citing threats of protests against Sikyong Lobsang Sangay, President of the Tibetan Government-in-exile, who was to attend the celebration.
Dec 3: Archaeological Find
Signs of human activity dating back 30,000 to 40,000 years have been discovered on the Tibetan Plateau by Chinese archaeologists – the oldest signs of human habitation in the region. They have found over 3,600 stone artefacts near Nwya Devu at an altitude of 15,000 feet. There may be a link with a related species of humans who lived in Siberia
Dec 3: New Speaker
Pema Jungney was sworn in as the new Speaker of the 16th Tibetan Parliament in Exile. He succeeds Khenpo Sonam Tenphel – neither of them gained a majority for the five-year position of Speaker in May 2016 so they are each serving two and a half years. Pema Jungney is the longest serving Tibetan legislator and has served the Tibetan Government-in-Exile over the last 28 years.
Nov 28: Highest Power Line
The world’s highest power line has just been opened in Tibet. It reaches a height of 5,300 metres at Tower 8L195, the world’s highest transmission tower. The power will supply the railway services between Lhasa and Nyingchi in the Tibet Autonomous Region. The line was constructed by State Grid Qinghai Electric Power Company as part of Central Tibet Grid connection.
Nov 27: Raising Cash
Members of the Tibetan Association of Northern California living in the East Bay Area have raised over US$7,000 (£5,6500) to help victims of the wildfires which have been devastating California. 85 people are known to have died, thousands are now homeless and 250 people are still unaccounted for. Tibetan volunteers hosted a community café to raise the funds as well as holding a prayer service.