Tibetan Headlines
Sep 14: Chinese Influence?
Questions are being asked in Australia about the extent of Chinese donations in Australian politics – this has raised concerns that Beijing is trying to influence decision making in Canberra. Pro-Tibet activists say China already has that influence, and is using it to censor discussions about Tibet. The Australian Broadcasting Council reports that the Australia Tibet Council is calling for an independent investigation.
Sep 13: US Aid for Tibet
The United States government has approved a US$17 million (£13 million) allocation to support Tibet in its 2018 budget. Funds are earmarked for the Tibetan Government-in-Exile’s work to preserve Tibetan “cultural traditions, promote sustainable development and improve the education system”, as well as an allocation for preserve cultural traditions and promote sustainable development and environmental conservation in Tibet. Voice of America and Radio Free Asia are to receive continued support.
Sep 13: Tibet at UN
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Prince Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, raised the issue of Tibet in his opening statement at the UN Human Rights Council. He mentioned the deaths in detention of Tibetan religious leader Tenzin Delek Rinpoche in 2015, Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo earlier this year and activist Cao Shunli in 2014 as well as imprisoned Tibetan language rights activist Tashi Wangchuk.
Sep 12: EU Power
German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel has called on European Union nations to band together against China, saying the country is trying to divide the EU by aggressively courting European countries to further China’s interests through economic might. He continued by saying that alliance with China comes at a price – of siding with Beijing over issues such as human rights and international laws.
Sep 11: Human Rights Report
Human Rights Watch, the global human rights group, has accused Beijing of “aggressively silencing criticism and eroding access for activists” who raise human rights concerns in China at the United Nations. HRW chief Kenneth Roth said that China employs every means at their disposal in trying to silence domestic critics and slammed the UN for capitulating to Chinese pressure and “soft-pedalling” to avoid confrontation with China.
Sep 11: Road Building
China has built a road through southern Tibet to the Nepal border where they have set up the Chinese national flag and a banner which urges loyalty to the Chinese “motherland” and calls for “harmonious living”. According to local sources quoted in Radio Free Asia, they want to continue the road into Nepal and are seeking help from the Nepalis by giving out food and clothing.
Sep 8: Delegation from Taiwan
A four person delegation from Taiwan is in Dharamshala where they have visited HH the Dalai Lama and met members of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA). The visit is organised by the Tibet Policy Institute, the think-tank of the CTA, and has included a discussion Democratisation and Social Movement in Taiwan. One delegate said they hoped to “form a bridge between the Tibetans and Taiwanese”.
Sep 7: Tragedy in Switzerland
Tashi Namgyal, a Tibetan asylum-seeker in Switzerland, committed suicide on a railway track in Lucerne. Police found a note in his wallet in which Namgyal called on the United Nations to support Tibetan people and urged the Swiss government to grant political asylum to the 300 Tibetans in Switzerland who, like Namgyal, have applied for, and been refused, asylum.
Sep 7: Winning Tibetans
Three Tibetan athletes, Topgyal, Choeying Kyi and Mingyur Nyima, have won Gold, Silver and Bronze medals respectively in Chinese 13th National Games currently underway in Tianjin, a port city in north eastern China. Choeying Kyi was placed in the Women’s 20 Km race walk; Topgyal and Mingyur Nyima in the Men’s 10,000 metre run. Choeying Kyi is the first Tibetan Olympic athlete and medallist.
Sep 6: Fatal Shooting
Tenzin Kunkhyen, 16, a Tibetan boy living in Somerville in America was shot dead last week. Jonathan Perry, 17, has been arrested but not charged; the two boys knew each other but the details of the shooting have not been established. Also arrested was Keith Harlow, 31, wanted on multiple charges.
Sep 5: His Holiness Honoured
Tibetans in Bir Tibetan settlement in Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh honoured His Holiness the Dalai Lama by offering him a special memento of Ashtamangala,‘the eight auspicious symbol of Buddhism.’ The offering was to express their gratitude to His Holiness and was during an audience with its 400 members. His Holiness advised the younger generation to pay more attention to the Tibetan language which, he said, is the most appropriate language with which to learn the Nalanda tradition.
Sep 4: HH Expresses Sadness
His Holiness the Dalai Lama has written to the chief ministers of Indian states Bihar and Assam to express his profound sadness over the loss of life and property caused by the monsoon flooding. His Holiness added that as a mark of his sympathy for the people, he was making donations from his office towards the relief and rescue efforts.
Sep 2: Political Prisoner Released
Sonam Gyalpo, an elderly Tibetan, was released from Chushul prision in Lhasa on August 27 after serving a 12 year sentence. Gyalpo is from Nakartse country in Lhokha Prefecture in the Tibetan Autonomous Region. He was sentenced in 2005 for political reasons. It was his third arrest and in total he has served 16 years.
Sep 1: Nomads Evicted
Authorities in Tibetan populated regions in the Qinghai province have ordered herders to leave their traditional grazing lands, threatening fines of 1,000 yuan [US$152; £120] and even imprisonment for failure to obey. Golog prefecture’s Darlag county and nearby winter camps have also become the victims to this edict, for which no explanation has been given.
Aug 30: Mandatory Mandarin
The Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) has made it compulsory for all new recruits to speak Chinese — both Mandarin and the version spoken in Tibet. The decision was announced as the standoff between India and China at Doklam came to an end. “A good knowledge of their language may help avoid misunderstandings and lead to better resolution of confrontations”, a source is quoted as saying.