Tibetan Headlines
Jan 20: Festival of Tibet
The weeklong Festival of Tibet is underway in Brisbane, Australia. In addition to promoting Tibetan culture in Australia, income generated from tickets and sales goes to help Tibetan refugee children in India and Nepal. The festival opens with a concert featuring the popular international performers, Deva Premal and Miten, presenting an evening of chanting "Prayers for Peace" in support of the people of Tibet.
Jan 19: Polio Immunisation
The Health Kalon has urged all Tibetans to take part in the the Intensified Pulse Polio Immunisation (IPPI) campaign 2015 which is underway at the Zonal Hospital, Dharamshala. The Pulse Polio Immunisation programme was launched in India in 1995, children aged 0-5 years are administered polio drops in high risk areas every year. No new polio cases have been reported in India for more than 3 years.
Jan 17: Passports Refused
Monks and nuns living in Serthar county in Kardze, Sichuan, in Tibet are being refused passports for travel outside China, despite a ban on passports for lay Tibetans being lifted after seven years. No reason has been given, though there is speculation that it may be linked to the role played by monasteries in the anti-China protests of 2008, following which all Tibetans were denied travel documents.
Jan 16: Middle-Way Training
A three-day training workshop on the Middle-Way Approach (UMAYLAM) is being held in Mcleod Ganj, organised by the Department of Information and International Relations at the Central Tibetan Administration. The training is to boost awareness on the Middle Way Approach among the Tibetan exile community at grassroots level by training local leaders and activists who are engaged in day-to-day interaction with the public.
Jan 15: Released!
Tobgyal, 23, has been released from custody after being detained for nearly three weeks following the discovery of politically sensitive photos on his cell phone. He had also forwarded politically sensitive writings from his phone and made online contacts with people outside Tibet. He is now forbidden from traveling outside his town, from contacting anyone outside his area, and from going to Shigatse city or to Lhasa.
Jan 14: Increased Repression
Freedom House, the prominent United States based human rights organisation, states in its latest report on China that there is an increase in repression under China’s President Xi Jinping, and that religious groups and party officials themselves are particularly affected. Freedom House has produced a map of different countries and their level of freedom in the past, Tibet was amongst the world’s 12 worst countries.
Jan 13: International HR Conference
China's policy on Tibet was the subject of a session at an international human rights conference organised by Human Rights Defense International in New Delhi. Mr Tenzin Lekshay of the Bureau of the Dalai Lama in New Delhi presented a paper on the situation of Tibet under China since their occupation in 1949. The conference was telecast live to 53 countries and the final report will be given to the Indian government.
Jan 13: Golden Buddha
A seven feet high gold-gilded statue of Buddha Amitabha was installed at the Nighambodh cemetery in New Delhi, the oldest cemetery in Delhi and a sacred place for Hindus. It is the largest and busiest cremation ground in Delhi, 50 - 60 Hindu and Buddhist funeral rites are carried out there daily. The Buddha statue was donated by Tibetans residing in Delhi.
Jan 12: Canadian Minister meets Kalon
Kalon Dolma Gyari of the Department of Home in the Central Tibetan Administration has paid a courtesy call on the Canadian Minister of Immigration, Ms Shannon Fraser, meeting her at the High Commission Office in New Delhi. Kalon updated the Minister about the on-going Canada Re-settlement project as well as discussing some minor issues. Ms Fraser expressed satisfaction over the way the resettlement project is progressing.
Jan 9: Exams Corruption
Hundreds of parents and students have been protesting in front of government offices in Luchu county in Kanlho in the Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture over manipulation of exam results which could jeopardise university entrances. Local sources report that students at a school for Tibetan students discovered that their final exams “were mishandled” by certain Chinese officials “in secret,” with high marks sold in exchange for the poorer results of other students.
Jan 9: New Beijing Appointment
Sun Chunlan has been appointed Director of United Front Work Department (UFWD), reporting to China's Politburo Standing Committee in Beijing, which is headed by Xi Jinping. This department manages "ethnic minorities", including Tibet. UFWD has hosted dialogues between China and the Dalai Lama’s special envoy, but none have taken place since 2010. The United States State Department has urged China to resume talks with the Dalai Lama's representatives.
Jan 8: Voting Clashes
Nearly 70 Tibetans were taken into custody by armed police following clashes over voting in local elections in Kyangchu village in Golog, Gade county in the Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. The Tibetans voted for Samdrak, a Tibetan with a good track record of serving the local people, and not the state-backed candidates. All were later released except for three: Tenpa Gyal, Nyatri, and Samdrak, who are still in custody.
Jan 7: Another Arrest in Tibet
23-year-old Topgyal, a native of Thragtse Township in Dhingri County, Shigatse Prefecture of the Tibetan Autonomous Region, has been arrested in Lhasa and his whereabouts are not known. It is believed his arrest was for providing news and information to "separatists" through his writings. His brother Tsewang Dhonden was arrested last year, allegedly for enrolling joining the Tibetan Youth Congress, which China calls a "terrorist organisation".
Jan 6: Task Force
A two-day Task Force meeting is underway in Dharamsala to review the prospects of dialogue with China. Sikyong Dr Lobsang Sangay, the elected head of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, is chairing the meeting. The Task Force was set up in 1999 to assist the Dalai Lama’s envoys in the dialogue process with the Chinese government. China has refused to meet Tibetan representatives since 2010.
Jan 5: Nepal Bars Tibetans
Nepal police have barred 45 Tibetan monks from travelling to Kathmandu from Junbeshi in Solukhumbhu, a Buddhist region bordering Tibet. The monks claimed they were from a monastery there but the police said they lacked valid travel papers and identity cards. The Chief District Officer of Solukhumbhu said there was concern about their possible involvement in suspicious activities, but did not give specific details.