Tibetan Headlines
Mar 17: Monks Arrest
Two Tibetan monks from Drilda monastery have been arrested in Sog County by Chinese authorities on March 13, reports Ngawang Tharpa, a Tibetan exile with contacts in the region. Lobsang Dhargay, 19, and Lungtok Gyaltsen, 18, had gone to Chungma town to buy groceries required for the monks during prayers. The two were held while returning from their shopping on suspicion of being involved in a graffiti reading "Tibet is an independent" on an iron bridge near the town.
Mar 16: Prayer Ceremony
Thousands of Tibetans took part in a long-life prayer ceremony (Tenshug) for His Holiness the Dalai Lama organised by Tibetans from Tsawa region of Tibet at the main temple in Dharamshala. Today’s ceremony coincided with the Great Prayer Festival, one the greatest religious festivals held during the advent of Tibetan New Year. His Holiness the Dalai Lama also gave a short teaching on the life of Buddha as part of the Great Prayer Festival
Mar 15: Tibetan Detention
Chinese authorities in Tibet's Sog County have held a Tibetan man in detention for over a year without trial. According to Ngawang Tharpa, a Tibetan living in exile, Gawa Sangpo was arrested in January 2013 for allegedly writing an appeal letter which said, “His Holiness the Dalai Lama is my Lama to whom I am devoted. My leader is Lobsang Sangay and Tibet is an independent nation.” During his detention, Gawa Sangpo was subjected to severe torture and is currently in poor health condition.
Mar 15: WeChat Arrest
Five Tibetans including two monks were arrested by Chinese authorities in Sog County on March 6 for allegedly sharing pictures and messages on WeChat, the China based popular messaging application. The five Tibetans were identified as Norbu Dhondup, Monlam Gyatso, Tsering Tharpa, Kalsang Tsultrim and Thupten Palden. Their current whereabouts are not known. The two monks from Drilda monastery had earlier been arrested in May 2012 and served one year in Toelung prison in Lhasa.
Mar 15: Tibetan murder
A Tibetan man who went missing on March 4 from the Tibetan settlement of Bylakuppe in the state of Karnataka in south India has been found dead. Police found the body of Loden, 42, in a field near the old Tibetan settlement. Police have arrested an Indian man in connection with the murder; he has reportedly admitted to the crime.
Mar 14: Italian resolution
The Committee for the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights of the Italian Senate has adopted a resolution on Tibet. It urges the Chinese government to bring an “immediate halt to the oppression of Tibetan people, and resume dialogue with the envoys of His Holiness the Dalai Lama for the implementation of a genuine autonomy for the Tibetan people.”
Mar 13: Show of force
Chinese security forces deployed huge contingents of police and armed paramilitary forces this week in Tibet’s capital Lhasa and in Tibetan-populated areas of Chinese provinces. The extra security was in anticipation of potential trouble as Tibetans marked the anniversary of the national uprising in Lhasa in March 1959 against the Chinese invasion. The show of force this week included motorcades of armoured vehicles.
Mar 12: Women’s Uprising
The exiled Tibetan women today marked the 55th Tibetan Women’s Uprising Day, condemning China’s denunciation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Hundreds of Tibetan women, including former Tibetan Minister Rinchen Khando, together with nuns, schoolgirls and laywomen, as well as supporters, took part in a modest function held at the Martyrs’ Pillar near the Tsuglakhang temple in McLeod Ganj, and in a rally organised by the Tibetan Women's Association in Dharamshala.
Mar 12: EU Delegation
A delegation of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), European Union met His Holiness the Dalai Lama. His Holiness told them that the Central Tibetan Administration seek only genuine autonomy through dialogue with the Chinese government and asked EESC President Henri Malosse to express to Chinese President a message of peace in the resolution of the Tibetan question during his forthcoming visit to Brussels.
Mar 11: New Parliament Building
His Holiness the Dalai Lama inaugurated the new building of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile. His Holiness also addressed the members of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile as the parliament convened its 7th annual budget session. The 12-day session will review and look over the annual budget of the Central Tibetan Administration for the fiscal year 2014-2015.
Mar 10: Award for film
A documentary film by a Tibetan filmmaker based in Washington DC has won the Rising Star Award at the 2014 Canada International Film Festival, to be held later this month. “Scent of Juniper”, by Tashi Wangchuk, “was among the very best of the several hundreds of films submitted from over 30 countries around the world and deserving of special recognition,” said the festival organisers. Tashi currently works for the Voice of America's Tibetan Service.
Mar 9: Walkers reach Delhi
The Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC) march to commemorate the 55th Tibetan Uprising Day has reached its destination. 55 people, each symbolising “a dark and painful year under Chinese rule” left Dharamshala on Feb 8 to walk the 500 kilometers to Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. The TYC demands to the UN and the Chinese Embassy include the release of all Tibetans political prisoners, allowing international media into Tibet, and addressing the aspirations of Tibetan self-immolators positively.
Mar 9: Prayers
A prayer service was held at the Tsuglakhang Temple in Dharamshala to show respect for Tibetan self-immolators and Tibetan political prisoners who are suffering in Chinese prisons. The service was organised by the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) and was presided over by Thomtok Rinpoche, the abbot of Namgyal monastery. It was attended by members of the Kashag, Tibetan Justice Commissioners, Tibetan Parliamentarians and officials of the CTA and members of the local Tibetan community.
Mar 8: Monk arrested
Lobsang Choejor, a senior Tibetan monk from the Drongsar Monastery in Chamdo region's Pashoe County has been arrested for allegedly disseminating information to exile "separatist forces". Lobsang has denied owning a cellphone but the authorities ransacked his quarters looking for one which, they claim, he used to share teachings and talks by the Dalai Lama. It is not known if they found one but a source has said the police had kept Lobsang under surveillance for some time.
Mar 7: Prison sentence
Lobsang Soepa, 43-year-old monk from the Drenpa monastery in Dzoege County in Tibet was sentenced last July to three years in prison by a Chinese court in the Sichuan province. Reports have only just come through of his detention which was for his alleged involvement in anti-China protests. He is currently serving his prison term in a jail in Marthang County. Soepa is a native of Changtsa Choegyal village in Dzoege County. He was also detained in 2011 for distributing leaflets calling for the return of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Tibet.