Tibetan Headlines
Jan 26: Writer Held Incommunicado
Gendun Lhundrub, 46, the Tibetan writer and poet who was arrested in December 2020 in Amdo [Ch: Qinghai] has been held incommunicado; his family know nothing of his whereabouts or his health. Lhundrub was a monk at Rongwo monastery in Rebgong; Radio Free Asia reports that he was “monitored by authorities for signs of political dissent over a long period of time before being detained”.
Jan 26: Justice Commissioner Takes Oath
Joint Secretary Pema Sangpo has taken oath as Interim Local Justice Commissioner for Ladakh. Pema Sangpo was born in Ladakh. He has served in the Tibetan Justice Commission as Ladakh Region’s Secretary cum accountant, and has worked in the Department of Home as Joint Secretary and then in the Tibetan Supreme Justice Commission.
Jan 25: Matrix Resurrections Banned?
There are calls in China for Matrix Resurrections to be banned because its star, Keanu Reeves, is to be one of the performers at the upcoming annual Tibet House United States Benefit Concert scheduled for March 3. cbr.com quotes Taiwan's Central News Agency as saying Chinese nationalists are calling for the boycott owing to Reeves' support for Tibet, which is currently “controlled by the People's Republic of China”.
Jan 24: Thich Nhat Hanh
The world renowned and revered Buddhist leader Thich Nhat Hanh has died at the age of 95, peacefully at his temple in Vietnam. His Holiness the Dalai Lama has written, “In his dedication to sharing with others not only how mindfulness and compassion contribute to inner peace, but also how individuals cultivating peace of mind contributes to genuine world peace, the Venerable lived a truly meaningful life”.
Jan 24: Fire Destroys Shops
The livelihoods of at least ten Tibetan families have been destroyed by a fire in the Tibetan market in Ambala in the Indian state of Haryana. Formerly there were around 20 Tibetan stalls trading in the market, mainly selling sweaters, but most have not been able to trade over the last two years due to the pandemic; now their remaining stock has been destroyed.
Jan 21: Protest in Berlin
Tibetan and Jewist activists have chained themselves to the doors of the Allianz headquarters in Berlin (the multinational financial services company) and are displaying a large banner which reads “Allianz: Drop the Genocide Games!” in protest against Allianz’s sponsorship for Beijing 2022, dubbed the “Genocide Games.”
Jan 21: His Holiness Congratulates
HH the Dalai Lama has written to Ms Roberta Metsola to congratulate her on her election as President of the European Parliament. His Holiness said, “Women can be better placed to lead the world to a more peaceful level.” He continued, saying that the EU is “an inspiring example for a cooperative and peaceful co-existence among different nations and peoples”.
Jan 21: Paying for Food
Loten, the young Tibetan arrested in December for speaking out against Chinese policies, is now in a re-education centre. It has now emerged that before being transferred there from prison, his family was ordered to pay for his food and other supplies while he was in detention. He had posted his views on social media about the sinicisation of the education system in Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture.
Jan 21: Rinchen Kyi
Further information has emerged from Tibet about Rinchen Kyi, the teacher who was arrested when her school was closed, in Golog, Amdo [Ch: Kham]. She was reported as being ill and hospitalised, it now appears that although her family was summoned to hospital at short notice, when they arrived she was not there; they do not know where she is, and in fact she was never diagnosed with an illness.
Jan 20: Repression for Nomads
Tibetan nomads in Amdo [Ch: Qinghai] are being forced to remove their prayer flags around their camps and replace them with Chinese national flags, reports Radio Free Asia, saying that Chinese flags are also being raised in “places where Tibetans usually perform traditional religious ceremonies”. People in the area are also required to attend political education sessions and to display portraits of Chinese Communist leaders in their homes”.
Jan 20: Tashi Wangchuk Interrogated
Tashi Wangchuk, 35, the Tibetan language advocate who spent five years in prison for “inciting separatism” following his The New York Times video drawing attention to the restrictions on Tibetan language education in Tibet, has been interrogated following his recent appeal to the Chinese authorities to allow the use of Tibetan language in schools, government jobs and other sectors.
Jan 20: CTA Twitter Account Hacked?
CTA spokesman Tenzin Lekshey has raised the alarm that his Twitter account has apparently been hacked by China, according to reports in the Tibetan Journal and Voice of America Tibetan service. Another CTA official’s personal network has also been hacked in the past; and Nirupama Rao, India’s former Foreign Secretary is one of many Indian officials whose Twitter accounts have been hacked.
Jan 17: India Joins Boycott
India has announced that she will not send a government delegation to the Beijing Winter Olympics next month. It is reported that this is in response to the ongoing stand- off with China along the Tibet-India border where China is building up their military presence..
Jan 17: Statue Seized
A life size statue of the revered Tulku Tenzin Delek Rinpoche, who died in 2015 in a Chinese prison under mysterious circumstances, was seized last year by the authorities while it was being transported into Tibet from where it had been made in Shenzhen in China, reports Radio Free Asia. They also report that the people involved in making and transporting the statue have been arrested.
Jan 15: Tsedrung Gyaltsen Choden
Tsedrung Gyaltsen Choden, the last surviving government official who served in independent Tibet before 1959 has died aged 102 in the United States. Sikyong Penpa Tsering, President of the Tibetan Government-in-exile said in his eulogy at the prayer ceremony held in his honour, “We believe that he has lived a truly meaningful life serving the Tibetan people and fulfilling the aspirations of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.”