Tibetan Headlines
Jul 21: Protest in Japan
A protest took place outside the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo, with about 30 people including Tibetans, Uyghurs and Mongolians, as well as human rights activists, demonstrating against Beijing’s human rights violations. They called on the international community to boycott the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games, and to intervene on behalf of ethnic minorities in China, and the political and civil rights of Hong Kong residents.
Jul 21: School Closure
Sengdruk Taktse middle school in Darlak County in Golog, eastern Tibet, has been closed by the authorities and the pupils advised to enrol elsewhere. Tibet Watch, the Tibetan advocacy group, reports their local sources as saying that the school was closed for political reasons. The majority of teachers and students in the school, which is private, are monks and tantric practitioners and the medium of instruction is Tibetan.
Jul 20: Prayers
The Maha Guru Bumtsok prayer ceremony took place at Tsuglakhang Temple in McLeod Ganj, attended by Sikyong Penpa Tsering, President of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA). The annual ceremony, which was scaled down this year in the face of the COVID pandemic, involves the large-scale distribution of food to devotees. It is organised by the CTA. Lopon Lobsang Tendar of Namgyal Monastery presided.
Jul 19: His Holiness Offers Condolences
HH the Dalai Lama has written to German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo offering his condolences and sympathy to everyone affected by the flooding in Europe. “I am saddened to see reports of the unprecedented flooding that has wreaked havoc across western Europe [...] The loss of life, damage to property, and hardship that thousands of people are facing is most upsetting”.
Jul 17: Justice Day
The five major Tibetan non government organisations in Dharamshala launched a campaign calling on international governments and world leaders to hold China accountable for depriving Tibetans, Uyghurs, Southern Mongolians, Hongkongers, Taiwanese and Chinese democratic activists of justice. The launch marked International Criminal Justice Day, held on the anniversary of the International Criminal Court’s founding treaty, the Rome Statute.
Jul 16: UK Olympics Boycott
The United Kingdom government has voted to support a boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing in protest against the Chinese government’s human rights violations against Tibetans, Uyhgurs, Hongkongers and others. There was significant cross-party support for a boycott, with several MPs asking for a full sporting boycott. Campaigners are urging for a complete athletics, as well as a diplomatic boycott.
Jul 14: Two Arrested
Two Tibetans, a man named Kunchok Tashi and a woman named Dzapo, both in their 40s, were arrested in Kardze [Ch: Ganzi] reports Radio Free Asia, for sharing images and documents, and reciting Tibetan prayers to celebrate HH The Dalai Lama’s birthday. RFA says another 20 to 30 people have been arrested but no information has been obtained because of the embargo on communications.
Jul 13: Furore Unresolved
A further protest has taken place at Gangchen Kyishong, the seat of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile in Dharamshala, calling on the three Justice Commissioners who were sacked earlier this year, and then reinstated, to “respect democracy and resign now”. The furore has been ongoing since the impeachment.
Jul 13: Another Chinese Incursion
A party of Chinese nationals crossed the Tibet-India border into India in eastern Ladakh to protest against Ladakhi villagers who were celebrating HH the Dalai Lama’s birthday, reports The Hindu. The Chinese - both army personnel and civilians - arrived in five vehicles and displayed the Chinese flag and banners, staying for around half an hour.
Jul 12: Global Award for SFT
Students for a Free Tibet are the joint winners of the World Movement for Democracy’s Tenth Democracy Courage Tribute, along with the Hong Kong Watch and Campaign for Uyghurs. The award citation says “it honours the activists bravely working to build solidarity and resilience against China’s authoritarian measures” and continued saying the three groups “epitomise the courage that democracy activists take in the face of repression”.
Jul 9: Nepal Prevaricates
The Nepali government has failed to commit to respecting and protecting the rights of Tibetan refugees in the country during the United Nations (UN) Universal Periodic Review (UPR). The International Federation for Human Rights reports that Nepal “noted” (ie did not accept) UN recommendations and failed to accept a key recommendation calling for the registration of all Tibetan refugees, and the issuance of identity documents required to give them legal status.
Jul 9: His Holiness to Meet Modi
India Today has published an article suggesting that His Holiness the Dalai Lama will meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi once the Covid-19 situation stablises. The article quoted Sikyong Penpa Tsering, President of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, who also said that His Holiness hopes to visit Tibet, and that he “has expressed his desire to visit his birthplace, Tibet, on many occasions."
Jul 9: EU Resolution
The European Parliament has adopted a resolution calling on the European Union and its member states to boycott the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics unless “the Chinese Government demonstrates a verifiable improvement in the human rights situation in Hong Kong, the Xinjiang Uyghur Region, Tibet, Inner Mongolia and elsewhere in China.” MPs said the EU should continue to raise the issue of human rights violations in East Turkestan [Ch: Xinjiang] and Tibet.
Jul 9: Shri Virbhadra Singh
Shri Virbhadra Singh, the former Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, has died; HH the Dalai Lama has written to his widow, Smt Pratibha Singh, saying he will be “sorely missed” His Holiness continued, “I admired the way he listened to people’s needs with deep affection and compassion [...] Historically there have long been close ties between the people of [...] Bushahr, to which ‘Raja Sahib’ belonged, and their neighbours in western Tibet”.
Jul 8: Tibetan Restaurant Awarded
Taste Tibet, a family-owned Tibetan restaurant near Oxford in the United Kingdom, has been nominated for this year’s BBC Food and Farming Award in the Best Street Food or Takeaway Category - a top national award. Yeshi Jampa and Julie Kleeman opened as a street food venue in 2014 and then opened a restaurant last winter. Their nomination comes from all they have done to help others during the lockdowns.