Tibetan Headlines
Sep 21: Advocacy Training Session
A training session on Tibet Advocacy at the United Nations is underway in Geneva, Switzerland, organised by the Central Tibetan Administration's Department of Information and International Relations (DIIR). The 30 participants include representatives from Tibetan non-government organisations from Dharamshala and in Europe as well as DIIR staff. Participants included representatives of the new Voluntary Tibet advocacy Group (V-TAG) which aims to reinforce the existing Tibet advocacy campaigns across the world
Sep 20: 500 Families Relocated
Over 500 families in Nagchu county’s Nyima district were relocated to Tsethang county in Lhoka in July to make way for Chinese government projects - public parks and minings - reports Tibet Times. Most are nomads with large numbers of animals. Their requests to reconsider their decision have been ignored by the authorities; the promised compensation of 10,000 Yuan [ $1,400 / £1,250 ] has not been received and they are living under great hardship.
Sep 20: Five Arrested in Serta
Chudhar, Gelo, Tsedor, Bhamo and Kori from Serta county in Kham Kardze were arrested last month for carrying out religious activities, reports the Tibet Times. Chudhar, 52, died in prison following police beatings; his family was required to verify that the police did not kill him in order to recover his body; the other four remain detained in Serta county prison. The five were appointed by their community to take charge of the community’s religious activities.
Sep 20: Parliamentarians Meet
The Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile (TPiE) is holding a five-day brainstorming and strategic meeting in Dharuhera in Haryana which includes a presentation by Margaret Curran, a member of the United Kingdom’s strategic planning, international advocacy and communications strategy. Also for discussion are China’s policy on Tibet, Asia and India’s role in the Tibet issue, the relevance of Tibet in international relations and climate change, and the importance of the media.
Sep 16: Snub for His Holiness?
Representatives of the Tibetan community are expressing their disappointment that His Holiness the Dalai Lama, or his representatives, have not been invited to the funeral of British Queen Elizabeth II despite His Holiness’s decades of friendship with the British royal family. There is particular concern that China’s President Xi Jinping has been invited, despite China’s occupation of Tibet, genocide of Uygyurs and the crushing of democracy in Hong Kong.
Sep 16: “Bearing the Brunt”
Tibet and East Turkestan [Ch: Xinjiang] bear the brunt of China’s “technology-enhanced brutality in recent years” said Nury Turkel, Chair of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom at the Congressional-Executive Commission on China’s hearing entitled Control of Religion in China through Digital Authoritarianism. The hearing discussed “new and insidious methods [used] to exert control over religious practice, including online regulation and digital surveillance technologies”.
Sep 15: His Holiness Teaching
His Holiness the Dalai Lama begins the two-day teaching on Chandrakirti's Entering the Middle Way in conjunction with the Autocommentary at the request of a group of Southeast Asians at Tsuglagkhang, the main Tibetan temple in Dharamshala. The teaching was made available online in Tibetan, Chinese, Vietnamese, Hindi, Korean, Japanese, Spanish, French, German, Russian, Italian, Portuguese, Nepali, Ladakhi, Thai, Indonesian and Mongolian.
Sep 13: Festival Resumes
The annual horse racing festival held in Nyagchuka in Kardze but banned for the last 20 years, has gone ahead, reports Radio Free Asia who’s local sources say the authorities have lifted the ban with no explanation. The revered monk and leader Tulku Tenzin Delek always attended the festival before his arbitrary arrest in 2002, following which the festival was banned.
Sep 12: His Holiness offers Congratulations
His Holiness the Dalai Lama has congratulated His Majesty King Charles III of the United Kingdom on his accession to the throne saying, “I am confident that you will fulfill this great responsibility with kindness and affection, dedicated to the service of others”. His Holiness expressed his joy at seeing his "dear and respected friend" proclaimed King and wished him success in his new journey ahead.
Sep 12: Condolences
Sikyong Penpa Tsering, President of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, has conveyed his condolences at the death of British Queen Elizabeth II. “On behalf of the Central Tibetan Administration and the Tibetan people, we express our profound sympathy and condolences to the Royal Family and the people of the United Kingdom over this irreparable loss” he wrote, and praised the Queen’s unwavering courage and commitment to serve people.
Sep 9: Condolences
His Holiness the Dalai Lama has expressed sadness at the death of British Queen Elizabeth II and offered heartfelt condolences to the royal family and the people of the United Kingdom saying, ”Her reign, as Britain’s longest serving monarch, represented celebration, inspiration and a reassuring sense of continuity for so many people alive today”. The Speaker of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile extended condolences to members of the royal family on behalf of Tibetans across the world.
Sep 9: Lobbying G7
Free Tibet, the British based Tibetan advocacy group, is campaigning for the G7 nations, who are shortly to meet in Germany, to demand that the Chinese government stops its policy of forcing Tibetan children to attend boarding schools, and to shut the schools down. Over 900,000 Tibetan children are separated from their families and living in schools where they are taught to reject their heritage, culture, language, religion and even their families.
Sep 8: Parliament Convenes
The fourth session of the 17th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile is underway in Dharamshala. The Speaker confirmed Parliament’s intention to strengthen and protect the democratic values of Tibetan democracy saying they have a “moral responsibility to defend the public’s confidence and trust”. He then recommended that parliamentarians take note of HH the Dalai Lama’s written legacies as political guidance.
Sep 7: Congratulations!
His Holiness the Dalai Lama has congratulated Liz Truss on her election as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Speaking of Tibetans' "unique and long relationship with Great Britain", he continued, “to this day we maintain close contacts with the families of British Government officials who were posted in Tibet prior to 1959”, and hopes that the UK will continue to prosper and contribute to world peace and stability.
Sep 7: Earthquake Update
The total of people killed in the earthquake that hit Kham [Ch: Sichuan] on Sunday is now understood to be 65: 37 Ganzi (Kardze) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, and 28 in Shimian County. In addition 12 are reported missing, 170 infrared and over 50,000 people have been evacuated, with electricity and communications cut.