Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Comemoracoes "Thank You India" em Dharamsala

Hoje, pelas 10h30 da manha, Tibetanos e visitantes juntaram-se em Dharamsala no templo Budista principal no ambito das comemoracoes "Thank You India" que decorrerao ate 10 de Marco de 2010.

Presentes estiveram representantes do governo Tibetano no exilio assim como membros do governo do estado do Himachal Pradesh, no qual Dharamsala se situa.

A ministra da Saude Tibetana leu o discurso proferido por Sua Santidade o Dalai Lama nesta ocasiao.

Sua Santidade encontra-se presentemente em Nova Delhi tendo a representacao religiosa ficado a cargo de S. S. Gyelwa Karmapa.

O ministro local Indiano dos Transportes proferiu tambem um discurso, no qual realcou a luta pacifica do povo Tibetano, seguindo-se um espectaculo de dancas, realizado por alunos das varias escolas Tibetanas do estado Himachal Pradesh.

Saudacoes

Grupo de Apoio ao Tibete
Dharamsala

Thursday, March 26, 2009

ACÇÃO A REALIZAR ATÉ SEXTA-FEIRA !

Caros Amigos,

O Parlamento Europeu encontra-se em sessão plenária, até ao fim do dia de hoje.

Em baixo colocamos à V/ disposição uma carta de acção modelo, dirigida aos membros do Intergrupo Tibete no PE.

Pedimo-vos que também a enviem até sexta-feira, de forma a que sejam encetados os trabalhos visando a aprovação de uma resolução, que aprove a resolução de 6 de Julho de 2000 (visando o reconhecimento do governo Tibetano no exílio).

Saudações

Grupo de Apoio ao Tibete

Carta aos membros do Intergrupo Tibete

Subject / Para : Tibet Intergroup, draft resolution
CARTA MODELO
Dear MEPs, dear members of Tibet Intergroup,
We thank you for the adoption of the 12 March resolution and for your continuedsupport to the Tibetan cause.
At the same time, we regret that this new text doesn't include any mention tothe resolution of 6 July 2000 and to the perspectives of its implementation.
Considering the upcoming elections in June 2009, we need to know that MEPs havethe will to hear their European citizens and electors. We need also to bereinforced in our European convictions and in our faith in the value andconsistance of EP resolutions.
This is why we request you to work on a draft resolution that could be submittedin the next and last sessions of the European Parliament. For this, we suggestyou (below) some points excerpted from previous resolutions adopted by yourassembly or included in some previous draft motions. We added some new andmeasured suggestions that could facilitate and appease discussions on somesensitive topics.
Thank you for your consideration,
Yours sincerely

(INSERIR NOME)

Tibet Europe Campaign

(Suggestions for a draft resolution)-------------------
The European Parliament,
- having regard to its previous resolutions on Tibet, in particular on:a) the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising and dialogue between HisHoliness the Dalai Lama and the Chinese government (12 March 2009)b) the dialogue between the Chinese government and Envoys of the Dalai Lama (15February 2007)c) the Western China Poverty Reduction Project and the future of Tibet (6 July2000)
- recalling its commitments, included in the resolution of 6 July 2000, to callon the governments of the Member States to give serious consideration to thepossibility of recognising the Tibetan government in exile as the legitimaterepresentative of the Tibetan people if, within three years, the Beijingauthorities and the Tibetan government in exile have not signed an agreement ona new statute for Tibet, through negotiations organised under the aegis of theSecretary-General of the United Nations;
- recalling the eight rounds of dialogue between the government of the People'sRepublic of China and Envoys of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, launched inSeptember 2002,
A. whereas the Beijing authorities and the Tibetan government in exile have not,through negotiations organised under the aegis of the Secretary-General of theUnited Nations, signed an agreement on a new statute for Tibet;
B. whereas eight rounds of dialogue between the envoys of His Holiness the DalaiLama and representatives of the Chinese government have produced nobreakthrough;
C. whereas the Memorandum on Genuine Autonomy for the Tibetan People, producedat the request of the Chinese government and presented by envoys of HisHoliness the Dalai Lama at the eighth round of talks in November 2008 inBeijing, respects the principles underpinning the Chinese Constitution and theterritorial integrity of the People's Republic of China, but was rejected bythe Chinese government as an attempt at 'semi-independence' and 'independencein disguise',
D. whereas China has shown no readiness to take part in negociations on a newstatute for Tibet which guarantees full Tibetan autonomy in all areas ofpolitical, economic, social and cultural life, the only exceptions beingdefence and foreign policy;
E. whereas a negociation process implies to assign a status to each sides andthe European Parliament strongly supports the objective of a negociatedsettlement of the Tibetan issue.
F. whereas the recognition of the Tibetan government in exile doesn'tnecessarily presuppose to support the objective of independence of Tibet butreinforces and recognises the diplomatic action of the Tibetan government inexile which, in its political proposal, accepted to renounce independence, withno positive answer from Chinese government till now.
1. Calls on the governments of the Members States to engage solemnly and withoutfurther delay to recognise the Tibetan government in exile as the legitimaterepresentative of the Tibetan people.
2. Decides, as far as the European Parliament itself is concerned, to establishofficial relations with the Tibetan parliament in exile.
3. Calls on the Chinese government and the Tibetan government in exile to takepart in negociations on a new statute for Tibet without further delay.
4. Calls on the governments of the Member States to invite each sides to enterinto negociations and host the negociation process.

2 nuns arrested after fresh protest in Kardze

In a fresh incident of protest in Kardze, two Tibetan nuns have been arrested, the Voice of Tibet radio service reported, citing a source in exile.
Tsetan Phuntsok, a monk in a Tibetan monastery in south India, told the radio service that the two nuns were Yulshey, aged 33 and Tsetan Lhamo, aged 28. According to Phuntsok, the nuns who carried a bag containing political pamphlets, shouted slogans calling for the return of the Dalai Lama and human rights for Tibetans.
The nuns, who belonged to Lama Ladrakrak monastery in Kardze, were severely beaten before being arrested, Phunstok said on phone. The nuns are reportedly held at a new detention centre in Kardze.
The family members of the two nuns were accused of plotting against the Chinese government and joining hands with “Dalai Lama’s separatists groups”. Chinese officials arrived this morning in two vehicles at the homes of the two nuns, said Phuntsok, adding that the family members were summoned to the local government office this morning.
In

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Petição Avaaz - Governo Sul Africano

Caros Amigos,

A Avaaz lançou uma petição online relativamente à recusa, por parte do governo Sul Africano, em conceder um visto a S.S. Dalai Lama.

http://www.avaaz.org/en/visa_for_the_dalai_lama/?cl=205788459&v=3058

Por favor assinem e reencaminhem !

Saudações

Grupo de Apoio ao Tibete

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Monk commits suicide



A Tibetan monk of Amdo Golok Ragya monastery in Gyulgho township (Ch: Lajong), Machen county, Qinghai, committed suicide by jumping into Machu river today around 3.30 PM (Beijing time), a source residing here with contacts in Tibet told the Voice of Tibet radio service. The monk was identified as Tashi Sangpo, aged 28, the source said.

The monastery has remained sealed and been under constant patrol of Chinese forces since March 10 this year when leaflets containing political messages were circulated and a huge Tibetan national flag hoisted atop the main prayer hall of the monastery. Several monks of the monastery were detained in the monastery which has since been completely locked down.
Security forces claimed to have found a Tibetan national flag and political leaflets from Tashi’s room, the source said. Tashi Sangpo sneaked out of the security forces’ sight by seeking to go to the toilet, according to the source, a former resident of Ragya, who said Machu River is not very far from the monastery.
At the time of this report going online, Tashi’s death has already sparked a strong anti China protest in Ragya where Tibetans are taking to the streets with the banned Tibetan national flag and banners, chanting slogans such as “independence for Tibet, long live Dalai Lama.”
In

Monday, March 23, 2009

Rare footages show China’s brutality on Tibetan protestors




Tibet’s Government in exile Friday released, what it calls, rare video footages showing Chinese paramilitary police resorting to extreme brutality on Tibetan protestors after last year’s March unrest against Chinese rule.

One of the three footages from a combined video release, which was screened at a press conference here today, showed Chinese police beating several Tibetans captives as they lay down handcuffed and tied.“This is one of the rare footages of Chinese police beating Tibetans who participated in the massive and widespread protests that erupted throughout Tibet since 10 March 2008,” said the Department of Information and International Relations (DIIR) of the Central Tibetan Administration in its press statement.“We are told that these beating of protestors took place in or near Lhasa after 14 March 2008,” the statement added.Thupten Samphel, information secretary, and Sonam N. Dagpo, international relations secretary, of the DIIR, presided over the press conference.Describing the footages as being “very disturbing”, Samphel said the acts of brutality violated the “international norms regarding treatment of captives.”


Death of Tendar
A second footage is of a young Tibetan named Tendar, who succumbed to his injuries after he was brutally beaten and tortured by Chinese police officials. Tendar, a staff in the China Mobile company, met his evil fate on March 14, 2008, after he tried to stop Chinese authorities from beating a lone monk while on his way to his office.Tendar later suffered inhumane treatments at the hands of Chinese authorities, DIIR statement said.According to the press statement, Tendar was “fired at, burned with cigarettes butts, pierced with a nail in his right foot, and severely beaten with an electric baton.”The footage showing the “wounds and the bruise marks visible on his body is a testimony of the brutality he was subjected to by the Chinese authorities,” the statement said.Tendar was further “denied basic medical care” at the military hospital and was later shifted to the TAR (Tibetan Autonomous Region) People’s Hospital in Lhasa.

Tendar was “denied basic medical care” at Chinese military hospital and was later shifted to the TAR People’s Hospital. He died due to his injuries on 19 June, 2008.Doctors at the hospital removed “about 2.5 kgs of his body part” in order to clean out the “rotten wounds” caused by prolonged delay in medical treatment.“Due to covering his wounds with polythene, his wounds began to rot as clearly seen from the footage,” the press statement said.According to the statement, despite efforts made by his family in meeting huge medical expenses, doctor’s at the people’s hospital failed to bring improvement to Tendar’s ailing body.He died due to his injuries on June 19, 2008.When his corpse was offered to the vultures according to the tradition, the statement said a nail was found in his right foot.


Brutality under “virtual martial Law”
Third footage shows the heavy Para-military presence in Lhasa in the run up to the 50th Anniversary of March 10 Tibetan National Uprising this month. “Lhasa and all other areas of Tibet still remain under virtual martial law,” the exile government said in the statement.After unrest erupted in March 2008, Beijing swiftly poured more troops into TAR and Tibetans areas in surrounding provinces to smother any protests.


The exile Tibetan government says about 220 Tibetans have died, over 1294 have been seriously injured and more than 1000 have disappeared since the crackdown last year. It says over 5600 people have been arrested and 290 are sentenced so far.Ahead of the 50th anniversary of the failed uprising that sent the Dalai Lama into exile, paramilitary police and soldiers swarmed cities and villages in Tibet to quell possible repeat of last year’s unrest.China has repeatedly denied the use of torture in Tibet, and has maintained that Tibet has remained relatively calm in recent months.In November 2008, the Chinese Foreign Ministry rejected the U.N. panel’s report on the widespread use of torture by Chinese police, calling the report as “untrue and slanderous” and accused the committee members as being “prejudiced” against China.However, the DIIR’s press statement says, the stunning footages received from Tibet “testify to what is truly happening in Tibet as recently as 2008.”Following last year’s unrest and the crackdown that followed, Dagpo said, Chinese authorities in Tibet continued resorting to “brutal beatings and torture of the captive Tibetans.” “We are waiting to receive more such footages in future,” Dagpo said, responding to a media inquiry during the press conference held here at the premises of the Tibetan Government-in-exile.




In

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Tibet Information Theory

While the Chinese government clearly issued strict censorship orders about Tibet coverage to all Chinese websites, Xiamen-based writer/blogger Lian Yue (连岳), who is known for his advocacy for environmental protection in Xiaman, writes on his Eighth Continent blog, translated by CDT:

1、If there is a power that wants to block information, then we should assume this power is bad.

2、If this power actually blocked the information, then this power should be assumed to be worse.

3、If the power which blocked information now publishes only one-sided information, then we should assume this information is false.

4、For all untrue information, the power which blocks information should be held most responsible.

5、The power which blocks information has no credibility to judge related information that flows around.

6、Information blocking is the only reason for making the divide deeper and the situation worse, since people in different positions are all talking from their own perspectives, and cannot be verified.

7、Ultra-nationalism is an emotion, not reason; therefore censorship is a bed for such emotion, fostering extreme-Tibetan, extreme-Han, Japan hatred, Taiwan hatred and other extreme emotions.

8、Mainland China is a place full of such extreme emotions. This extreme emotion supports the power, and likely prevents reform of the power.

9、Only sufficient information and sufficient expression can dissolve such extreme emotion. Trying to control so-called “dangerous speech” is the biggest danger.

In
http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2008/03/tibet-information-theory-lian-yue/

Blakeslee's Tibet Awareness Day derailed amid Chinese government lobbying

The Chinese government was not happy with a seemingly innocuous bill by Assemblyman Sam Blakeslee to declare March 10 Tibet Awareness Day in California.


In a possibly unprecedented move, representatives from the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco actively lobbied against the bill in Sacramento. That lobbying appears to have worked.With his non-binding “consent item,” the SLO County Republican would have proclaimed the Dalai Lama as the spiritual leader of Tibet and fueled criticism of China for its actions in preventing an autonomous Tibetan state.


March 10 of this year marked the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising and of the Dalai Lama’s exile to India. Of course, Blakeslee’s bill now can only retroactively declare that day, if it ever passes. On a 46-30 vote March 16, the Assembly sent the bill back for further study, likely killing it.


Leading to the day of the Assembly floor vote, members of the Chinese Consulate lobbied Assembly members both in writing and in person. Consulate representatives, including Consul General Gao Zhansheng, visited the Capitol building in Sacramento to meet individually with legislators, including Blakeslee.The in-person lobbying was backed up by a letter Zhansheng sent to legislators asking for their vote against Blakeslee’s bill. In that letter, Zhansheng argues that no government has ever recognized an “independent” Tibetan state, hence there was never and could never have been a Chinese invasion. In fact, Zhansheng writes, Chinese rule was crucial in ending years of “feudal serfdom and theocratic rule, which is the darkest slavery in human history.”Zhansheng could not be reached for comment, but consulate spokesman Zhou Yunliang echoed that position on “the so-called Tibet issue.”“Our position is always very clear,” Yunliang said. “We’re strongly opposed to such kind of resolution either on the state level or the federal level.” He called Blakeslee’s position “totally groundless” because Tibet has always been under Chinese rule, adding, “It is not an issue of human rights or religion; it’s about the sovereignty of China.”

Similar government statements (resolutions) have been issued before by Congress, the European Union, and even in California. Yet the Consulate was effectively silent last year when a nearly identical resolution moved swiftly through the Assembly. The only difference in the earlier bill, which was also originally authored by Blakeslee, was a reference to the 2008 Olympics held in China.


Things were different this year. A planned March 9 vote was blocked by Democratic Assemblywoman Fiona Ma. Ma, who actually voted in favor of last year’s bill, said there’s a new administration in Washington, D.C., that is more actively engaged with the Chinese government.“Our relationship with [China] is mutually cooperative at this moment,” Ma said, “so it is important that we maintain good relationships with our number one partner.”Even if it could be brought back, for Blakeslee and other Assembly Republicans, the bill is no longer the focal point of debate.


Before the floor vote several Assembly Republicans criticized some members for pandering to outside influence.“We have been lobbied by agents who work for the Chinese Communist Party,” Assemblyman Chuck DeVore chastised from the podium.Blakeslee told New Times this was the first time during his five years in office he had seen foreign representatives wandering the halls of the Capitol.

In
http://www.newtimesslo.com/news/2213/not-red-bill-is-dead/

Two Tibetans arrested amid ongoing media restrictions

Chinese public security officials in northwest Gansu province should release two Tibetan journalists detained in the past month or charge them with an offense, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

The public security bureau in Gannan, an area in the south of Gansu designated a Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, arrested Kunchok Tsephel Gopey Tsang on February 26, according to overseas Tibetan rights groups. Kunchok Tsephel, an online writer, runs the Tibetan cultural issues Web site Chomei, according to the Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy. Kate Saunders, UK communications director for the International Campaign for Tibet, told CPJ by telephone from New Delhi that she learned of Kunchok Tsephel's arrest from two sources. She has spent the past two weeks in Dharamsala and Kathmandu.

In an unrelated case, officials from the same bureau rearrested formerly imprisoned filmmaker Jigme Gyatso, according to the Tibetan Center and Saunders. The exact date of the arrest is not clear, but it is believed to have occurred around March 10, the 50th anniversary of the failed Tibetan uprising. Jigme Gyatso, a Buddhist monk, had been held from March to October 2008 before being freed on probation, Saunders said.
The reasons for the two detentions were not clear.

"These arrests are a disturbing indication that heavy punitive measures await Tibetans who publicize their version of life under Chinese rule. They are happening even though the international community widely condemned official handling of the media during last year's rioting," said Bob Dietz, CPJ's Asia program coordinator. "Public security officials in Tibet should disclose the circumstances and reasons behind the arrests of Kunchok Tsephel and Jigme Gyatso or release them at once."

The 1959 uprising preceded the Dalai Lama's departure from Tibet; its anniversary provoked ethnic rioting in Tibetan areas just months before the Olympics last year. Foreign reporters remain officially barred from the region, and information is strictly controlled within China. Some journalists and overseas Tibetan groups have defied those restrictions to publicize a strong Chinese military presence and higher-than-usual restrictions on Internet access in Tibetan regions. CPJ's Madeline Earp explored China's media policies regarding Tibet in a March 12 post on the organization's blog.

Saunders said Kunchok Tsephel was taken from his home. "There is serious concern for his welfare," she said. Kunchok Tsephel was detained for two months in 1995, according to the Tibetan Center's statement. It did not report the grounds for that arrest.

Jigme Gyatso assisted filmmaker Dhondup Wangchen shoot the documentary "Leaving Fear Behind," which detailed Tibetan opinions of Chinese rule. Dhondup Wangchen has been imprisoned since March 26, 2009, according to news reports. Tibetan groups believe he is being held in a detention center in Qinghai, the province immediately south of Gansu. Chinese authorities have not informed his family in Dharamsala of his location or of any indictment in the case.

Dhondup Wangchen's cousin in Switzerland, Gyalong Tsetrin heard of Jigme Gyatso's recent detention on March 16 from sources in the monk's monastery, Labrang, southern Gansu, according to his colleague, Dechen Pemba, who reported the arrest to CPJ by e-mail. Dechen Pemba, who lives in London, is helping to publicize "Leaving Fear Behind." "We are still trying to get more information about the circumstances and condition of his arrest," she wrote. "We are not sure if it is a temporary measure around this sensitive period of several anniversaries in the month of March or a continuation of his previous detention."

An earlier detention can be reimposed for violating the conditions of probation known as qubao houshen. Those conditions typically include restrictions on movement and communication, but they can vary, according to Saunders.

In
http://cpj.org/2009/03/two-tibetans-arrested-amid-ongoing-media-restricti.php

Chinese authorities re-arrest Jigme Gyatso



According to a confirmed information received by the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD), the Chinese authorities re-arrested Jigme Gyatso, who was previously arrested on 23 March 2008 and then later released on 15 October 2008 for providing assistance to the making of the film LEAVING FEAR BEHIND ( Tib: Jigdrel).



TCHRD learnt from various sources that Jigme Gyatso a.k.a Golog Jigme, age 40, a monk of Amdo Labrang Monastery, was re-arrested by Sangchu County Public Security Bureau (PSB) personnel some where around 10 March 2009 from his residence in Sangchu County, Kanlho (Ch: Gannan) "Tibet Autonomous Prefecture" ("TAP"), Gansu Province.



Sources told TCHRD that around 4 am in the morning, around 10 March 2009, the Sangchu County PSB personnel entered Jigme Gyatso's room and arrested him without giving any explanation. Since then there has been no information about his whereabouts.



From October 2007 to until March 2008, Dhondup Wangchen, a Tibetan from Bayen, Tsoshar (Ch: Hualong) "TAP", Qinghai Province and assisted by Golog Jigme (Jigme Gyatso), started filming a documentary film LEAVING FEAR BEHIND. The aim of the documentary film was to gather opinions and feelings of ordinary Tibetan people about the Dalai Lama, China's policies in Tibet and the Olympic Games. The film also provided a glimpse into hearts and minds of the Tibetan people about what they really feel about the Chinese presence in Tibet and the survival of Tibetan culture. The filming was concluded in the early March 2008.



The duo took great risk and danger by making the film and later smuggled it to the outside world on 10 March 2008. Immediately, the documentary film drew immense attention to the plight and suffering of the Tibetan people. On that same day and afterwards, Lhasa city erupted into unprecedented mass protests against unpopular Chinese rule, which was then later spread to many regions of Tibet.



On 23 March 2008, Jigme Gyatso was arrested by the Chinese security forces and detained in Kachu detention centre, (Ch: Lingxia) in Gansu Province. He was later released on 15 October 2008.
Three days later, on 26 March 2008, Dhondup Wangchen was arrested by the Chinese authorities in Tong De in Qinghai Province. He was first detained at Ershilipu Detention centre, in Xining city for three months. He was then later taken to Gongshang Hotel in the middle of July 2008, where he was last seen. He is still being detained in a secret prison. Dhondup Wangchen gave his reason for making the documentary film as under:
"Nowadays, China is declaring that they are preserving and improving Tibetan culture and language. That's what they are telling the world. Many organisations and offices have been set up for these things. What they say and what they do are totally different, opposites. If they really want to preserve and improve Tibetan culture and language in Tibet then they should withdraw Chinese people living in Tibetan areas. Tibetan culture and language has to be practiced in all Tibetan areas. If it is not practiced, how can it be preserved?" (http://www.leavingfearbehind.com/)



The Centre expresses serious concern at the present condition of Jigme Gyatso. During his earlier detention, he was severely tortured and interrogated by the Chinese prison guards. He fainted several times due to the beatings he received in the cells. The Centre urges the vital organs of United Nations to immediately intervene and seek the immediate release of Jigme Gyatso from his unconstitutional detention.
IN

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

17 MARÇO 2009

2009 marca o 50º ano desde que Sua Santidade o Dalai Lama deixou o Tibete.
Às 22h do dia 17 de Março de 1959, envergando um uniforme de soldado e com uma arma ao longo do ombro, Sua Santidade o Dalai Lama deixou o palácio Norbulingka, seguindo uma estrada repleta de perigos, rumo à Índia e à liberdade.

Sunday, March 15, 2009

CAMPANHA BANDEIRA TIBETANA: Barreiro







European Parliament resolution of 12 March 2009

European Parliament resolution of 12 March 2009 on the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising and dialogue between His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Chinese Government
The European Parliament ,
– having regard to its previous resolutions on China and Tibet, in particular its resolutions of 10 April 2008 on Tibet(1) and 10 July 2008 on the situation in China after the earthquake and before the Olympic Games(2) ,
– having regard to the statement made by His Holiness the Dalai Lama to the European Parliament on 4 December 2008,
– having regard to the statement on Tibet made by the US Administration and the European Union at the US-EU Summit on 10 June 2008,
– having regard to Rule 108(5) of its Rules of Procedure,A. whereas March 2009 marks the 50th anniversary of His Holiness the Dalai Lama's flight from Tibet and the beginning of his exile in India,
B. whereas eight rounds of dialogue between the envoys of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and representatives of the Chinese Government have produced no breakthrough and no further talks are planned,
C. whereas the Memorandum on Genuine Autonomy for the Tibetan People, produced at the request of the Chinese Government and presented by envoys of His Holiness the Dalai Lama at the eighth round of talks in November 2008 in Beijing, respects the principles underpinning the Chinese Constitution and the territorial integrity of the People's Republic of China, but was rejected by the Chinese Government as an attempt at 'semi-independence' and 'independence in disguise',
D. whereas His Holiness the Dalai Lama has appealed for non-violence, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 for his efforts and is not calling for the independence of Tibet but for the resumption of negotiations with the Chinese authorities, so as to reach a comprehensive political agreement on genuine autonomy, within the context of the People's Republic of China,
E. whereas over the last few days the Chinese authorities have tightened security in Tibet, with journalists and foreigners being banned from visiting the region and permits already issued to foreigners cancelled, implementing a 'strike hard' campaign against the Tibetan people,
F. whereas a large number of monks of the monastery of An Tuo, in the Chinese province of Qinghai, were arrested on 25 February 2009 during a peaceful march on the occasion of the Tibetan New Year,
1. Urges the Chinese Government to consider the Memorandum for Genuine Autonomy for the Tibetan People of November 2008 as a basis for substantive discussion leading towards positive, meaningful change in Tibet, consistent with the principles outlined in the Constitution and laws of the People's Republic of China;
2. Calls on the Council to ascertain what exactly happened during the negotiations between the People's Republic of China and the envoys of His Holiness the Dalai Lama;
3. Calls on the Council Presidency, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the exile of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to India, to adopt a declaration calling on the Chinese Government to open a constructive dialogue with a view to reaching a comprehensive political agreement and to include a reference to the Memorandum for Genuine Autonomy for the Tibetan People;
4. Condemns all acts of violence, whether they are the work of demonstrators or disproportionate repression by the forces of law and order;
5. Calls on the Chinese Government to release immediately and unconditionally all those detained solely for engaging in peaceful protest, and to account for all those who have been killed or gone missing, and all those detained and the nature of the charges against them;
6. Asks the Chinese authorities to provide foreign media access to Tibet, including the Tibetan areas outside the Tibet Autonomous Region, and to abolish the system of special permits required for access to the Tibet Autonomous Region;
7. Urges the Chinese authorities to grant UN human rights experts and recognised international non-governmental organisations unimpeded access to Tibet so that they can investigate the situation there;
8. Urges the Council Presidency to take the initiative of including the question of Tibet on the agenda for a meeting of the General Affairs Council with a view to discussing how the EU could facilitate progress on a solution for Tibet;
9. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the President, Government and Parliament of the People's Republic of China, and His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

China curbing foreign media in Tibet: RSW

Reporters Without Borders expressed its outrage at China for its treatment of foreign journalists visiting Tibet. The Paris based organization working for freedom of press worldwide said although the regulations inherited from the Olympic Games guarantee freedom of movement, at least 14 foreign reporters have been arrested and in many cases expelled from Tibetan regions in recent weeks.
“With the world’s eyes turned towards Tibet because of today’s 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising, the Chinese security forces have gone to extraordinary lengths to prevent any foreigners, especially journalists, from witnessing the situation there.”
RWB said journalists have been prevented from working in the three nearby provinces of Gansu, Sichuan and Qinghai. Beniamino Natale of the Italian news agency ANSA was briefly arrested in Qinghai province after visiting a monastery there.
Police escorted three Agence France-Presse journalists away from La Jia monastery in Qinghai province yesterday. “This is not a public place, you cannot be here,” a police officer told them, according to RWBA crew from the Spanish television station TVE was arrested in Sichuan province and their videotapes were destroyed.
A woman journalist with the Finnish TV station FBC was followed and detained several times in Qinghai, while her driver was threatened by the police.
The Associated Press has meanwhile said its reporters were detained and questioned twice in the past few weeks in Tibetan regions. A France 24 TV crew was briefly detained today by police while in the Tibetan quarter of the Sichuan capital Chengdu. Police told reporter Sébastien Le Belzic that he needed to obtain permission from the local office of the foreign affairs ministry before filming, as was the case before the Olympic Games.All foreigners are being prevented from entering Chengdu’s Tibetan quarter.
The Foreign Correspondents Club of China (FCCC) said: “These detentions must stop (…) By locking up and blocking reporters, the security forces raise suspicions about their actions.”
An FCCC representative told Reporters Without Borders, “Tibetans who speak to foreign correspondents or assist them, for example as a driver, risk being detained and interrogated by authorities. Under these conditions it is extremely difficult to get accurate information, much less an informed overview of what is happening in Tibetan communities on the 50th anniversary of the failed uprising.”
In

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

CAMPANHA BANDEIRA TIBETANA




Caros Amigos,

No âmbito da Campanha Bandeira Tibetana que teve início a 1 Março 2009,
enviem-nos pf fotografias !

Gostaríamos de saber por onde andam as V/ bandeiras !

Em cima, as fotos que até à data recebemos e... aguardamos por mais !

Saudações

Grupo de Apoio ao Tibete






Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Foto do monge Tapey, que se imolou em Ngaba


Na Índia, há uns atrás, um senhor Tibetano imolou-se em Nova Delhi como forma de protesto contra a gritante condição dos Tibetanos no Tibete.
Quando se aperceberam do acto, a polícia Indiana acorreu até junto do senhor e com panos os oficiais tentaram apagar o fogo.
A polícia Chinesa, que afirma ter disparado três tiros sob o monge Tibetano Tapey que se imolou em Ngaba, com o intuito de o salvar do sofrimento causado pelo fogo, tem nitidamente outro método.
Dispara, acorre até junto do mesmo e... fica a olhar...

JIGME GYATSO - ACTUALMENTE DETIDO


Venerable Jigme, a monk from Labrang Monastery in Amdo (Ch: Gansu Province) speaks about his experience following the widespread protests that erupted throughout the Tibetan areas of China in March/April 2008.

This translation of the 20 minute statement is accurate in content but is not a direct translation of every single phrase, word, and figure of speech.

References to the identity of Chinese security and detention apparatuses are translated from colloquial Tibetan and may not be technically accurate.




This year, on the 15th day of the second Tibetan month (March 22, 2008), after an assembly was over at the monastery, I went to the market. There I sat at the side of a taxi-stand and got a shoe repaired. As I was returning to the monastery, I received a call on my mobile phone. I looked at the phone, but there was no number visible.


Suddenly a white vehicle appeared, and stopped in front of me. Four soldiers arrested me and dragged me into the vehicle. When I looked back, I saw a nun. I shouted "Ani! Ani! [nun, nun!] several times and made sure she saw me getting arrested. Once in the vehicle, they covered my head with a black cloth and handcuffed me. Then with guns pointed at my head, and my body pressed down, they took me to the armed police guest house.


The guest house is at the back of the local police station. There they removed the cloth covering my head but kept the handcuffs on. Afterwards, they searched my body and took my phone, wallet and everything.


I was put on a chair with my hands tied at the back. A young soldier pointed an automatic rifle at me and said in Chinese, "This is made to kill you, Ahlos (derogatory term used for Tibetans by some Chinese). You make one move, and I will definitely shoot and kill you with this gun. I will throw your corpse in the trash and nobody will ever know." When I heard this, I was not terrified by the gun pointed at my head but by the thought that this man is not only a soldier or security personnel, but also a law enforcement officer, and here he is pointing a gun at an ordinary citizen and uttering such words…[it made me very sad….] as if my heart was shattered in two.


This is the case of a powerful nationality harassing and oppressing a small nationality, a big nation making weapons to kill a small nationality; if they are doing such things at the lower levels, it goes without saying that they are doing worse things to us at higher levels. The way they oppress and murder Tibetans, and can utter such words while aiming guns [at us], stunned me.


By telling us that Tibetans could be killed and our dead bodies dumped in the trash and that nobody would know - we are not even treated like dogs and pigs. If other people's dogs and pigs are killed, there will be somebody to claim them. Then why won't Tibetans be claimed after death? We are ordered not to claim our fellow Tibetans’ bodies even after death. At that time, I realized that there is no racial equality.


During the detention, some of the many questions they asked me were, "Did the Dalai Lama instigate you? Did the Dalai Lama ask you to carry out this looting, burning and destruction?". "How do you view the Dalai Lama? " As for me, I am a follower of Buddhism. The Dalai Lama is like my life, heart and soul. In that I am not alone.


For all the six million Tibetans, the Dalai Lama is their spiritual refuge in this life as well as the next. The Dalai Lama is widely respected for his tremendous efforts made towards world peace. He is the champion of world peace. He has established a path of non-violence.

I totally reject their accusation that the Dalai Lama has master-minded acts of looting, burning and destruction. The Dalai Lama can never encourage such things. Even an ordinary monk like myself cannot urge anybody to burn, loot and destroy.His Holiness the Dalai Lama is like the soul of the six million Tibetans. There is no way we can be parted from Him. As a Tibetan monk, historically, we have a teacher-disciple relationship. We must maintain this relationship. We have unwavering faith in the Dalai Lama. This was what I replied to the question of how I view the Dalai Lama.


After keeping us at the detention center for a few days, they took us to the jail. At the prison, the soldiers commanding us in Chinese ‘one, two, three’, as some of us could not understand Chinese, they scolded us - they would call us ‘animals', ‘fools’, and beat us with batons. When we asked why they are beating us, they reply, ‘you people cannot understand Chinese language’ and mock us.


My question is: In the Charter and Constitution of the People's Republic of China, it is enshrined that, in the regional areas of different nationalities, the language of that particular nationality is to be used and that the regional nationality must be given the right to govern. Then why is that, in the Tibetan areas, instead of using Tibetan language, Tibetans are not only verbally abused as "animals" and "fools" but are physically beaten just because he does not understand the Chinese language?There is no differentiation on the basis of one's actions or age. For instance, monks as young as fourteen and fifteen and as old as sixty and seventy year old were arrested. No difference is made whether they are involved in protests or not. We had no clothes on our backs nor shoes on our feet. Two monks would be tied together and put in the vehicle to be driven away. They are thrown in the vehicle like you would throw logs of wood. Even if some of them had their heads injured, and for some, their hands broken, they were all taken to the prison. Relatives or friends were not allowed to bring food, clothing or beddings. We had to huddle together to bear the cold.


The reason why we were so severely beaten is solely because we are Tibetans. For that we feel extremely sad.We were taken to a prison in Kachu [Linxia in Chinese]. All the prisoners there were Chinese and [Hui] Muslim Chinese. We were the only Tibetan prisoners. Everyday, with bare feet, we had to remove urine and excrement, and wash the floors. At the prison, we were forced to take off our monks’ robes and put on a layperson’s clothing. I am a Buddhist monk and it is humiliating to disrobe and put on a layman's clothes, and to be handcuffed and taken away, barefoot, in a vehicle.


In the prison, the conditions were very poor - there was not enough to eat or drink and nothing to wear. There wasn't even a towel to clean the face.I was kept there for one month during which time I was handcuffed in one position for many days and nights. During interrogations, I was accused of having contacts outside: with the Dalai Lama, Samdhong Rinpoche, and Ajia Rinpoche, and that I have to acknowledge that I have these outside contacts. Likewise, I was told that I have contacts inside with scholars and teachers. "You have been involved in activities and have led organizations. You have made calls to many outside provinces. What have you achieved from those? Where did you print the Tibetan flags? How many flags did you print? How many members are there in your group?" and "You have no choice but to accept these crimes".


They would hang me up for several hours with my hands tied to a rope….. hanging from the ceiling and my feet above the ground. Then they would beat me on my face, chest, and back, with the full force of their fists. Finally, on one occasion, I had lost consciousness and was taken to a hospital. After I regained consciousness at the hospital, I was once again taken back to prison where they continued the practice of hanging me from the ceiling and beating me. As a result, I again lost conscious and then taken to the hospital a second time. Once I was beaten continuously for two days with nothing to eat nor a drop of water to drink. I suffered from pains on my abdomen and chest. The second time, I was unconscious for six days at the hospital, unable to open my eyes or speak a word.In the end, when I was on the verge of dying, they handed me over to my family. At my release, my captors lied to the provincial authorities by telling them that that they had not beaten me. Also, they lied to my family members by telling them that they had not beaten me; they also made me put down my thumbprint (as a signature) on a document that said that I was not tortured. I had to stay for about twenty days at a hospital and spent twenty thousand Chinese yuan to get treatment.


On my return to the monastery, friends told me that 180 monks had been arrested. The monks had done nothing wrong. Our senior monk and the official lama (teacher) too were arrested. They were made to stand on the tip of their toes at night, and were beaten with the butts of guns on their back. The Chinese took pictures with their mobile phones as they were beating the monks on their necks.


I also found out that during the police and soldiers raiding the monastery, they stole religious statues, money, personal belongings and even foodstuff from the monastery and monks' private residences. It is apparent that the real looters and murderers are these soldiers of Chinese Communist Party. They engage in illegal acts and we are the ones who are arrested, beaten and tortured and killed.


Also, we are accused of aligning with the Dalai clique and instigating riots among the public. If there is real racial equality, freedom of expression and freedom of religion, then why are we not allowed to respect the figure for whom we have faith in our heart of hearts? Right in front of our eyes, they stamp with their feet on the picture of the Precious One [the Dalai Lama], break the picture frames with butts of guns, shred the pictures into pieces and burn them in the fire. We, being Tibetans and Buddhists, when we see the picture of our object of refuge being trodden under foot, and torn into pieces, we view these as irreparable acts.


When Tibetans break a few windowpanes, they say that such acts caused hundreds of millions of Yuan worth of damage. How do you measure the damage caused to our hearts by seeing our most revered One's picture trampled under foot?


The Chinese leadership says that the goal is to achieve a harmonious society, but at the same time continue to vilify the Dalai Lama, a figure that all Tibetans respect and honor as their spiritual head…..how can we begin to feel harmony when our values are denigrated and trodden on.Monks are being beaten off and on all during this period.


Not only that, monks who spoke to some reporters were beaten with batons and had their legs broken; on some, they used electric batons on their heads and in their mouths - the electric baton affected their brains and some have become disabled … sort of insane. We endured such torture.


Now our main hope is that the international media and the United Nations' investigators come to Tibet and check on the real situation and then report on it after they assess their findings. This is our main hope.The Chinese are telling us that Tibetans have done illegal things and are arresting and beating us, and even killing many people. Many people have fled to the mountains and dare not return to their homes and families. It will help if the world media see these things and report about them.The Dalai Lama did not instigate us to do anything. His Holiness did not tell us to fight for independence. His Holiness never said anything of this sort. Many of us support the Dalai Lama's Middle Way approach and the process of solving Tibet's issue through peaceful dialogue. But we are sad about being extremely oppressed today.


Today, I, as a witness to truth, am telling through the media, the story of Tibetans killed, undergoing torture in prisons, and about the countless who have been forced to flee to the mountains and are too afraid to return to their homes, so that the media can truthfully report on these situations. This is my hope.Officers from the security office and secret service as well as work teams have visited my room in the monastery, and are keeping close watch on me. Even now here is one man purposely watching me. I am not allowed to go out, nor am I allowed to make phone calls. I have a thick copy of the Chinese Constitution to study; I am ordered to write a confession.


While I am not physically in a prison, I have no freedom whatsoever.


These days there are a series of actions against us, not just in Labrang, not just in Amdo, but in Kham and central Tibet too. Many Tibetans are being killed, many oppressed and arrested. We heard that more than 200 Tibetans were killed and several thousand arrested. Still the beatings and arrests have not stopped. For us, access to news is blocked; we are not allowed to watch news or put up a satellite dish nor are we allowed to listen or watch news from the United States and other foreign countries. We are ordered to watch and listen to domestic broadcasts. We are told not to listen to foreigners nor to talk to them.


As such, where is the freedom of expression? Where is the freedom of religion?Tibetan people are undergoing all kinds of suffering. For me personally, I am a Buddhist monk at Labrang monastery. I was one of those arrested this year. I said this to the face of my captors: if you kill me, then that will be the end of it. But if I am able to go outside and get the opportunity, I will talk about the torture I went through; I will tell the people of the world as a truthful witness, about the sufferings undergone by friends and report these to the media.Even when I was released, I was told not to tell that I was beaten; I was warned not to contact anyone outside. But I cannot just keep quiet about the tortures I went through, nor the suffering borne by friends. This is also my reason for telling you this today. Still there is a harsh crackdown taking place in Tibetan areas and restrictions on the movement of Tibetans.These days, the authorities tell us to support the Olympic Games, but Tibetans around here are not even allowed to travel to Lanzhou, let alone go to Beijing to watch and support the games. We are not even allowed to go outside our own areas.


Because of the Olympics, even all traditional festivals, celebrations and religious rituals have been banned.There is a military presence everywhere. In the barn belonging to our monastery, they have made effigies out of straw and dressed them in Tibetan robes. The Chinese soldiers use them for doing bayonet practice. It seems that their enemy are the Tibetan people and the robe-wearing monks.


Not all arrested Tibetans were involved in protests. Why are they stabbing their bayonets on the effigy with Tibetan dress as their military exercise? It is not just monks who are suffering as a result of the Chinese viewing Tibetans as their enemy…..even Tibetan staff members, students and the ordinary Tibetans…. all are suffering. This big government, big country, and big nationality is using weapons, tanks and cannons on a small, humble people such as the Tibetans. Thousands of soldiers are surrounding us. ‘Kill the Tibetans who are disobedient’, they order.


In this 21st century, the people of the world are walking on the path to world peace. The peace-loving people and the supporters of truth should expose China for blocking the media and restricting reporters from seeing what is going on inside Tibet. I would like the world’s press, the United Nations and human rights organizations to pay attention and find a solution to the current dire situation for the Tibetan people.


You can pressure China to conduct meaningful dialogue with the Dalai Lama's representatives for a mutually beneficial solution to the Tibet-China issue. It is the hope and wish of the Tibetans inside Tibet to invite the Dalai Lama to Tibet. The Chinese Communist Party has stated that stability and unity are important goals for the nation. Now if both the Dalai Lama and the CCP work together to solve the Tibet-China issue through dialogue for the mutual benefit of both the Chinese and Tibetans, there is no reason why genuine and long lasting peace, stability and unity cannot be achieved.


In

Vozes Tibetanas de Rebkong

YESTERDAY AND TODAY'S REBKONG

On 7th March 2009 while the people of Rebkong were gathering to perform according to the annual ritual of burning incense to the local deities, Chinese soldiers surrounded the monastery and watched over the scene from the peak of the mountain. What was the government of China thinking? They were anxiously thinking there would be a protest.
All the people who work for the local administration had to sign a paper with fingerprints that said that they would not burn incense and pray.
The annual worship of the mountain deities and religious activities have also been forbidden in other villages of the region.
What do you think when you hear this news my friends?



FEELING OF DEEP FEAR

Suddenly, disturbing feelings of sadness entered into my doorway.
I went outside to discard this foreboding feeling. The whole region of Rebkong was surrounded by the sounds of darkness as well as the dark military forces.
In my mind came the old times when we lived in courage and happiness. I felt my stomach freezing.
Will there be any space left for us if we do not wake up now?
In

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Our 50 years of Agony


The three old mates gathered beneath a tree are sharing memories. Like any men their age, they've collected plenty. But these are stories no one wants to have to tell.

Sonam Choepel, 75, and his fellow exiles Abu Gaga, 71, and Sonam Topgyal, 67, are among the few surviving Tibetans who took part in their country's first uprising against Chinese rule which erupted in the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, 50 years ago this Tuesday. During the conflict their leader, the Dalai Lama, fled Tibet and has remained in exile in India since.

The three men served a combined total of 53 years in Chinese prisons for their role in the 1959 uprising. Now, along with Tibetans all over the world, they are preparing to commemorate the most significant and sombre anniversary in Tibet's history - March 10, 1959.

Last week they recalled images that haunt them still, even in their new home on Sydney's northern beaches.

"It began at about midnight on March 10," said Sonam Choepel. "The Chinese army let off bombs all over Lhasa. In the morning, the city was full of dead bodies. The streets were running with blood." Sonam was one of thousands of civilians who took up arms after years of escalating tensions between his people and the Chinese Communist government, which had been claiming sovereignty over Tibet since taking power in 1949.

"I remember the Chinese People's Liberation Army starting to arrive in Lhasa in the early '50s," he said. "They were helping with the farms, building roads, as if they meant well, but it was a trick. They gradually settled around Lhasa and set up army camps. More soldiers kept coming. They started to tell the Tibetan government what to do. And then the tanks came."

Sonam Topgyal knew those tanks already. He was a boy living in Kham in eastern Tibet, home to farmers and nomads, where the initial build-up of Chinese troops began.
His people, the Khampas, are renowned for their dogged resistance - often on horseback and armed only with daggers - against the vast, sophisticated Chinese army. They were the first to fight back against what Tibetans regarded as a hostile invasion. "I remember they looked so different from us . . . their faces, uniforms and language. They brought weapons we had never seen."

Sonam Choepel remembers his first encounter with tanks in Lhasa in the months before the March uprising. "When I first heard them, the ground was shaking as if the world was turning upside down. It was terrifying. But over time we grew used to the tanks and our fear changed to anger."

On March 10, 1959, it burst forth as 300,000 Lhasa citizens surrounded the Dalai Lama's summer palace, the Norbulingka. Their leader was inside and they feared for his safety. In response, the Chinese troops shelled the Norbulingka and the Dalai Lama's main residence, the Potala Palace. By March 17 the Dalai Lama had fled to the Indian border in disguise.

Sonam Choepel was arrested and spent 22 years in prison. "I tried to escape twice and I was caught and tortured a lot," he said. "They handcuffed my hands behind my back for six months. When they released the cuffs, my arms were paralysed. I could not eat or reach the front of my body."
Abu Gaga, who was still fighting in the resistance years after the 1959 uprising, was captured in 1962 and remained in prison until 1979. He was handcuffed for nine years. Sonam Topgyal has deep scars on his wrists from the manacles he wore for much of his stretch in a Chinese prison from 1968 to 1982, after he was captured fighting in the resistance. He still wears his hair long in the Khampa style. It's a gesture of defiance as well as tradition.

On Tuesday, the three friends will travel to Canberra to join Australia's Tibetan community in a peaceful protest outside Parliament House and the Chinese Embassy.

The significance of half a century of exile is overlaid with painful memories of unrest across Tibet during last year's 49th anniversary. Tibetans will hold placards representing the scores of their countrymen still unaccounted for after the subsequent Chinese crackdown.

Australian Tibetans with family or friends inside the Tibetan Autonomous Region and ethnic Tibetan areas receive snatched, often coded messages of an intensifying military presence and erosion of basic freedoms. In the past fortnight protests have flared up in the Amdo Ngaba area, a focus of the 2008 unrest. On February 27, a monk from Kirti Monastery set himself on fire in protest before being shot at and arrested by security officers.

Tibetan refugee Lobsang Lungtok Ralo, 37, of Dulwich Hill, sees ominous historical parallels. He participated in the 1987 protests, which were the fiercest in Tibet since 1959 and resulted in 13 months of martial law. "Tibet has once again become a giant prison," he said.

Sydney's three witnesses to the 1959 unrest lost more friends than most. "All these people are now appearing before my eyes, like I am watching a movie," said Sonam Choepel. "But none of us regret fighting for Tibet. I still believe all this suffering will benefit our cause and that one day Tibet will be free."

IN
http://www.smh.com.au/world/our-50-years-of-agony-20090307-8rwf.html?page=-1

9 Tibetans arrested in Kardze: reports

Two Tibetan women and five men were detained on Thursday (March 5) in Kardze following protests, according to reports.
Jampa Lhamo, aged 36, and a nun, Pema Yangzom, 22, distributed leaflets and called for the return of the Dalai Lama to Tibet, respect for Tibetans’ human rights, religious freedom, and the release of the Panchen Lama and Tibetan prisoners in two separate protest incidents.
Their current whereabouts is unknown, said the International Campaign for Tibet in a statement today. However, sources told Voice of Tibet radio service that the two are held in a new prison below a hospital building in Kardze.
A Tibetan source with contacts in the area was quoted by ICT as saying, “Days before Losar, local Tibetans in the region spontaneously started a silent boycott of Losar by holding prayers in many villages in Kardze region, such as Tongkor, Jori, Thargyal villages and Kardze itself.
Sometimes around 200 people attended the prayers held in each village, and it is said that the prayers that started during Losar are still continuing. The prayers were to mourn for those killed in the months-long protests after March 10 last year as well as boycotting Losar as a silent protest against the way the Government dealt with the protests in Tibet.
No local traditions for celebrations such as horse-racing festivals or dance performance by local villagers were held.”Voice of Tibet radio service reported 2 monks and three other men were also arrested before being beaten up severely for initiating protests on March 5.
A source with contacts there identified the three men as Tsering Dakpa 16, Chonyi Gyaltsen, 18 and Rinchen Phuntsok, 15. In another incident, two Tibetan men were arrested yesterday (March 6, 2009) in Kardze for protests but more details could not be acquired VoT reported.
In

Monks of Ngaba Gomang monastery protest, 1 held

Tensions reached a near bloody crackdown on monks of Ngaba Gomang monastery in Ngaba (Sichuan) as security forces blocked the monks who were marching towards the town administration, according to a Tibetan living in Canada with contacts there.
Khedup Gyatso, a Tibetan living in Canada, was informed on phone by a witness that around a hundred monks of Ngaba Gomang monastery headed for the town situated about 13 kilometres from the monastery.
A bloody crackdown was avoided after mediation by Tibetan officials and persuasion by residents on the morning of March 2, according to the witness. The witness, who had monk relatives in the monastery, said she rushed on horseback towards the monastery. According to her, the monks were mostly in their twenties. The monks, according to her, were chanting slogans like “Long live His Holiness the Dalai Lama”, “Free Tibet” and “World Peace”. Residents of near by villages swarmed on horseback and motorcycles towards the monastery fearing the security forces might resort to firing, she told Khedup.
“Residents physically wrestled with the monks trying to stop them from a possible shooting by Chinese security forces who were all set to press the trigger. Monks were arguing with their family members who stopped them.
Some monks said they are protesting in support of the Kirti monk who immolated himself on March 27.”According to the witness, some Tibetan officials of the Chinese government took the role of a mediator guaranteeing the monks’ return to their monastery, and after three hours the monks returned. However, a monk named Thangzin, in his twenties, was arrested from his quarter by the police later that night, she said. “Several others went into hiding since then.”It is not known if the monks who went into hiding are safe or where Thangzin is held.
In

Carta aos Líderes Parlamentares



Lisboa, 6 Março 2009



Exmo. Senhor
.........................,


O Grupo de Apoio ao Tibete vem por este meio solicitar a sua atenção para a problemática questão relativamente ao Tibete.

O próximo 10 Março 2009 marca o 50º Aniversário da Revolta Nacional Tibetana, quando os Tibetanos se ergueram corajosamente contra o domínio Chinês. A resposta Chinesa foi a morte de cerca de 80,00 Tibetanos, que conduziu posteriormente à fuga de S.S. Dalai Lama para a Índia, onde se encontra desde então.
Ao longo de 50 anos o mundo assistiu à destruição da religião e cultura Tibetana por parte do governo Chinês. Os mais básicos direitos humanos continuam a ser negados aos Tibetanos.

Em 2008 os protestos verificados em todo o plateau Tibetano, encontram uma brutal resposta por parte das autoridades Chinesas, sendo que mais de 200 Tibetanos faleceram na sua sequência, e milhares de pessoas continuam actualmente detidas e desaparecidas.

Desde o início deste ano que os protestos continuam, conforme poderá confirmar através do documento que anexamos.

Desta forma apelamos a que realize uma declaração pública acerca da questão Tibetana, no dia 10 Março, reconhecendo os esforços de S.S. Dalai Lama e do povo Tibetano na sua luta não violenta pela liberdade.

Apelamos também a que promova a criação de uma comissão Portugal – Tibete, com a maior brevidade possível.

Aproveitamos para o presentear com o símbolo nacional do Tibete, a sua bandeira, baseada num antiga bandeira Tibetana datando do século VII, e utilizada durante o reinado de Songtsen Gampo.

Agradecemos desde já toda a sua acção no âmbito desta premente questão.


Com os nossos melhores cumprimentos,
Grupo de Apoio ao Tibete

Resumo de Incidentes / Protestos no Tibete

Data: 1 Março 2009
Incidente: Grande Protesto

Local: Mosteiro de Sey, Ngaba, Amdo (Ch: Aba, Província de Sichuan)
Síntese: Entre 50 e 100 monges marcharam desde o Mosteiro de Sey após terem sido informados por funcionários Chineses de que não poderiam realizar orações no âmbito do festival Monlam Chenmo. Desafiando tais ordens, cerca de 600 monges iniciaram orações mas foram interrompidos por funcionários. Os monges caminharam rumo à cidade gritando que deveriam ser autorizados a rezar e reclamando às autoridades a libertação dos prisioneiros de Ngaba. O grupo caminhou por cerca de cinco a dez minutos antes de ser detido por funcionários que instigaram os monges a não continuar. A polícia armada chegou e é relatado que os monges regressaram para o mosteiro. O mosteiro é agora rodeado por polícia armada.

Relatório detalhado:
ICT - http://www.savetibet.org/media-center/inside-tibet-reports/new-protest-today-ngaba-after-officials-ban-prayer-ceremony
Reuters - http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-38272820090301


Data: 27 Fevereiro 2009
Incidente: Protesto de um monge, auto-imolação e tiros

Localização: Mosteiro de Kirti, Ngaba, Amdo (Ch: Aba, Província de Sichuan)
Síntese: Tapey, um monge Tibetano com cerca de 20 anos, caminhou sozinho desde o mosteiro segurando uma bandeira nacional Tibetana com a imagem de S.S. Dalai Lama e gritando slogans. Caminhou para a rua principal, encharcando-se a si próprio de petróleo, imolando-se em frente de numerosas testemunhas. É relatado que três tiros foram disparados por oficiais Chineses estacionados nas proximidades, sendo que Tapey caiu ao chão. Também é relatado que o incêndio foi extinto após Tapey ter sido baleado sendo imediatamente levado pela polícia. Relatórios da área indicam que os monges se encontram a realizar rituais de oração por Tapey.
Tapey realizou esta acção após os monges terem chegado à sua sala de oração para realizarem orações no âmbito do festival Monlam. A sala foi trancada e o comité de gestão do mosteiro apoiado pelo Partido Comunista Chinês, assim como o abade persuadiram os monges a regressarem às suas celas.

Relatório detalhado:
Students for a Free Tibet - http://www.studentsforafreetibet.org/article.php?id=1853
Free Tibet - http://www.freetibet.org/newsmedia/2729
ICT - http://www.savetibet.org/media-center/inside-tibet-reports/monk-tibet-sets-himself-fire-shot-police-during-protest
Xinhua - http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hbOTm5-BdEoHXYV_pZmu9E0nccAg


Data: 25 Fevereiro 2009
Incidente: Vigília e protesto
Local: Mosteiro Lutsang, Município Mangra, Tsolho PAT (Ch: Guinan, Hainan PAT, Qinghai)
Síntese: Mais de 100 monges Tibetanos marcaram o Ano Novo Tibetano com uma marcha pacífica, protestando contra as políticas do governo Chinês. Os monges marcharam cerca de uma milha desde o santuário de Lhamo Yongdzin até ao centro de Mangra, onde se cumpriu uma vigília durante cerca de 30 minutos. Em 27 de Fevereiro, o escritório local da Secretaria de Segurança Pública afixou um aviso solicitando aos líderes da marcha para se renderem às autoridades Chinesas, ameaçando lidar "severamente" com aqueles que não se entregassem.

Relatório detalhado:
RFA - http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/tibet-march-02262009163337.html
ICT - http://www.savetibet.org/media-center/inside-tibet-reports/authorities-surround-monastery-issue-48-hour-ultimatum-organizers-surrender-after-late



Data: 19 Fevereiro 2009
Incidente: Policia Armada do Povo abre fogo em confronto com Tibetanos

Local: Nagchu, Região Autónoma do Tibete (Ch: Naqu)
Síntese: A fonte (um blog) descreveu como os Tibetanos começaram a argumentar com a polícia Chinesa, quando esta se preparava para deter um Tibetano que se havia envolvido num argumento com um taxista Chinês. Os membros da Polícia Armada do Povo (PAP) cercaram os Tibetanos, um deles gritou: "Han vão-se embora!”, Devolvam-nos a nossa terra!" e "Volte para casa Dalai Lama e faça-se justiça", e outras vozes se uniram à sua. A violência eclodiu entre os Tibetanos e a polícia - vários carros da polícia foram virados e colocados a arder, e várias pessoas ficaram feridas de ambos os lados.

Relatório detalhado:
ICT - http://www.savetibet.org/media-center/inside-tibet-reports/emerging-news-armed-response-eve-clinton-visit-chinese-government-vows-crush-tibetan-d



Data: 16 Fevereiro 2009
Incidente: Grande protesto na sequência da ocorrência no dia 15 de Fevereiro, detenções e espancamentos

Local: Lithang, Kardze, Kham (Ch: Litang, Ganzi PAT, Província de Sichuan)
Síntese: Após os protestos dos dias anteriores, um protesto ainda maior teve lugar em Lithang. Sonam Tenpa, 29 anos, um irmão mais novo de Lobsang Lhundup, juntamente com catorze tibetanos, organizou uma marcha pacífica de protesto no mercado da praça principal, em Lithang. Relatórios indicam que Sonam levava uma foto do Dalai Lama e o grupo gritava os slogans: "Free Tibet", "Longa Vida a Sua Santidade o Dalai Lama", "Não Festejem o Losar " e "Libertem Lobsang Lhundup". Rapidamente mais Tibetanos se juntaram ao protesto e foi relatada a possibilidade da participação de 300-400 Tibetanos.
O protesto foi rápido e violentamente derrubado por um largo número de polícias armados empunhando bastões e espingardas.

Relatório detalhado:
Free Tibet - http://www.freetibet.org/newsmedia/170209
TCHRD - http://www.tchrd.org/press/2009/pr20090216a.html
http://www.tchrd.org/press/2009/pr20090217.html http://www.tchrd.org/press/2009/pr20090220.html


Data: 15 Fevereiro 2009
Incidente: Protesto, detenção e espancamentos

Local: Lithang, Kardze, Kham (Ch: Litang, Ganzi, Província de Sichuan)
Síntese: O protesto começou com um manifestante, Lobsang Lhundup, 37 anos, a gritar slogans incluindo “Longa Vida a S.S. o Dalai Lama” e “Losar Não” assim como a exigir o regresso de S.S. Dalai Lama ao Tibete. A ele juntaram-se rapidamente mais manifestantes (foi relatado que havia entre 100 a 200 manifestantes). O protesto durou mais de uma hora antes de cerca de 100 funcionários do Bureau de Segurança Pública chegarem ao local armados com bastões e fuzis. Os manifestantes foram agredidos e foi relatado que muitos dos manifestantes foram duramente espancados e derramavam sangue. Lobsang Lhundup foi detido e levado para o centro de detenção BSP da cidade de Lithang.

Relatório detalhado:
Free Tibet - http://www.freetibet.org/newsmedia/170209(covers 16th also)
TCHRD - http://www.tchrd.org/press/2009/pr20090216.html


Data: 20 Janeiro 2009
Incidente: Protesto, prisão, espancamento e morte

Local: Dzogang, Chamdo (Ch: Qamdo) Região Autónoma do Tibete
Síntese: Seis jovens Tibetanos foram detidos depois de participarem num protesto em Dzogang. Thinley Gyatso (Thinley Ngodup), Bhu Dhargyal, Norbu Tashi, Pema Tsepak e Gonpo Dadul e Dechoe Dolma marcharam em direcção à sede da polícia local em Dzogang, transportando aquilo que alguns relatos afirmam ser uma bandeira onde se lia “Independência para o Tibete” e outros dizendo ser a bandeira nacional Tibetana. Foram parados enquanto distribuíam panfletos e gritavam frases de oposição ao domínio Chinês, posteriormente detidos e severamente espancados. Pema Tsepak, 24 anos, foi espancado tão cruelmente pela polícia que faleceu na sequência.

Relatório detalhado:
CTA - http://www.tibet.net/en/index.php?id=680&articletype=flash
RFA - http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/tibetandeathincustody-01302009131007.html



Data: 18 Janeiro 2009
Incidente: Campanha “Strike Hard” começa em Lhasa

Local: Lhasa, Região Autónoma do Tibete
Síntese: O oficial Lhasa Evening News relatou que as autoridades lançaram a “Campanha Unificada de Controlo Strike Hard” e isto inclui a detenção de duas pessoas por “opiniões reaccionárias” e por fazer download de “músicas reaccionárias” para os seus telemóveis. O Bureau de Segurança Pública mobilizou 600 funcionários para efectuar rusgas em alojamentos alugados, hotéis e cafés com Internet e, em apenas três dias, 5.766 indivíduos tinham sido encurralados e questionados numa série de rusgas ao amanhecer.

Relatório detalhado:
TCHRD - http://www.tchrd.org/press/2009/pr20090123.html
ICT-http://www.savetibet.org/media-center/inside-tibet-reports/authorities-launch-strike-hard-campaign-heightening-lhasa-tension
Kashag http://www.tibet.net/en/index.php?id=723&articletype=flash&rmenuid=morenews



Data: 15 Janeiro 2009
Incidente: Detenção
Local: Mosteiro Kirti, Ngaba, Amdo (Ch: Aba, Província Sichuan)
Síntese: Lobsang Kirti, 27 anos, foi apanhado num centro de fotocópias e detido por “distribuição de folhetos suspeitos”. Lobsang tinha escrito anteriormente artigos para revistas e foi membro do conselho editorial do “Gangtse Metok”, a publicação oficial do Mosteiro Kirti.

Relatório detalhado:
http://www.tibet.net/en/index.php?id=687&articletype=flash


Data: 7 Janeiro 2009
Incidente: Protesto solitário, detenção e espancamento
Local: Shershul, Kardze, Kham (Ch: Ganzi, Província de Sichuan)
Síntese: Namhka Sonam, 27 anos, foi detido por entoar cânticos com as frases “Tibete Livre” e “Longa Vida a S.S. o Dalai Lama”. Dizem que ele foi severamente espancado por oficiais do Bureau de Segurança Pública. Após a sua detenção, o pai e o irmão de Namkha invocaram a sua libertação junto do escritório da zona. O seu apelo foi negado e Namkha ainda se encontra sob custódia.

Relatório detalhado:
http://www.tibet.net/en/index.php?id=687&articletype=flash



FIM


Friday, March 6, 2009

NÃO FALTEM ! PRÓXIMA 3ªFEIRA !


Tibetans Refuse State Dance Troupes

Tibetans in the Kardze region of China’s western Sichuan province have boycotted government-sanctioned New Year performances, instead putting up posters calling for Tibetan independence and threatening retaliation for crackdowns in the area, residents say.

Tibetans in Tibetan-populated areas of China and in exile have largely skipped traditional New Year, or Losar, festivities this year in protest against China's heavy-handed crackdown on 2008 protests against Chinese rule.
But Chinese authorities have insisted that festivities go on, with official media broadcasting Tibetan New Year celebrations and devoting broad coverage to what China calls positive developments in the region.

Meanwhile, two young Tibetan women have been detained after staging brief protests in front of Kardze’s Public Security Bureau (PSB) headquarters, sources said.
Residents of Kardze, part of what Tibetans know as Kham, have earned a reputation for speaking out against Chinese rule, experts say.
'On March 2-3, the sixth and seventh days of the Losar period, “authorities in the Kardze area ordered performance groups to tour different towns and villages and present cultural programs to mark Tibetan Losar festivities,” one resident said.
Each group was escorted by People’s Armed Police officers and official reporters, traveling in three vehicles, the man said, describing the response by local Tibetans as “very cold.”
“Despite Chinese insistence and threats, hardly any Tibetans attended the officially orchestrated shows,” he said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
One group was sent to the Rongpa Tsal subdistrict of Kardze, close to the Thargyal monastery, second-largest in the area.
“Before the performance group arrived, hundreds of posters were put up urging Tibetans not to attend the shows,” the source said.
The same group then went to the Lopa subdistrict, another source said, also speaking on condition of anonymity. Again, they were met with posters and leaflets urging resistance and calling for Tibetan independence.
“In some of the posters, the Chinese authorities were threatened with violent retaliation for their crackdowns on peaceful Tibetans,” the source said.
“Even government employees at the subdistrict and township levels were warned not to attend the shows. They were told that if they did, they would pay with their lives,” he said.
Reached for comment, an officer on duty at the Kardze PSB said the show at Rongpa Tsal had gone on as planned, calling it a “success.”
“The proposal for a cultural performance at Rongpa Tsal was initiated by the local Tibetans themselves,” he said. “Everything went well, and there was no problem.”
Sources described members of the performance groups as a “highly paid, elite” group of Tibetans, many of them the children of government officials and led in every case by Han Chinese.
After the incidents at Rongpa Tsal and Lopa, performances were canceled in Kardze’s villages and smaller towns, with the dance groups going only to the larger towns, several sources said.
Kardze residents previously reported that monasteries had rebuffed cash payments from the authorities to finance Losar celebrations.
On March 5, two Tibetan women—a nun named Pema Yangdzom, 22, and a girl whose name and age were unavailable—staged separate protests in front of Kardze’s PSB, according to the nun’s uncle, Yeshe Dorje, now living in Australia.
“My niece protested at around 10:20 a.m. and was quickly taken away by Chinese police,” Yeshe Dorje said, citing information from local family members.
“The other young girl appeared at the same place in the afternoon around 1:00 p.m. and protested. She too was taken away.”
Yeshe Dorje said he was unable to obtain further details about the protests, calling the presence of Chinese forces in the area “overwhelming.”

Kardze and other Tibetan areas of Sichuan province have seen repeated Tibetan protests following demonstrations in March last year in the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, that led to violent riots.

Tibet’s government-in-exile said more than 200 Tibetans were killed in the subsequent region-wide crackdown. Chinese authorities say police killed just one “insurgent” and blame Tibetan “rioters” for the deaths of 21 people.
Security has meanwhile been tightened in recent months throughout Tibetan areas, as officials brace for the possibility of unrest during several sensitive dates.
These include Losar, the 50th anniversary of the failed March 10, 1959, uprising against Chinese rule that prompted the Dalai Lama's flight to India, and the first anniversary of the 2008 protests.

In
http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/new-year-03052009135920.html