Posted by: sanas March 16, 2008
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I hope this heat will help Tibetans to get their land return.
NEW DELHI: From Athens to the Everest, China is feeling the heat of the "Free Tibet" campaign just five months before the biggest show on earth- the 2008 Olympics - opens in Beijing in August.
Even as the first batch of 100 Tibetan activists leading the "Return march to Tibet" are cooling their heels in police detention at a government guest house in Dharamsala, all roads seem to be leading to the seat of the Dalai Lama's government-in-exile in Himachal Pradesh as at least two high-profile American visitors - House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Hollywood star Richard Gere - are expected to show up in the town to express solidarity with the Tibetan activists who are trying to turn their protest into global movement against China's "occupation of Tibet".
On Saturday, despite the barricades on roads to Delhi, a group of 44 Tibetans left Dehra, some 54 kms from Dharamsala, to carry on their march to Tibet. Though they issued strong statements claiming that they were "determined to see this march through to the end", one of the core organizers admitted in private that they knew there was no way they could cross the international border.
"The whole idea of the march is to attract the world's attention to the Tibetan issue. It's not possible for a big group to march into Tibet just like that. We don't want to embarrass the Indian government by doing something reckless, but we certainly want to embarrass the Chinese by protesting wherever and whenever we can. That's our strategy," says one of the organizers of the march.
And if the global media attention is an indication then the strategy seems to be working well, with the world leaders and human rights group asking China not to use force in dealing with "peaceful Tibetan demonstrators in Tibet".
And the protestors' got a major boost on Friday when Pelosi strongly condemned the Chinese action in Lhasa.
"The violent response by Chinese police forces to peaceful protesters in Tibet is disgraceful. The Chinese government should immediately provide information on the welfare and whereabouts of the detained Buddhist monks and facilitate access by international human rights monitors and journalists to Tibetan areas," Pelosi said in a statement in Washington on Friday.
The Democratic Party leader arrives in Dharamsala on Friday. Pelosi is expected to meet the Dalai Lama, Tibetan refugees and human rights activists. "We are expecting her to issue a really strong statement," says a Tibetan official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. "It will put real pressure on China."
And just one day after Pelosi's trip to Dharamsala, Gere will arrive in the town for a meeting with the Dalai Lama. The Hollywood star, who said on Friday that China "should suffer a boycott of the Beijing Olympics if it mishandles protests in Tibet", is likely to repeat his "boycott call" in Dharamsala.
Excited over the next weekend's visits, the Tibetan activists are working overtime to make sure that they use China’s Olympic hype to get maximum mileage for their cause. "We have planned marches, rallies, speeches around the world. We are even organizing Tibetan version of the Olympics in Dharamsala. We will chase the Olympics torch and protest wherever it goes. As China plans to use the games to showcase itself as the world's new superpower, we will expose its ugly record in Tibet," says a Tibetan activist.
With its reputation at stake, the Chinese are not taking the threat lightly. On Saturday, agreeing to China's request, Nepal blocked access to Mt Everest to prevent Tibetans from staging a protest at the peak.
But, with the Tibetans ready to take their protest around the world till the games open in August, the Chinese may continue to feel the heat of Tibetans’ anger for the next few months.
Even as the first batch of 100 Tibetan activists leading the "Return march to Tibet" are cooling their heels in police detention at a government guest house in Dharamsala, all roads seem to be leading to the seat of the Dalai Lama's government-in-exile in Himachal Pradesh as at least two high-profile American visitors - House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Hollywood star Richard Gere - are expected to show up in the town to express solidarity with the Tibetan activists who are trying to turn their protest into global movement against China's "occupation of Tibet".
On Saturday, despite the barricades on roads to Delhi, a group of 44 Tibetans left Dehra, some 54 kms from Dharamsala, to carry on their march to Tibet. Though they issued strong statements claiming that they were "determined to see this march through to the end", one of the core organizers admitted in private that they knew there was no way they could cross the international border.
"The whole idea of the march is to attract the world's attention to the Tibetan issue. It's not possible for a big group to march into Tibet just like that. We don't want to embarrass the Indian government by doing something reckless, but we certainly want to embarrass the Chinese by protesting wherever and whenever we can. That's our strategy," says one of the organizers of the march.
And if the global media attention is an indication then the strategy seems to be working well, with the world leaders and human rights group asking China not to use force in dealing with "peaceful Tibetan demonstrators in Tibet".
And the protestors' got a major boost on Friday when Pelosi strongly condemned the Chinese action in Lhasa.
"The violent response by Chinese police forces to peaceful protesters in Tibet is disgraceful. The Chinese government should immediately provide information on the welfare and whereabouts of the detained Buddhist monks and facilitate access by international human rights monitors and journalists to Tibetan areas," Pelosi said in a statement in Washington on Friday.
The Democratic Party leader arrives in Dharamsala on Friday. Pelosi is expected to meet the Dalai Lama, Tibetan refugees and human rights activists. "We are expecting her to issue a really strong statement," says a Tibetan official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. "It will put real pressure on China."
And just one day after Pelosi's trip to Dharamsala, Gere will arrive in the town for a meeting with the Dalai Lama. The Hollywood star, who said on Friday that China "should suffer a boycott of the Beijing Olympics if it mishandles protests in Tibet", is likely to repeat his "boycott call" in Dharamsala.
Excited over the next weekend's visits, the Tibetan activists are working overtime to make sure that they use China’s Olympic hype to get maximum mileage for their cause. "We have planned marches, rallies, speeches around the world. We are even organizing Tibetan version of the Olympics in Dharamsala. We will chase the Olympics torch and protest wherever it goes. As China plans to use the games to showcase itself as the world's new superpower, we will expose its ugly record in Tibet," says a Tibetan activist.
With its reputation at stake, the Chinese are not taking the threat lightly. On Saturday, agreeing to China's request, Nepal blocked access to Mt Everest to prevent Tibetans from staging a protest at the peak.
But, with the Tibetans ready to take their protest around the world till the games open in August, the Chinese may continue to feel the heat of Tibetans’ anger for the next few months.