Tibetan Headlines
May 22: 5 Years for Tashi
Tashi Wangchuk, 32, the Tibetan language advocate who has been detained for the last two years after appearing in a New York Times video petitioning for the right for Tibetan children to be educated in Tibetan, has been given a five year sentence. His trial in January ended without a verdict. His case has attracted worldwide support. Tashi has never called for independence for Tibet.
May 22: Leadership Training
The third leadership workshop for young Tibetans is underway at the Tibetan Administrative Training Centre which is based in the Tibetan Reception Centre near Khanyara. 34 students from colleges across India are participating in the six-day workshop which has been organised by the Department of Education of the Central Tibetan Administration. Topics covered will include leadership, the Tibetan Charter, democracy and the Middle Way Approach
May 21: Man Detained
Gangye, a Tibetan man in his 50s living in Trido Town in Sog County in Kham, has been detained after books by HH the Dalai Lama and video CDs of the Kalachakra initiations by His Holiness were found in his house. His family say he has been under surveillance for some time and he and his two sons have been questioned in the past. His current whereabouts are unknown.
May 19: Case Against Kashag
Former North America Representative Penpa Tsering has filed a legal case against Kashag (The Tibetan Cabinet) for their decision to oust him from his role as the Representative of the Office of Tibet in Washington DC last year. Penpa Tsering has taken the matter to the Tibetan Supreme Justice Commission. Penpa was replaced by former Education Minister Ngodup Tsering in December 2017.
May 19: CONIFA World Cup
Tibetan National Football team is set to take part in CONIFA World Cup in England from May 31 to June 9. The players of the Tibetan National Football team and the members of the Tibetan National Sports Association received a private audience with His Holiness the Dalai Lama at his residence. His Holiness advised the players to uphold Tibetan values of compassion and peace wherever they go.
May 18: Prisoner Freed
Dashar, a Tibetan who was jailed for ten years for protesting against Beijing’s rule in Tibet, has been released after serving his full term and has returned home to southwestern China’s Sichuan province. Dashar was a monk at Wonpo monastery in Sershul and was detained after taking part in the uprising in 2008. He was held for an additional two months after the completion of his sentence.
May 18: Still Missing!
Tibet Campaigners worldwide have launched a renewed call to world governments to seek tangible evidence of the well-being and whereabouts of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama, who was kidnapped by the Chinese authorities 23 years ago today at the age of six. Statements have been made around the globe as well as local events held to draw attention to his plight and to call for his release.
May 17: Empowerment on Saka Dawa
On the first day of the sacred month of SaKa Dawa, the festival honouring the life of the Buddha, His Holiness the Dalai Lama blessed Tibetans and other devotees with a conferment of Avalokiteshvara’s six-syllable empowerment, Joluk Chenresig Yege Drukmey Jenang. SaKa Dawa is the fourth month of the Tibetan calendar and celebrates Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death as well as his other holy activities.
May 17: Saka Dawa Restrictions
The Chinese authorities have issued an order restricting Tibetan families from observing the month-long Saka Dawa festival, one of the holiest festivals of Tibetan Buddhism. Parents are not to take their children to the ceremonies and schools are to inform the education bureau about any pupils who have been absent during the festival. Similar prohibitions apply in the Muslim Xinjiang region of China during Ramadam.
May 16: Concerns in Nepal
The Committee on Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) has been in session in Geneva and has reviewed the state reports of several countries, including Nepal. The committee expressed concern about the conditions for Tibetans living there and the “absence of” legal protection for refugees and asylum seekers; appropriate humanitarian assistance for migrants and the [non] availability of personal identification documents for Tibetan refugees”.
May 16: Visitors to His Holiness
HH the Dalai Lama welcomed four Indian parliamentarians to his residence in Dharamshala saying, “Government of India arranged my more or less permanent home here. So, since Dharamshala is my home for 60 years, I extend my welcome to you”. The parliamentarians were all representing the Parliamentary Committee on official language; three delegates are from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, one the Shiv Sena Party.
May 16: Monks Banned
Tibetan monks who have been educated in India have been banned by the Chinese authorities from teaching Buddhism in Lithang County in Kham in Tibet. A Chinese spokesperson said that these monks had been taught by the “Dalai Lama clique – whom China regards as separatists” and continued, “Those awarded the degree overseas are not acknowledged by China and are not qualified to teach Buddhism in the country”.
May 15: Nomads Appeal
Around sixty nomad families are appealing to the Chinese authorities for the return of their grazing land which has been seized for a tourist development at Marthang township in Nyemo county. The land has been the main source of livelihood for the nomads who have farmed there for generations; deprived of their grazing, their animals are now starving to death.
May 15: Helium in Tibet
China has discovered helium in the Ngari prefecture of western Tibet, reports the Tibetan Review, saying the helium concentration exceeds 0.1% and could be used industrially. Helium is an inert gas widely used in aerospace, low temperature superconductivity, the nuclear industry and scientific research. Until now China has imported helium, this the only natural gas field in China that could be used for its industrial exploitation.
May 14: TWA Gathering
Nearly 200 women have gathered in Dharamshala for the Tibetan Womens Association 12th General Body Meeting, with former Kalon Tripa [Head of the Cabinet] Prof Samdhong Rinpoche as chief guest at the inauguration. Rinpoche said that the Tibetan mothers and women in general have the foremost and an important responsibility of upbringing the future generation of Tibetans. The meeting will discuss the organisation’s plans for the future.