Home | Back
SANTA BARBARA FRIENDS OF TIBET
APRIL 2001 NEWSLETTER
OUR MISSION IS to encourage a community in Santa Barbara that actively
supports Tibetans and autonomy for Tibet. Our objectives are to:
-Enhance public awareness through education and events
-Aid Tibetan refugees both here and abroad
-Contact political leaders
-Support other national and international Tibet organizations
email kyoung@sbre.com to be added to or deleted from the SBFOT monthly
e-zine
UPCOMING ACTIVITIES
UCSB STUDENTS FOR A FREE TIBET RALLY TUESDAY, April 10, 2001
11AM TO 1PM IN FRONT OF THE LIBRARY. Come help us convince the University
of California to vote for Shareholder Resolution 17, to force British
Petroleum/Arco to sell its ownership interest in PetroChina, the Communist
Chinese Government owned corporation which is exploiting the Tibetan
environment, culture and people. Call Dewitt Bowman, UC Treasurer,
510-987-9600 and Regent Judith L. Hopkinson, Chair of the UC Committee on
Investments, at 510-987-9220 and ask them politely to vote in favor of
Resolution 17 instructing BP to divest from PetroChina. Call before
April15.
SBFOT ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING WEDNESDAY, APRIL 11
6PM, 1715 STATE STREET (and the 2nd Wednesday of each month thereafter:
May
9, June 13; no July meeting.) Pizza provided! RSVP kyoung@sbre.com or
564-3400.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, PANCHEN LAMA'S 12TH BIRTHDAY PROTEST
& SAY NO TO THE OLYMPIC GAMES IN CHINA - LOS ANGELES INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC
COMMITTEE OFFICE, 2141 W. Adams Blvd. At Gramercy Place in Los Angeles.
SBFOT will provide FREE transportation to all who will come. The bus
leaves
SB at 2PM in time for the 4:30PM to 6:30PM event, back to SB by 8:30PM.
Protest includes street theatre (see the Panchen Lama in a cage, etc.),
presenting petitions to Anita De Frantz of the USOC, chants (NO HUMAN
RIGHTS, NO OLYMPICS), TV coverage, etc. RSVP ASAP 564-3400
kyoung@sbre.com.
The vote to award the 2008 Olympic Games is in July.
SATURDAY, MAY 12: BENEFIT SCREENING OF "HIMALAYA"
Sunset Blvd., Hollywood. Tickets $20, 7:30PM at Harmony Gold Theater,
7655
Sunset Blvd. Hollywood. Transportation provided, RSVP ASAP 564-3400
kyoung@sbre.com. Benefits LAFOT and Tibet Fund. Filmed in Dolpo,
featuring
a cast of mostly Dolpowas and Tibetan refugees, the movie is a
French-Swiss-British-Nepalese joint venture, one of the biggest hits of
the
year in France.
MAY 25 TIBET DAY IN PASADENA
by the Tibetan Association of Southern California. 11AM to 8PM at the
Pasadena Masonic Temple, 200 South Euclid Ave., Pasadena. Tibetan Bazaar
and food, sand mandala, Tibet Photo Exhibition, Tibetan medicine and
astrology, slide shows, all free. Evening concert and Dance by Gaden
Shartse monks and others 6PM to 8PM $15. 310-559-9893.
MAY 26 AN EVENING WITH HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA,
TENZIN GYATSO, THE XIV DALAI LAMA OF TIBET. 6PM UCLA's Pauley Pavilion,
Los
Angeles. Proceeds benefit the Office of Tibet (Tibet's Government in
Exile).Tickets $16 - $100. 310-825-2101.
LATEST TIBET NEWS
The International Tibet Support Network (ITSN) was formed last year to
better coordinate the hundreds of Tibet Support Organizations (TSG's)
around
the world so that short and long term strategies could be directed and
implemented in a cohesive fashion. 300 delegates from 100 TSG's in 52
countries met in Berlin last May and created ITSN. SBFOT is a founding
contributor of ITSN, and Tseten Phanucharas of LAFOT is a Director. Their
two campaigns are to encourage the United Nations Commission on Human
Rights
(UNCHR) to sponsor a resolution condemning China's human rights record,
and
the Panchen Lama campaign. Please email Tseten with your ideas and
support:
tsetenp@stjohns.org, after visiting the ITSN web site at
www.tibet.org/itsn.
CHINA DETAINS US SCHOLAR FEBRUARY 11TH, separating the mother from her son
and husband as they were leaving Beijing at the airport.
USA MOVES FOR A CHINA RESOLUTION AT UN RIGHTS COMMISSION scheduled through
April 27 in Geneva, Switzerland.
US STATE DEPARTMENT says Chinese government is responsible for "serious
human rights abuses in Tibet" in its annual human rights report for 2000
released February 26, 2001.
CHINESE AUTHORITIES have built a propaganda "Tibet Museum", a 3-level
pagoda
style 50,000 sq. meter building near the summer residence of the Dalai
Lama
in Tibet. Tourists can now see the Golden Urn that China used to select
an
imposter Panchen Lama, also a copy of the 17-point agreement signed in
1951,
as well as other artifacts supporting China's claims over Tibet.
THREE TIBETAN GUIDES were arrested in January assisting Tibetans to flee
the
Chinese occupation. They were crossing the Nangpa pass, 19,000 feet, just
West of Mt. Everest. 1,000-2,000 Tibetans use this route to escape into
Nepal every year; it involves 2-3 weeks of walking. Last year China built
a
permanent border station here. The guides are "likely to endure torture
during interrogation and could be detained for months or more" depending
on
their behaviour and confessions while in prison.
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ASKES EUROPEAN UNION FOR CHINA HUMAN RIGHTS RESOLUTION
Feb. 15, 2001, which "condemns all violations of religious rights" by
China.
MARCH 25, 201 MARKS 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF BROADCASTS INTO TIBET IN THE
TIBETAN LANGUAGE BY THE VOICE OF AMERICA. It now broadcasts 3 hours per
day, and is the most popular and most listened to of any radio or TV
station
in Tibet. VOA has a staff of 25.
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL DETAILS CHINA'S TORTURE TACTICS. Feb. 12, 2001 AI
report says torture in Tibet is "particularly harsh during the early
stages
of custody and interrogation", "routine mistreatment and use of torture
against Tibetan prisoners", "80% of Tibetan female prisoners are nuns, 66%
of male prisoners are monks", "Patriotic education of monks and nuns
continue","Tourist industry pressured to dismiss Tibetans raised or
educated
in India", "Illiteracy levels high", "Campaign to promote atheism extended
to government offices and schools", "Tight government control of official
foreign visitors", etc. etc.
NEPALESE STOP TIBETAN NEW YEAR FESTIVITIES in Kathmandu Feb. 26, 2001
UNITED NATIONS BARS DALAI LAMA REPRESENTATIVE FROM A CONFERENCE HE WAS TO
ADDRESS AT THE UN BUILDING IN NYC March 1, 2001. Pressure from China led
to
the cancellation of his speech.
CHINESE DEMOCRACY ACTIVISTS met with Tibetan groups in New York City Feb.
10, 2001.
JOIN THE SAVE TIBET ACTION NETWORK www.savetibet.org/action
Key U.S. Committee Approves China Olympic Resolution
WASHINGTON, Mar 29, 2001 -- (Agence France Presse) A key U.S.
congressional
committee on Wednesday overwhelmingly approved a resolution urging the IOC
to deprive China of the 2008 Olympics due to its "abominable" human rights
record.
The House International Relations Committee voted 27-8 to pass the
non-binding resolution, which has infuriated Beijing, to the full House of
Representatives.
March 22, 2001 (ENS) - China is increasing mining in Tibet. Australian
mining companies and the University of Tasmania are set to play an
integral
role in the mineral future of Chinese occupied Tibet. The Tanjianshan gold
deposit, lying within northern Tibet's Chokle Namgyal mountain range,
contains up to 37 tonnes (41 tons) of gold, potentially worth US$335
million, according to a brochure published by Sino Mining International.
After initial exploration by the Canadian company, Placer Dome,
Tanjianshan
is now controlled by the Sydney based Sino Mining International (SMI),
part
of the China National Non-ferrous Metals Corporation. SMI is currently
trying to raise US$10 million to develop the deposit
March 22, 2001
Washington, DC- Chinese Vice Premier Qian Qichen arrived at the State
Department last night to demonstrators protesting China's continued
occupation of Tibet. The group was holding a vigil at the State
Department
in protest of China's
persecution of Tibetans and to urge the Bush Administration to pressure
Beijing to restore political freedom to the Tibetan people through
peaceful
negotiations. When Qian's motorcade arrived, a Chinese-speaking Tibetan
led
chants calling
for Tibetan self-determination in Mandarin Chinese.
Report Documents Torture of Tibetan Children Under Chinese Rule
March 21, 2001
Contact: Minnie Cancellaro
International Committee of Lawyers for Tibet
510-486-0588, iclt@igc.org
Tibetan children, some as young as nine years old, have been detained and
tortured by Chinese authorities, according to a report released this week
by
the International Committee of Lawyers for Tibet. Entitled A Generation in
Peril: The Lives of Tibetan Children Under Chinese Rule, the report is
based
on interviews of refugee children in India conducted in November 1999 by
lawyers and psychologists. The report is being released as the United
Nations Commission on Human Rights opens its annual session in Geneva,
where
the United States will sponsor a resolution condemning the Chinese
government for human rights abuses in China and Tibet. The resolution will
likely be a topic of discussion when Chinese Deputy Premier Qian Qichen,
China's Foreign Minister, sits down with President Bush in Washington D.C.
on March 22. U.S.-Taiwan relations will also place high on the agenda. The
Dalai Lama is scheduled to begin religious teachings in Taiwan beginning
March 31, despite strong protests from Beijing, which fears growing mutual
support between Taiwan and the Tibetan government-in-exile for what
Beijing
views as "splittist" activities.
Statement of Kalon T.C. Tethong on the EU's Refusal to Co-sponsor China
Resolution
We are disappointed by the fact that the European Union has decided not to
co-sponsor the move by the United States to censure China's abysmal human
rights record at the annual session of the UN human rights commission.
This will send a wrong and misleading signal to the Chinese authorities
that
they can trample upon the human rights of their own citizens and ethnic
minorities without any protest from a powerful and significant part of the
free world.
This will also disappoint a large segment of people in China and Tibetans
and other ethnic minorities who are struggling for the restoration of
their
fundamental freedoms and their human dignity. These people expect the rest
of the world to help fulfil their just aspirations. In Tibet, the human
rights situation remains appalling and will grow worse, judging by the
hardline statements that are being made by some of the top Chinese
leaders.
On 5 March, Hu Jintao, the Chinese vice-president and the man whom many
commentators describe as the one who will fill in President Jiang Zemin's
shoes, told the Tibetan members of the National people's Congress,
"Resolute
struggle against splittist rebellions and other activities disturbing
social
stability must be treated an important work on high-level political
agenda.
We must implement this campaign seriously . All splittist activities must
be
curbed and repressed firmly according to the law."
More than five months after the US Congress approved China's bid to join
the
World Trade Organisation, the prospects for concluding the negotiations
appear ever more distant.
http://tm0.com/sbct.cgi?s=36383505&i=314762&d=1187087
Dear Friends and Fellow Tibetans, Tashi Delek!
Great News from our friends in Germany. You may have already heard that
Monica Deimann Clemens and friends at TIBET-Forum and Tibet Initiative
Deutschland were able to get 446 cities in Germany to raise our Tibetan
National flag on March 10th 2001.
TIBETAN NATIONAL FOOTBALL TEAM
During the past decades, football has been the most known and popular
sport.
Gathering nations and generations despite of the differences. Football has
been a community building sport, providing people with a common identity
and
unifying factor throughout the world.
While adjusting to the conditions of living the life in exile and coping
with the daily life in a new culture, the Tibetans have learned to enjoy
the
game of football. The sport has in a short time become their most popular
and beloved sport in the Tibetan community. This has led to the creation
of
many local Tibetan football clubs and it is with that in mind that the
idea
of a National Team has surfaced.
It is now finally time for the Tibetan National Football Team to enter the
international scene to face their biggest challenge on the field up to
date,
Greenland.
<![endif]>The preparations have been going on for a few years, with
training
sessions and friendly matches. However, this will be the Tibetans first
international match ever, and is likely to draw a great deal of attention.
The match between Tibet and Greenland will take place in Denmark on
Saturday, June 30th 2001.
Behind this initiative is Michael Nybrandt who have formed Tibetan
National
Football Association (TNFA), with support from the Danish humanitarian
organisation, TNFA Partnership, together with wide support from the
Tibetan
Government in exile and the local Tibetan community, the project has had a
promising start.
But more financial support is needed
We will be able to organise some cultural activities around the main
event.
We are however, still short of funds and hope that some of you will be
able
to contribute financially to cover the costs of the players transport,
visa
application, and so on. Every contribution is heartily welcome. We look
forward to hear from you soon.
You can get more information on www.tnfa.org or info@tnfa.org
ICT, Washington, DC - An intricate and orchestrated external public
relations campaign to support China's hard-line positions toward the
Dalai
Lama is outlined in a 22-page Chinese government document, leaked by an
official in Beijing.
The document gives a rare and detailed glimpse into the inner workings
of
a
plan to aggressively influence Western public opinion. Much of the
document shows how the Chinese government works to create anti-American
sentiment and pressure its academics and intellectuals to develop better
theories to support the government's positions.
"It is difficult to reverse the present situation where the enemy's
fortune
on the international arena is running high and ours low," says the
document,
so it exhorts scholars and academics to produce better intellectual
arguments which need to be "understandable and acceptable to the
international community."
Currently, aspects of the strategy laid out in the document are being put
to
use to attack His Holiness the Dalai Lama who is in Taiwan this week. The
document was presented by Zhao Qizheng, minister in charge of the
Information Office of the State Council, at a meeting on June 12, 2000
attended by heads of Tibetology institutes and other research institutes.
Academics, scholars and Tibetologists "must support our propaganda" says
the
document. Moreover "the very act of writing and publishing . is for
external
propaganda and public opinion." The document sometimes exhibits a
surprising
level of candidness. For example, it admits that their propaganda is
often
"out of tune with the reality in Tibet," and their intellectual arguments
are "inadequate . to carry out our external struggle."
The document underscores the challenges of a totalitarian government to
mobilize its academic and scholarly community against Western concepts of
international law, human rights and self-determination.
Three books are identified as being particularly significant in forming
Western public opinion: Tsering Shakya's The Dragon in the Land of Snows
(1999), Ken Knaus's Orphans of the Cold War: America and Tibet's Struggle
for Survival (1999), and Michael van Walt's The Status of Tibet (1987).
"We cannot underestimate the negative impact of these books on our
nation,"
the documents states.
The document also summarizes the strategy and campaigns of the "Dalai
clique," making reference to cutting off the "World Bank loan to our
population transfer program in Tulan county," disrupting "PetroChina's
entry
into the American stock market" and the Third Tibet Support Group
Conference
held in Berlin in May, 2000.
The document will be of intense interest to Western Tibet scholars
because
they are a central part of Beijing's strategy. Beijing plans to reach out
more aggressively to Western scholars in order to "encourage a
considerable
number of foreign specialists and intellectuals to speak out on our
behalf."
"This authoritarian approach is what keeps Chinese research on Tibet in
the
dark ages," said John Ackerly, President of ICT. "ICT supports academic
exchanges with Tibetan scholars, but governments and universities should
review their exchange programs and ensure they serve the interests of
scholars and not of Beijing," Mr. Ackerly said.
* The International Campaign for Tibet monitors and promotes
internationally
recognized human rights in Tibet. ICT was founded in 1988 and has offices
in Washington and Amsterdam.
International Campaign for Tibet , 1825 K St., NW, Suite 520 Washington,
DC
20006 202-785-11515
fax 202-785-4343 www.savetibet.org