Tuesday 4th October, 7:30pm In the University Chaplaincy Centre Upper Hall, By Keith and Kim Miller.
The talk will focus on Keith and Kim’s charity work providing health
services in the Spiti valley which, like neighbouring Ladakh, is
culturally Tibetan.
Spiti is an isolated Himalayan valley in north-west India with a
predominantly Tibetan population, preserving their traditional Buddhist
culture. Keith and Kim will describe their journeys and medical
work there. The talk will
focus on the Aberdeen University Medical School, especially as
many medical students spend a year working in the third world.
Aberdeen University Chaplaincy Centre, 25 High Street, Old Aberdeen (enter by rear door in Elphinstone Road), 7.30pm
Free, but donations welcome. Refreshments available.
Collections
Inverurie, Saturday 17th September
Aberdeen, Thursday 22nd September
Tibet Support Group Grampian held a
street collection in Inverurie on Saturday 17 September at which
£114 was raised, and a further one in Aberdeen on Thursday 22
September yielding £217. This money was rounded up to
£350 and donated to the Tibet Relief Fund to support the ‘Help on
Hand’ project in Chandigarh, northern India. Many Tibetans with life
threatening illnesses travel thousands of miles from Tibet, Nepal and
all over India, for treatment at the hospital there. ‘Help on Hand’
provides accommodation, transportation to and from the hospital, help
making appointments, interpreting between doctors and patients,
explaining special diets and medication, collecting prescriptions,
providing emotional
support and arranging funerals as and when necessary.
Sunday 10 July
ANNUAL SPONSORED TIBET WALK
SGOR BUIDHE CIRCUIT, BALLATER
Meet at Church Square Car Park, Ballater, OS map 44, GR 369957, at 10.30am for a 10.45am start. Bring a picnic lunch.
The length of the walk is about 7 miles, and we anticipate returning to
the start point around 3.00 to 4.00 pm. Tea afterwards (optional) at
the Station restaurant in Ballater.
Please note that the route described above starts at the Old Railway
Station Car Park, whereas we are meeting at the larger Church Square
Car Park.
Funds raised from Walk sponsorships and donations will go to Free Tibet
Campaign (for political campaigning), and the Tibet Foundation (for aid
projects in Tibet).
For further details and sponsorship form: tel 01224 314127
Ruling Old Tibet: Governmental Life under the Dalai Lamas
Tuesday 26th April 7.30 p.m.
A talk on the Government of the Dalai Lamas, by Martin Mills of the Scottish Centre for Himalayan Studies.
Was life in pre-1950 Tibet a feudal hell or a Buddhist paradise?
What did ruling Tibet actually involve?
How did the Dalai Lamas actually come to be head of state?
A subject which has long been an issue of contention with China is
their claim that the invasion of Tibet in 1949 replaced a medieval
theocracy with a modern, people's government. This talk will explore
the question of whether this is an accurate view of events, and whether
or not the people of Tibet fared better under their own government
prior to the CCP takeover. Dr Mills discussed this at length, coming to
the conclusion that while old Tibet was no mythical shangri-la, and
conditions for everyday people were harsh, Tibet was definitely a
sovereign nation in its own right.
Losar Meal
Each year, TSGG host a meal in an Aberdeen restaurant, as a social event, to celebrate the New Year according to the Tibetan calendar.
It was decided at the last TSGG meeting to celebrate Losar at the
Italian restaurant Mi Amore in Huntly Street. You can read recent
reviews of this restaurant at:
A reservation was made for 7.30pm on Saturday 5 March.
A great time was had by all, with excellent food and lively
conversation. We were joined by two supporters from Invergrodon, and we
thank them for coming all that way. A representative the social club
Aberfriends also joined us for the meal, and on hearing of what we do
expressed an interest in attending the group's meetings.
Even allowing for a generous tip the money collected to cover the bill
came to some £40 more than was needed, so this will go to a Tibetan
cause.
Bottom line - Would we recommend Mi Amore? Yes. The food is to a very
high standard, and the chef takes a more personal interest than most,
frequently appearing in the restaurant to speak to diners. The
presentation is in the more traditional style, with satisfying portions
for all courses. The staff are friendly and efficient. Pay it a visit
sometime.
Mr Thubten Samdup, Representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama for Northern Europe, gave a talk in Aberdeen, Scotland, on 'Conflict Resolution: the Tibetan Solution' on Wednesday. the 13th of October. More..
A Transcript of the talk is available here
Human Rights Day
On Human Rights Day, Friday 10 December, Tibet Support
Group Grampian ran a stall in association with Aberdeen Amnesty
International for the public to sign greetings cards to political
prisoners. The stall was in The Trinity Centre, Union Street, Aberdeen
from 10.00am to 6.00pm.
We have run this event for
three years and found it to be very successful. The public are mostly
sympathetic and willing to sign the cards, and several people write
poignant messages of goodwill and support. We hope that some of the
cards might get through to the prisoners, but, at the least, they will
alert the Chinese authorities that their cases are well known and in
the public domain over here.
This year TSGG had cards for three Tibetan prisoners:
Tenzin Deleg Rinpoche, the revered Tibetan religious leader, arrested in 2002 and currently serving a life sentence;
Dhondup Wangchen, the Tibetan film-maker imprisoned since March 2008;
Rungyye Adak, imprisoned since August 2007 following his protests at a horse fair in Lithang.
We collected 82 signatures for Tenzin Deleg Rinpoche on two cards, 78
for Dhondup Wangchen on two cards and 65 for Rungye Adak on one card; a
total of 225 signatures in all. The cards were sent to the
prisoners with messages in Tibetan pasted into them; letters with
messages in Chinese were also sent to the prison governors and
ministers of justice. These Tibetan and Chinese messages were obtained
from 'Free Tibetan Heroes', a campaign working group set up by the
International Tibet Support Network. We collected unsolicited donations
of £38 at the stall; this was made up to £50 and donated to
the International Tibet Support Network.
Thanks to all who contributed their time, money or assistance.
Summer/Autumn 2010 collection and sponsorship results:
Morven Lodge and Glen Gairn ~ Sunday 27th June
This
was the Group's 17th Annual Sponsored Walk which raises funds for Free
Tibet Campaign and the Tibet Foundation. More..
