The Telegraph 9 Dec 08.
Chinese
intellectuals have challenged Party leaders to end
one-party rule and introduce human-rights standards with the launch of
Charter 08, a petition for reform of the communist system of
government.
Human Rights Day
To mark Human Rights Day on Wednesday, 10 December, Tibet
Support Group Grampian, together with the Aberdeen Branch of
Amnesty International, mounted a day-long campaign in the Aberdeen Trinity
Centre mall to gather signatures on greetings cards to be sent
to Prisoners of Conscience around the world.
TSGG collected nearly 200
signatures on four cards - two cards for the Tibetan film maker,
Dhondup Wangchen, and two for the Tibetan religious leader,Tenzin Deleg
Rinpoche. Dhondup Wangchen was arrested in March of this year for
recording the views of Tibetans about the Dalai Lama, China and the
Olympics. He has been tortured in prison, and access to him denied. His
film 'Leaving Fear Behind' will be shown by TSGG in the New Year Tenzin
Deleg Rinpoche was imprisoned in April 2002 on false charges and
without a fair trial. He was originally sentenced to death, but this
has been commuted to life imprisonment.
Thanks go to the Trinity Centre management for allowing this, the first event of its kind in the mall.
Cycling trip through Tibet
TIBET BY BIKE: ALTITUDE WITH ATTITUDE (Talk by Gordon Casely, November 2008, Aberdeen University.)
Gordon Casely gave an outstanding talk and slide show of his cycle ride
with a CTC group from Lhasa to Kathmandu. He showed many stunning
slides: those of the stark Tibetan landscape, and portraits of the
local people and children were particularly memorable. He accompanied
the slides with most interesting descriptions of the delights and
hardships of the ride, and he also gave some fascinating insights into
aspects of Tibetan culture, together with the impact of the Chinese
occupation. The evening was much appreciated by an audience of over 70
people, and donations, which will go to Free Tibet Campaign, amounted
to £152.
Arrested in Beijing
14th October 2008
Presentation on 'Olympian campaigning for Tibet' given by Iain Thom, at Aberdeen University.
Over 50 people were present, and donations of £127.67 were
collected, so that after we had paid Ian his travel expenses, we gave
him a cheque for £120 for SFT (Students for a Free Tibet).
Yoga for Tibet
21st October 2008
The Yoga for Tibet class was given by Gordon Edward who holds a Yoga
Teachers Diploma from Yoga Scotland and, as a Buddhist, incorporates a
calm meditative approach to yoga. The evening was attended by fifteen
people, who all found it most enjoyable and worthwhile. A total of
£180 was raised to support (via the Tibet Relief Fund) the
Tibetan Homes Foundation in India which houses, cares for and educates
Tibetan refugee children. After the recent disturbances in Tibet, it is
expected that there will be an increase in the number of children
arriving. Many will have left their families behind in Tibet, and will
be traumatised by their dangerous journeys over the Himalayas so that
extra resources are needed to support these vulnerable children.
Free Tibet ads to Screen on Aust TV as Olympics Opens
SYDNEY—A "Free Tibet" activist group will screen an advertisement
urging Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to speak to the Chinese leadership
about finding a solution for Tibet during his visit to the Olympics in
Beijing. The Epoch Times
Protest Staged in Beijing for Tibet.
5 August: The Canadian TV network CTV has reported a protest that took
place in Beijing. Two men climbed tall light poles and each unfurled a banner
calling for Tibetan independence.- The Epoch Times.
Olympic Torch Relay Protests.
In response to China's worldwide and propaganda-loaded Olympic Torch
Relay, we organised a series of protests and infomation-events in
Scotland. Report on events.
Prime Minister to meet with Dalai Lama.
A petition
to the Prime Minsiter has been fruitful, in that we have a firm
commitment from the Prime Minsiter to meet with the Dalai Lama during
his UK visit in May 2008.
Carrying the Torch for China.
Ethan Gutmann of the Weekly Standard comments on the Beijing Olympics situation. An interesting viewpoint, well worth a read. (21/4/08)
Doubts expressed over Olympic participation
- by a number of participants, following the military crackdown in Tibet. A report in the Mirror
highlights the similarities between the present situation, and the 1936
Olympics. French president Nicolas Sarkozy has also told CNN
that he "Cannot rule-out a boycott of the Opening Ceremony" owing
to the extent of French public opinion against China's actions.
Protests begin in Lhasa, Monday 10th Mar
The 10th of March (2008) marks the anniversary of the Tibetan Uprising
of 1959. Protests against the illegal Chinese occupation have resulted
in a crackdown on public demonstrations of support for a Free Tibet.
The situation is in Lhasa is very tense, wth gunshots having been
heard. More..
16 March: The protests have since escalated and spread to
other ares of Tibet and Western China. It would seem that
Beijing now has a major expression of Tibet's dissatisfaction with its
rule to contend with. Perhaps the greatest concern here is the risk of
the Communists staging a repeat of the Tiananmen Massacre as a
response. The best way to insure against such an outcome is
to make it perfectly clear to Beijing that all of the World's eyes are
on the situation -and that no atrocity, however well-concealed, will
escape our notice.
To this end, Free Tibet Campaign
is asking members of the public to bring their MP's attention to the
situation in Tibet, and to ask that they ensure the UK does its part in
supporting Tibetan human rights.
BBC Editors' comment on Chinese blackout of their coverage of events in Tibet.
Lawyer missing after criticising CCP Human Rights:
Another prominent Chinese human-rights lawyer has gone missing, presumed detained
by the authorities, amid a crackdown on dissent ahead of the Beijing
Olympics.
Teng Biao - who has defended Aids activists, Falun Gong
practitioners and farmers fighting for their land - was last seen on
Thursday, being bundled into a black car outside his home in Beijing.
He had recently been warned by police that he would be detained unless
he stopped talking to the foreign media and writing about human rights
abuses in the runup to the Olympics.
Reports indicate that the PRC-appointed replacement for the
incarcerated Panchen Lama is to be given a place on the Communist Party
Congress. More..
-Reuters, 14 Feb 2008
Olympic Athletes to be gagged?
Some countries participating in the Beijing Olympics are
instructing their athletes 'Not to say anything which might offend the
Communists' - More..
-The Mail.
Journey Into Exile:
An exhibition of art by young Tibetan refugess, depicting the effects
of the Chinese invasion and occupation of their homeland. This
exhibition was on display in the Aberdeen Arts Centre throughout
december 2007. A preview is available here.
Street Collections:
Inverurie £273.35
Stonehaven £169.12
Total £442.47
This is to go to the Tibet Relief Fund, for the Gu-Chu-Sum school in
Dharamsala. This is a school set up with the aim of giving ex-political
prisoners and their children the Tibetan education they were denied in
Tibet, as well as teaching English and practical skills in computing. The
school has been running for 6 years, but is now facing closure due to lack
of funds.
This is to go to the Tibet Relief Fund's summer appeal - more details on their
website, www.tibetrelieffund.co.uk.
Concert For Tibet:
The Moonshine Madness concert at Letterfourie raised £300, to go to the GuChuSum campaign.
We have now collected in all of the sponsorship money for our annual Tibet Walk, and are delighted to have raised a total of £866. Very many thanks to all of you who contributed so generously to this.
The money raised is - as always - split equally between Free Tibet Campaign and the Tibet Foundation.
Free Tibet Campaign - like many other Tibet organisations - is running
a major campaign in the one-year countdown to the Beijing Olympics,
since this is is a unique opportunity to highlight China's brutal
policies and human rights abuses in Tibet to the international
community and world media. Our donation will go to support this
campaign.
The Tibet Foundation support several schools in remote, and very
poor, areas of Eastern Tibet, where they also run a 'Free School Meals'
scheme for as many as possible of the children. This continues to be a
very successful project: not only does it help the poorest families,
but it also encourages the children to continue their education. Our
donation will go to support this project.
Thank you again so much for your support and donation to the Tibet Walk.
Best wishes,
Liz
Considering the poor weather and consequent low turnout, this is an excellent figure. -Webmaster.
