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Dear Mike, On May 4th, Amnesty International honored His Holiness theDalai Lama at its 50th anniversary event in Los Angeles. During the presentation, I had the opportunity to represent SFT and ask a question on stage. As His Holiness exited with his entourage, he stopped to speak with a few of us. I held out a khata (traditional greeting scarf) and as I greeted him, he held my hands and said, "Don't give up; you all must continue your work. Never lose hope, because change is definitely coming." He went on to say that in light of the increasing pace of change in China, it is important to work with the Chinese people – writers, intellectuals, artists, the opinion-makers of society. The previous day, I had spoken at a conference bringing together Chinese dissidents, Tibetan activists, Mongolians, Uyghurs, and Taiwanese to discuss opportunities and develop strategies for advancing our respective struggles for freedom, democracy, and human rights.  I explained to His Holiness that our global network was engaging in strategic Chinese outreach by connecting with key democracy advocates, writers, artists, students, lawyers and intellectuals. He assured me our efforts will make a difference and that change is imminent.  In that moment, I felt the immensity of the work ahead of us, but also had the distinct feeling that victory was inevitable. With your help we can bring about freedom in Tibet. Please donate today to support SFT's work.  http://sft.convio.net/site/Donation2?df_id=1345&1345.donation=form1 As we build new and strategic alliances, we must continue to challenge China's abuses in Tibet at every turn. I was reminded of this minutes after His Holiness left, when I joined Lobsang, the official videographer for the award ceremony. Lobsang is from Ngaba, the county in Amdo, Tibet that is under attack by Chinese security forces. His 15-year-old cousin, Norbu, was shot dead by China's armed police on March 16th, 2008 for taking part in a peaceful protest for Tibetan freedom. Three years after the day Norbu was shot, Phuntsok Jarutsang, a 20-year-old monk, lit himself on fire in an act of protest against China's repression, and troops have since laid siege on Kirti monastery.  Thanks to the more than 4,500 people on this list who have taken action, China's crackdown has not gone unnoticed. Please send a letter now to U.S. Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner urging them to raise Tibet and human rights during next week's U.S.-China Strategic & Economic Dialogue.  Please sign now: http://sft.convio.net/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=792 Together, we can ensure that one day soon, people like Lobsang – and all Tibetans – are united with their families and homeland.  Please donate today: http://sft.convio.net/site/Donation2?df_id=1345&1345.donation=form1 Thank you for all you do for Tibet, Tenzin Dorjee (Tendor) Executive Director

Dalai Lama’s visit to the Indian State of Arunachal Pradesh

Samdhong Rinpoche tells AsiaNews that Beijing’s criticism of the Dalai Lama’s visit to the Indian State of Arunachal Pradesh “should not even be taken seriously”. For Beijing, the Dalai Lama is a liar. For Indian Prime Minister Singh, he is “a religious, not a political leader, and an honoured ...
Wednesday, November 04, 2009By Asia News


New Delhi – Chinese comments about the Dalai Lama’s visit to the Indian State of Arunachal Pradesh “should not be taken seriously.”All they show is that Beijing is edgy because of the lack of legitimacy of its claim to the territory. This is forcing Chinese leaders to make false and fabricated accusations, this according to Samdhong Rinpoche, prime minister of Tibet’s government-in-exile. The prime minister spoke to AsiaNews about China’s reaction to the Dalai Lama’s planned visit to the border State on 8 November.
Government newspaper China Daily said the Dalai Lama “lies and often engages in acts to sabotage China's relations with other countries,” the newspaper wrote.
“We have expressed our grave concerns. We believe that this once again exposes the nature of the Dalai Lama as anti-China," Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said. "We firmly oppose the visits of the Dalai Lama to the border regions [. . .] this is a separatist action."
Manmohan Singh responded in person to China’s criticism. “I explained to Premier Wen that the Dalai Lama is our honoured guest and he is a religious leader,” and that “We do not allow Tibetan refugees to indulge in political activities”.
Since Mao’s takeover in 1949 and the Dalai Lama’s flight in 1959, he and his government have operated out of the Indian city of Dharamsala.
Arunachal Pradesh has been at the centre of a dispute between the two countries. Beijing has long claimed that it belongs to China.
According to Rinpoche, “this is the fifth visit of the Dalai Lama to the State, actually the sixth, if you count the time when he went through the State on his way to Dharamsala. It is a routine visit, planned long time ago. The Dalai Lama will inaugurate a hospital, and the local population wants to receive his dharshan (blessing). It is clearly a religious trip, nothing political about it.”
Speaking about the crackdown in Xinjiang, the Tibetan prime minister said, “The Chinese know no other way but to use repressive measures against minorities. Through them, they try to control the minorities, but the human spirit will resist. Still, the Chinese will intensify their brutality and repressive policies towards others.”
“It is worrisome to see the world keep silent when human liberties are crushed and human rights violated anywhere on the planet. Regrettably, we are now witnessing the rise of a new world order dominated by violence and trade at the cost of human values, dignity of the person.”
For the general director of India’s Foreign Ministry in New Delhi, Nirupama Rao, Indo-Chinese relations are not tense. For him, the Indian government’s position is clear since it does consider the Dalai Lama a political prisoner but a guest, free to move in the country wherever he wants because he also does not indulge in politics.