Tibetan Uprising Day

by: Tibet Society

London: Two recent London events called for a free Tibet while commemorating the 46th anniversary of 10 March 1959 Tibetan national uprising, when tens of thousands of Tibetans were killed by the occupying army of the People’s Republic of China. On Thursday 10 March 2005, representatives of the British All Party Parliamentary Group for Tibet, the Office of Tibet, the Tibet Society and the Free Tibet Campaign gathered at the memorial for victims of oppression at Westminster Abbey. Lord Weatherill, the former speaker of the House of Commons, and Geshe Tashi Tsering, resident teacher at Jamyang Buddhist Centre, laid a wreath in memory of all those who have died for Tibet’s freedom. A statement issued by Mr. John Wilkinson, MP, and Chairman of the British All Party Parliamentary Group for Tibet, stated that he and his parliamentary colleagues have been inspired by the "middle way" strategy of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to peacefully resolve the injustice so long borne by the people of Tibet. On Saturday 12 March an estimated 450 Tibetans and supporters gathered for a rally outside the Chinese Embassy prior to a march through central London to Whitehall. Michael Trend MP and Tenzin Samphel, ex Vice-President of the Tibetan Youth Congress, who had earlier delivered a letter of protest to the Chinese Embassy, gave speeches outside the Foreign Office highlighting the ongoing brutal repression suffered by Tibetans in their homeland during half a century of Chinese occupation. Michael Trend and Tenzin Samphel then delivered a letter to Downing Street, urging the Prime Minister to support the Tibetan cause. The rally was followed by an afternoon of Tibetan cultural events at Westminster Cathedral Hall.

Source: Tibet Society