DHARAMSHALA, September 3: The second leg of the ‘Flame of Truth’ torch relay was flagged off in North America, simultaneously from Washington, DC and Ottawa, on September 2, coinciding with the 52nd Tibetan Democracy Day.
The relay, initiated by the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, to express “solidarity with the courageous and selfless acts” of Tibetans inside Tibet, has been campaigning all over India since it began on July 7, the 77th birthday of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
In a message at the launch of the relay at the Freedom Plaza in Washington, DC, US Congressman Frank R Wolf expressed his solidarity with the people of Tibet and condemned the “repressive actions of the Chinese government.”
“Gatherings such as this are critical to maintaining attention and to increase public awareness of the horrible atrocities taking place in Tibet,” Congressman Wolf said. “Tibetans are a peaceful people, but they currently have no way of protesting or ending the restrictions imposed upon them. The deteriorating situation must be addressed by the international community, with U.S. leadership, before it spirals out of control.”
Congressman Wolf, who recently urged Secretary Hillary Clinton to “work with partner nations and establish a contact group on Tibet to carry out strong, visible public diplomacy on this human rights crisis,” noted that the Freedom Plaza was a “fitting place” to launch the campaign relay.
“The symbolic nature of Freedom Plaza makes it the perfect location to send a message to the people of Tibet and the rest of the world that we hear them and are working to end their oppression,” Congressman Wolf stated. “It is long past time for this administration and this State Department to prioritize Tibet in our dealings with China.”
The torch campaign which calls on the United Nations to discuss the issue of Tibet based on its earlier resolutions, to send an independent international fact-finding delegation to Tibet and to take special responsibility to ensure that the basic aspirations of the Tibetans inside Tibet are fulfilled, will be travelling through 22 major cities in North America.
Member of the Tibetan Parliament from North America, Tashi Namgyal Khamshitsang in his address said that Tibetans continue to face “unimaginable suffering and brutal crackdown” under Chinese rule.
“China has unleashed repression and brutality in Tibet with greater intensity than in the past. It is implementing inhuman policies in Tibet and further indulging in voluminous streams of misrepresentations, lies and distortions of facts,” Khamshitsang said.
He called on the United Nations and the international community “to carry out thorough investigations to find out the truth about the situation in Tibet” and urged everyone to sign the campaign petition, which will be submitted to the UN on December 10, World Human Rights Day.
Exiled Uyghur leader Rebiya Kadeer, human rights activist Harry Wu, T. Kumar of the Amnesty International and Representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to the North Americas Lobsang Nyandak were present at the launch of the torch relay along with Tibetans and supporters from Washington, DC, New York, Philadelphia and Charlottesville.
Source: Phayul.com
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