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Tibetans, supporters
stage zoo protest
EVERY BREATH YOU TAKE: Demonstrators anticipated
the Sichuan governor¡¦s moves at Taipei Zoo¡¦s Panda Hall to protest the arrest of
300 monks from Kirti Monastery
By Loa Iok-sin and Mo Yan-chih / Staff Reporters
Tibetans living in Taiwan and
Taiwanese supporters of the Tibetan cause stage a demonstration inside Taipei
Zoo¡¦s Panda Hall during a visit by Sichuan Province Governor Jiang Jufeng
yesterday afternoon, forcing a rerouting of the Chinese delegation¡¦s tour of the
zoo.
Photo: Loa Iok-sin, Taipei Times
Dozens of Tibetans and Taiwanese
supporters of the Tibetan cause yesterday staged a demonstration at Taipei Zoo
as Sichuan Province Governor Jiang Jufeng (½±¥¨®p) visited the zoo in the
afternoon.
Holding up Tibetan flags and signs reading ¡§No freedom, no tourism in Sichuan¡¨
and ¡§Release the 300 monks from Kirti Monastery,¡¨ while shouting ¡§Free Tibet¡¨
and other slogans, the protestors demonstrated inside the zoo¡¦s Panda Hall as
Jiang visited Tuan Tuan (¹Î¹Î) and Yuan Yuan (¶ê¶ê), a pair of pandas transferred
from Sichuan to Taiwan in 2008.
¡§We are here to ask him [Jiang] to release 300 monks arrested from the Kirti
Monastery and to allow a Tibetan Youth Congress delegation to visit the
prisoners there,¡¨ said Tenzin Chompel, president of the Regional Tibetan Youth
Congress, Taiwan. ¡§Part of Jiang¡¦s mission here is to promote tourism in
Sichuan, but without freedom, there¡¦s no tourism.¡¨
Conflict broke out late last month when Tibetan residents and monks in the
predominantly Tibetan region of Ngaba, Sichuan Province, faced a violent
crackdown in response to peacefully demonstrating in March to commemorate the
Tibetan uprisings against Chinese rule in 1959 and 2008.
As a result, hundreds of monks from the Kirti Monastery who participated in the
demonstration were arrested and the monastery was locked down, while all foreign
visitors have been banned from entering Ngaba.
Kelsang Lhundup, another participant at yesterday¡¦s protest, said that as the
top leader in Sichuan Province, Jiang should be held responsible for what has
happened to Tibetans there and should solve the matter peacefully before he
visits other countries.
While the demonstration was intended to be a surprise targeting Jiang, the
demonstrators unveiled their signs, flags and started shouting slogans before
Jiang¡¦s arrival, after mistaking buses carrying Chinese journalists with Jiang¡¦s
convoy.
A second wave of protests broke out when Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (°qÀsÙy) showed
up at the entrance gate to the Panda Hall in preparation to greet Jiang.
The protests forced organizers of the visit to change their plans. Instead of
entering the Panda Hall from the front door as planned, Jiang entered through
the cargo entrance at the back, took a look at Yuan Yuan in a nursing area that
is not open to the public, and went up to the briefing room on the third floor
via the emergency stairs. He left directly from there.
Reacting to the change in plans, demonstrators moved to the only vehicle exit at
the zoo and protested as Jiang¡¦s convoy departed.
Jiang and a delegation of about 50 arrived on Saturday at Kaohsiung
International Airport for a seven-day visit.
Although girls from a panda fan club greeted the delegation, Greater Kaohsiung
officials were absent. Jiang was nevertheless given VIP treatment, with a large
contingent of security personnel from Sichuan maintaining his safety. No
additional security measures were taken.
To greet him and the delegation in Taipei, Hau added the visit to the zoo to
Jiang¡¦s public schedule.
Jiang lauded the zoo and the Taipei City Government for taking good care of the
pandas and promised that experts from his province would continue working with
the zoo to help impregnate Yuan Yuan.
Panda experts from the Wolong Giant Panda Reserve Centre in Sichuan visited
Taipei in February to implement an artificial insemination program for Yuan
Yuan, who the zoo said has recently shown signs of pregnancy.
Panda experts from the center returned to the zoo earlier this month upon
receiving the news. Zoo director Jason Yeh (¸³Ç¥Í) said Yuan Yuan has lost her
appetite this month and has been sleeping more than usual, while also behaving
¡§like a cat on hot bricks.¡¨
While those were signs of pregnancy, Yeh said the zoo has been unable to confirm
that the panda is expecting a cub because an ultrasound did not detect a fetus.
Additional reporting by CNA
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