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Tibetans and their
supporters honor self-immolators
IN REMEMBRANCE: Ten Tibetans staged a 49-hour
hunger strike for the dead in Taipei as part of global events being staged ahead
of Human Rights Day
By Loa Iok-sin / Staff reporter
An activist sits near lit candles
and a picture of the Dalai Lama as he takes part in a 49-hour hunger strike
ahead of Human Rights Day yesterday.
Photo: Reuters
Dozens of Tibetans and their Taiwanese
supporters rallied in the pouring rain last night to remember the 94 Tibetans
who have self-immolated since March last year in calls for freedom and human
rights, as 10 Tibetans began a 49-hour hunger strike in Liberty Square in
Taipei.
Although the night was cold and the rain that had fallen all day had caused
minor flooding in Liberty Square, dozens of Tibetans and Taiwanese still showed
up to take part in the event to remember the Tibetans who died protesting
against the Chinese government¡¦s repression of their freedom of religion and
expression.
After lighting candles in front of a portrait of the Dalai Lama, Tibetans
wearing traditional outfits and headwear with the Tibetan flag printed on it
quietly recited Buddhist chants to pray for those who have sacrificed their
lives for the Tibetan cause.
¡§Ninety-four Tibetans have self-immolated ¡X and honestly, I don¡¦t know when it
will stop ¡X not for their own personal reasons, but for the well-being of the
Tibetan people, the Tibetan culture and our religious traditions,¡¨ Regional
Tibetan Youth Congress (RTYC) Taiwan president Tenzin Chompel said. ¡§This is the
highest form of protest.¡¨
He said the hunger strike in Taiwan was part of a globally coordinated action by
Tibetans and supporters of the Tibetan cause ahead of International Human Rights
Day, which is tomorrow.
¡§We are making an urgent call to the international community to pay more
attention to the suffering of the Tibetans, and we urge that the UN send an
independent delegation to Tibet to investigate human rights violations,¡¨ Tenzin
Chompel said.
He said that they would launch a 49-hour hunger strike because in the Buddhist
culture, a 49-day memorial service is held for the deceased, because Buddhists
believe that after death, one¡¦s spirit is lost for 49 days before knowing where
to go, and needs guidance from the living.
Dawa Tsering, chairman of the Tibet Religious Foundation of His Holiness the
Dalai Lama ¡X the de facto representative office of the Tibetan
government-in-exile in Taiwan ¡X said that while many self-immolators have died,
it has become the obligation of all Tibetans to carry on their mission.
¡§We would be ashamed if we forgot about them, and did not carry on their
mission,¡¨ Dawa Tsering said.
¡§Letting the world know what they have sacrificed, as well as the suffering of
the Tibetans, is the least we can do now,¡¨ Dawa Tsering added.
RTYC Taiwan vice president Tenzin Namdak asked Taiwanese supporters to help
spread the message and try to persuade the government to show concern for
Tibetans.
¡§How heartless it is if anyone disregards the message that these people tried to
deliver with their lives,¡¨ he said.
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