Tibetan and Indian students unfurl banner at Mahatma Gandhi cremation ground
Students Call on Indian Government to Press for Tibet Resolution on Eve of Wen Jiabao’s India Visit
Unfurl Banner Reading “Tibet’s Independence: India’s Security” at Rajghat
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New Delhi – On the eve of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s arrival in India, Tibetan and Indian students unfurled a banner reading, “Tibet’s Independence: India’s Security” at Rajghat, the cremation ground of Mahatma Gandhi, the revered leader of India’s independence movement. Premier Wen’s visit is meant to celebrate 60 years of Sino-Indian diplomatic relations and to promote bi-lateral trade, but ongoing border security issues continue to plague relations between the two countries. Young Indians and Tibetans are calling on the India government to publicly press Premier Wen to bring an end to China’s 50-year occupation of Tibet and to resolve the 40-year Indo-Tibetan border dispute.
“The Chinese government’s illegal infiltration into sovereign Indian territory will not end until Tibet once again takes its place amongst free and independent nations,” said Rigzin Spalgon, a Ladakhi student and Delhi Coordinator of Students for a Free Tibet. “As a Ladakhi, I know firsthand the arrogance of China’s leadership when it comes to the border issue and I call on all those who believe in India’s independence to support the Tibetan people in their just struggle. A free and independent Tibet is will ensure lasting peace and stability for people living along the Indo-Tibetan border.”
Beijing’s claim to India’s territories to the far north and east are based on Tibet’s historic ownership of these areas. For centuries, Tibet and India shared a history of friendly border relations. However, after its illegal occupation of Tibet in 1949, the Chinese government claimed Aksai Chin and Arunachal Pradesh, areas that have been part India since it became an independent country in 1949. For the past five decades, and especially since the Sino-Indian war of 1962, the Government of India has spent billions of dollars protecting the border region.
“Our action here today sends a clear message to Wen Jiabao that the youth of this nation will not tolerate China’s blatant attempt to colonize parts of India, nor will we remain silent while China continues to brutally suppress the Tibetan people,” said Shibayan Raha, Grassroots Director of Students for a Free Tibet – India. “The Indian people wholeheartedly support the Tibetan people’s nonviolent struggle for freedom. We call for a long overdue shift in India’s policy on Tibet recognizing the Tibetan people’s right to independence – a position that will also strengthen India’s position in border negotiations with China.
A growing chorus of Indian students across the country are calling on the Government of India to recognize Tibet as a key factor in resolving its territorial dispute with China. In recent years, the Chinese government has deployed more troops along the Indo-Tibetan border and stonewalled India’s attempts to resolve the issue.
This is Premier Wen’s first visit to India since widespread protests erupted across Tibet in March against Chinese rule just months before China hosted the Beijing Olympics. More than 240 Tibetans were killed in China’s ensuing crackdown and and thousands were arrested. The situation in Tibet remains tense as Chinese authorities escalate their attack on Tibetan writers, artists and intellectuals, including the sentencing of high-profile Tibetan.
Just days ago, the Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the Noble Peace Prize to jailed Chinese writer and democracy activist Liu Xiaobo. Despite pressure from the Chinese government, India’s Ambassador to Norway attended the ceremony. Tibetans and India students call on India’s political leaders to press their Chinese counterparts for Liu Xiaobo’s freedom and for the release of all those jailed by Chinese for exercising their basic rights.
Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) works in solidarity with the Tibetan people in their struggle for freedom and independence. We are a chapter-based network of young people and activists around the world. Through education, grassroots organizing, and non-violent direct action, we campaign for Tibetans’ fundamental right to political freedom. Our role is to empower and train youth as leaders in the worldwide movement for social justice.
