Dharamshala —The International Tibetan Youth Forum 2024 began in Dharamshala on Wednesday with over 90 young Tibetans from 13 countries and regions. The forum aims to strengthen Tibetan youth in the Tibetan movement, political advocacy, the Tibetan movement in the changing dynamics of global politics. The three-day forum is organised by the Department of Information and International Relations (DIIR) of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA).
The International Tibetan Youth Forum 2024 kicked off in Dharamshala on July 3, 2024, in the lobby of the D'Polo Club and Spa Resort, near Dharamshala, HP, India. Sikyong Penpa Tsering, Geshe Lhakdor, Director, Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, Tenzin Dorjee, Strategist and Senior Researcher, Tibet Action Institute, Namgyal Gangshontsang, the Mayor of Oetwil am See, Switzerland, representatives of donnors; the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and Tenzin Donyo of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), Namgyal Gangshontsang, the Mayor of Oetwil am See, Switzerland, and 93 Tibetan youths from 13 countries, presented at the opening ceremony.
At the opening ceremony at 9.30am, Karma Choeying, Secretary of the DIIR, CTA, gave a welcome speech and introduced the forum and its aim of organising an international Tibetan forum for the second time. He said, "Most of the participants are members of the Voluntary Tibet Advocacy Group (V-TAG). The aim of the forum is to pass on Tibetan culture and the Tibetan movement from the older generation to the younger. Therefore, young Tibetans need to know about Tibetan culture, identity and movement or struggle, as well as the importance of preserving Tibetan culture, identity and language. If young Tibetans don't know this, the continuation of the Tibetan struggle will stop and that will be a major problem. That's why we launched our V-TAG all over the world, on the initiative of the CTA, but the members of the V-TAG are young Tibetans who want to contribute to the Tibetan struggle and learn about Tibetan culture, history, language and religion".
Sikyong Penpa Tsering, gave the keynote speech to the participants: "His Holiness the Dalai Lama is very grateful to all Tibetans, what we have today is due to His Holiness, we should always remember his gratitude". Since the launch of the V-TAG in Zurich, the movement has slowly gained momentum. This year, I heard that more than 200 Tibetan youth participated in the Tibetan Lobby Day in the United States, which is a record. We should include all Tibetans, whatever their ideology, and all Tibetans can be part of the Tibetan movement, so that we can make it a people's movement''.
"Regarding the Tibetan struggle, we should know the reality of the situation (Tibet), through the Middle Way Approach, we should solve the Tibet-China issue and we should approach the Chinese government, this approach is beneficial for China and Tibet. But today, there is no dialogue between Tibet and China, so to resolve the Tibet-China issue, we should approach countries like the United States, which is what we have done so far. So what are the strategies for approaching these countries? There are two ways of proceeding: on the one hand, the situation of Tibet occupied by the repressive Chinese government at the moment and, on the other, the fact that historically Tibet was an independent country," Sikyong said.
Tenzin Lekshay, additional Secretary of the DIIR, CTA, gave a speech of thanks and the opening ceremony came to an end.
The forum is a three-day event from June 3-5, 2024, covering topics such as "Leadership Development", "The Tibetan Movement in the Changing Dynamics of Global Politics", "Engaging with Policy Makers", "Non-Violent Action Training", "Political Advocacy Training", "Testimony of a Former Tibetan Political Prisoner", and "Social Media Advocacy Campaigns", etc.
Speakers and Trainers include Sikyong Penpa Tsering, Geshe Lhakdor, Director, Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, Tenzin Dorjee, Strategist and Senior Researcher, Tibet Action Institute, Kasur Tempa Tsering, Director, India and East Asia, Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Bhutila Karpoche, Member of Provincial Parliament for Parkdale-High Park, Canada, Franz Matzner, Director of Government Relations, International Campaign for Tibet, Namkyi, Former Tibetan Political Prisoner, Training on Social Media Advocacy Campaigns,Topjor Tsultrim, Communication Coordinator, Students for a FreeTibet, Tenzin Yangzom, Campaign Coordinator, International Tibet Network, Khenpo Sonam Tenphel, Speaker of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile and closing remarks by Shri Prem Singh Tamang (Golay), Honorable Chief Minister of Sikkim.
