In this year of the 53rd Tibetan National Uprising Day, commemorated on the 10th of March, several cities within Latin America paid tribute to the tremendous injustices undergone in Tibet at the hands of the Chinese government. In Montevideo, the capital city of Uruguay, the members of Tibet Patria Libre (TSG) organized a peaceful vigil outside the Chinese Embassy in the city. On the eve of this date marking the Tibetan people's move towards freedom, Aloma Sellanes, a writer and head of the Tibet Patria Libre, gave an exclusive interview to the National TV Channel "Canal 10," releasing a short video that the Tibet Patria Libre had made specifically for the region in an attempt to create a wider awareness of the plight of the Tibetan people.
Meanwhile, in downtown Mexico City, the members and supporters of the Pensando en Tibet (TSG) organized a very creative procession. The procession started at Zocalo, the main plaza in the heart of the city's historic center, and concluded at the Alameda Center, where Mexico's Ministry of External Affairs is located. In their march, the protesters reminded the Mexican people of the importance of not forgetting Tibet, subjugated as it is by Communist China. A veteran Mexican journalist and a member of the Advisory Council of Radio and Television of the Federal District, Virgilio Caballero, joined the procession and gave a short talk at the Alameda Center. The procession has been widely covered by national media, both via print and television channels.
In San Jose, the capital city of Costa Rica, Tibet supporters and friends organized a week-long Tibet Awareness program at the University of Costa Rica. The event commenced on March 5 and concluded on March 10, encompassing film screenings, talks, photo exhibitions and general information dissemination on Tibet. Similarly in Morelia, the capital of the Michoacan State of Mexico, members of the "Pensando en Tibet" (TSG) organized a four-day Tibet Film Show at the University of Latin America to mark the occasion. From the 7th till the 10th of March, four documentary films on Tibet - ‘Fire Under the Snow', ‘Tibet: Cry of the Snow Lion', ‘Dreaming Lhasa' and ‘Sun Behind the Clouds' were screened at the University.
Film screening and talks on Tibet were also organized in Guadalajara, the capital of Jalisco State of Mexico; in Recife, the largest metropolitan area of northern Brazil and capital of Pernambuco State; at the Federal University of Rio Grande of North in Natal, the largest city of Rio Grande do Norte and in Belho Horizonte, the capital city of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. Let us hope that the support shown from the Latin American region reflects an increased international awareness of the plight of the Tibetan people.
