DHARAMSHALA: Showing its full support for the exiled Tibetan family marching from Dharamshala back to Tibet with the Chinese flag controversially on display, the Tibetan People's Movement for the Middle Way called their initiative "exemplary."
To celebrate the 53rd Tibetan National Uprising Day, Tetsan Dorjee, his mother Dhumpo Kyi and sister Lhamo Kyi began their march to Tibet from the exile Tibetan headquarters of Dharamshala on 10 March. With the Tibetan, Indian, Nepalese and Chinese flags all on display, the family has reached the Indo-Nepal border town of Gorakhpur, covering nearly 1300kms in nearly 2 months.
Dorjee stated that parading the Chinese flag symbolized his fight for the Dalai Lama-backed Middle Way policy and his willingness to support Beijing if Tibet is granted genuine autonomy. However, that stance brought criticism from the Tibetan Youth Council (TYC). Tibet's largest nongovernmental organization (NGO) objects to Dorjee marching with the Chinese flag on display, stating, " here in a free country the action of a Tibetan carrying the Chinese flag completely contradicts the moral responsibilities of a Tibetan towards the struggle and historical legacy of Tibet."
However, Dorjee now has the support of the influential Tibetan People's Movement for the Middle Way. "This initiative has become a potential way of fulfilling the wishes of Tibetans both inside and outside Tibet.," the group wrote in a statement.
