Dharamshala — On International Chidren's Day, Central Tibetan Women's Association launched a motorcycle rally entitled "Alarming situation for Tibetan children and environment" to raise awareness of one million Tibetan children in Chinese colonial-style boarding schools and China's destruction of Tibet's environment. Tibetan women urge Indian Prime Minister Modi to raise these issues with Chinese leaders during their meeting.
The Central Tibetan Women's Association (TWA) held a press conference on November 14, 2024 at the main square in Mcloed Ganj, Dharamshala, HP, India, where President Tsering Dolma and Vice-President Kelsang Dolma announced that their seven members would organise a motorcycle rally from Dharamshala to New Delhi via Chandigarh from November 14 to 20, 2024. They will hold press conferences in the cities of Chandigarh and New Delhi.
They said that this rally aims to raise awareness of the approximately one million Tibetan children who are separated from their parents, family and forcibly sent to Chinese colonial boading schools far from their homes, where only Chinese language, culture and the communist thought of the Chiense leaders are taught, and to make Tibetan children think and speak in Chinese and be loyal to the Chinese Communist Party.
The rally also aims to highlight China's destruction of Tibet's environment through dams, mining and other means, as well as China's development projects in Tibet that have led to the deterioration of Tibet's fragile environment.
The rally seeks to raise awareness of the critical situation of Tibetan brothers and sisters living inside Tibet, where the Chinese government does not allow them to exercise basic human rights, including freedom of religion, culture and language. The Chinese authorities arrest and detain them whenever they try to do anything for the Tibetan religion, culture, language and cause.
Explaining why they launched their campaign on International Children's Day, TWA President Tsering Dolma said, "Children's Day, celebrated on November 14, is recognised across India to increase awareness of children's rights, care, and education. World Children's Day was first established in 1954 as universal Children's Day and is celebrated on November 20 each year to promote international togetherness, and awareness among children worldwide, and to improve children's welfare."
"The Chinese government has stripped off Tibetans of their basic human rights, the systematic abuses against the Tibetan people, including restrictions on freedom of speech, religion, culture, and movement, as well as arbitrary detention and torture is no secret. Tibetan Buddhism is a central aspect of the Tibetan culture and way of life; however, the Chinese authorities have enforced stringent regulations on religious practices in the area. Monks and nuns under the age of 18 have been forcibly ordered to leave monastic life and enroll in government-run colonial boarding schools against their wishes and consent," she added.
President Tsering dolma said, "Three out of every four Tibetan children are forcibly separated from their families and placed in colonial-style boarding schools, with over 100,000 children aged four to six in preschools and 800,000 to 900,000 children aged six to eighteen being indoctrinated and stripped of their culture, religion, and linguistic identity, causing emotional and psychological trauma for the children. This accounts for 78% of the total Tibetan student population."
"These children are educated in Mandarin Chinese and cannot visit their monasteries or homes during school breaks. This is to assimilate Tibetan children into the dominant culture and language of the colonizers. They are, nevertheless, a weapon for political indoctrination and cultural assimilation. China is not just destroying our country, but our entire civilization," she added.
Vice President Kelsang Dolma said, "Tibet is the world's largest and tallest plateau, known as the 'Roof of the World'. This region is the origin of ten significant rivers in Asia. Approximately 2 billion individuals rely on these rivers for their fresh water needs. The extraction of minerals from Tibet, along with the growth of hydropower initiatives, large dams, urban development, and industrial growth under the guise of progress, poses a threat to Tibet's ecological balance and natural resources."
"Increased flooding occurrences in India and Bangladesh have been associated with deforestation in the south-eastern area. Consequently, the diminishing water levels in rivers highlight a need to address water resource issues as a global concern. The water resources of Tibet hold strategic significance for China in maintaining its control over countries situated downstream," she added.
Tibetan Women's Association states, "Prior to China's annexation of Tibet, no Chinese armed forces had ever been deployed along the Himalayas. The disappearance of a neutral buffer between China and India had a significant effect on their relationship. Rising tensions at the border, restrictions on pilgrimage at Kailash Manasarovar, the construction of a network of internal highways in Tibet to connect border areas with India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Pakistan via motor able roads, and the construction of 15 airfields and 27 military airstrips in Tibet forwards to a potential war with India. The worrisome situation in Tibet serves as a wake-up call to us."
The Tibetan Women's Association makes the following three-point appeal to the Government of India:
1. We appeal to the Government of India to address the issue of colonial boarding school system in Tibet and thereby protect our Tibetan Children.
2. We urge the Government of India to engage with the Chinese leadership and address the detrimental effects of China's development projects in Tibet that engender the deterioration of Tibet's fragile environment.
3. We urge the Government of India to take urgent measures against the Chinese Human rights violation and call for appropriate actions against the Chinese government until they are genuinely committed about resolving the issue of Tibet.
TWA also request general public to raise awareness about the critical conditions in Tbet and the Tibetan people and express solidarity with the Tibetan people's quest for freedom via social media or written articles. Reach out to your MP's and MLA's about Tibet, and bring the topic of Tibet into discussion in Parliament or the assembly.
