India arrests Tibetan exiles

"March for Tibet's Independence” Starting in Madison on July 25

FISHERS, Ind.-A 185 mile “March for Tibet's Independence” begins at 12pm at the Capitol Building (4 East Capitol Square) in Madison, Wisconsin on July 25 and concludes at China's Consulate in Chicago on August 8. The conclusion of the walk coincides with the opening of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Tibetans and their supporters from Wisconsin, other regions of the United States, and India will participate. The walk route proceeds east from Madison to Kenosha.

Wisconsin State Representatives Joseph Parisi and Spencer Black will be featured speakers at the 12pm kickoff rally being held at the Wisconsin Capitol Building.


Jigme Norbu (son of Taktser Rinpoche and nephew of His Holiness The Dalai Lama) will walk. Norbu stated, “We have not achieved my father's lifelong dream of restoring Tibet's independence. I will continue to do whatever is necessary to achieve his dream and to voice the desires of my 6 million brothers and sisters inside Tibet who only want independence and who continue to demonstrate this desire in spite of the brutal force they experience at the hands
of China's military and police.”

According to Lobsang Tenzing, President-Wisconsin Tibetan Association, “This walk will educate the citizens of our great State about the horrific conditions inside of Tibet, the cruelty of China's government, and the genuine desires of Tibetans to peacefully resolve the Tibet-China dispute. Our citizens will also learn the implications for the United States of China's rise as a super power.”

The Venerable Palden Gyatso, a Tibetan Monk, will also walk. Gyatso is in his late 70's and he served 33 years as a political prisoner of China. Since being released, Gyatso has traveled the world advocating for Tibet, and participated in many hunger strikes and walks. Gyatso will begin walking on July 27 and he will participate until the conclusion.

This is the 14th major 'March' or 'Bicycle Ride' for Tibet's independence organized by the International Tibet Independence Movement (ITIM) since 1995. ITIM walkers and bike riders have compiled 3,440 miles in more than 340 days!

The Wisconsin Tibetan Association and the Tibetan Alliance of Chicago are assisting with the coordination of this walk.

ITIM was co-founded in 1995 by Taktser Rinpoche and Professor Larry Gerstein to obtain Tibet's independence through non-violent methods. While ITIM is headquartered in Indiana, there are over 10,000 supporters of this organization worldwide.

Protest march by Tibetan exiles stopped in northern India

LUCKNOW, India — Authorities in northern India have again stopped a protest march by more than 300 Tibetan exiles heading for their homeland.
The demonstrators, including Buddhist monks and nuns carrying pictures of the Dalai Lama and "Free Tibet" banners, want their arrival to coincide with this summer's Beijing Olympics Games.
The marchers began their journey March 10 in the Indian city of Dharmsala, headquarters of the Tibetan government-in-exile.
Indian police detained a group of the marchers for two weeks, but the protesters restarted their walk March 15 and were allowed to proceed.
Now they have been stopped again and authorities in Uttarakhand state say they are trying to convince them to return to Dharmsala.
Authorities in India fear the protest march would embarrass China, with whom New Delhi is trying to improve economic ties despite a lingering border dispute.
Tenzin Choedon, a spokeswoman for Students for a Free Tibet, one of the groups organizing the march, said the protesters are determined to continue their walk to Tibet.
"They are determined to carry on with this non-violent direct action," Choedon told The Associated Press in a telephone interview from Nainital, one of the main towns of Uttarakhand.
India has generally allowed the Tibetan exiles to protest peacefully, but as anti-China protests gathered momentum before the Beijing Olympics, the government has said that it would not tolerate actions that embarrassed China.
India is home to the world's largest Tibetan exile community, with more than 100,000 exiles.

Monks speak out!