Serlha and Youlha Tawo – Tibetan sisters born in Germany
Born in Germany, Tibetan sisters – Serlha and Youlha are both gifted singers who sing Tibetan and English songs. They are the daughters of a very well-known Tibetan singer, philanthropist and medical doctor by profession – Dr. Lobsang Palden Tawo. Sadly, this legend is no more with us but his legacy continues.
Like their father, the Tawo sisters are pursuing their careers in medicine in Germany and Switzerland. Popularly known as Tawo Palden la, their father was an amazing Tibetan story-teller. I listened to his story-telling and songs many times when I was growing up in a refugee camp in Nepal. Tawo Palden la often performed in Europe with his good friend and veteran Tibetan singer Nelung Tsering Topden la from Switzerland. I will dedicate a separate piece on Nelung Topden la.
SERLHA TAWO
Serlha was born in 1982 in Engelskirchen, Germany. Like her older sister, Serlha also studied medicine and is a practising physician in Switzerland.
Serlha Tawo
Serlha learned piano when she was young. Just like her siblings Serlha’s first musical experience started at school. Her song, “You are on my mind” in Trinkhor V, which she sang together with the famous Tibetan singer, Sherten, became very popular. Sherten is highly-sought Tibetan singer who lives in China’s occupied Tibet.
YOULHA TAWO
Youlha Tawo
Youlha was born in Heidelberg, Germany. After finishing her school in Lüdenscheid, Youlha studied medicine at the University of Bonn. Since 2005 Youlha has been working as a doctor in different German hospitals. Currently, she is a self-employed physician.
Youlha started playing piano since her childhood and later she learned guitar. Youlha’s first stage experience started at school, when she also performed some of her own songs in English. Her international breakthrough came in 2007 with her song, “Women’s Right“.
It’s Friday, so enjoy Tibetan Tawo sisters’ songs by clicking the links below!
Losar 2149 – the Tibetan New Year 2022 falls on 3rd March this year. Tibetans follow lunar calendar and it is 127 years ahead of the Gregorian calendar. Since this is the most important festival of the year for the Tibetans, they pay special visits to Buddhist monasteries, temples and holy sites where they pray and pledge to be a better person in the year ahead. It is also a good opportunity to greet with other Tibetans who visit the holy sites.
“Tashi Deleg” is the traditional Tibetan greeting and during the festival season, Tibetans greet each other “Losar La Tashi Deleg”.
Whilst young children are excited to wear their new dresses adults have many preparations to do for the festive season. Tibetans wear their best traditional attire (chubas).
In the UK, the small Tibetan Community are also getting ready for the festive season! Tibetan parents living in the London Royal Borough of Greenwich are organising a special Losar – Tibetan Cultural Event this year as an educational session for young children. This will take place at the Woolwich Centre Library on Saturday, 26th February from 2pm to 4pm.
Samten Chodon, a parent and a Senior Nurse, who works for the National Health Service (NHS), initiated this cultural event in the Royal Borough of Greenwich where she is a resident. This children-focus cultural event is open to all. Samten and her co-organisers hope that all attendees would benefit from this cultural event – learning more about the importance of Tibetan festival. Children and guests are invited to speak on the festive season. Everyone who attends the afternoon will also enjoy traditional Tibetan songs and dance by young children.
Losar is traditionally celebrated by Tibetans all over the world. About six million Tibetans in China’s occupied Tibet celebrate the Losar but they are banned from showing devotion to their Tibetan spiritual leader, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who was forced into exile in India since March 1959. Tibetans are still persecuted in their homelands after Tibet was invaded by the Communist China. Of the 140,000 Tibetans living in exile, the UK is home to about 800 Tibetans where they can freely practise their beliefs.
Some important Tibetan Losar events taking place in the UK between 26th February and 5th March 2022:
Saturday, 26th February from 2pm to 4pm | Losar 2149: Tibetan Cultural Event|Venue: Woolwich Centre Library | Organisers: Samten Chodon et. al.
Thursday, 3rd March from 8 am to 11 am | Losar Prayer & Sangsol| Venue: Jamyang Buddhist Centre | Organiser: Tibetan Community UK
Losar Prayer & Sangsol @ Jamyang Buddhist Centre | 3rd March from 8am to 11 am | Organised by Tibetan Community UK
Thursday, 3rd March from 4pm | Tibetan Losar Party 2022 | Venue: Asian Community Centre | Organiser: Greenwich Tibetan Association(GTA)
Tibetan Losar Party 2022 @ Asian Community Centre, Woolwich | 3rd March from 4pm | Organised by Greenwich Tibetan Association (GTA)
Saturday, 5th March from 5pm to 1 am | TCB Losar Celebration | Venue: Old Town Hall, Stratford | Organiser: Tibetan Community UK
TCB Losar Celebration @ Old Town Hall, Stratford | 5th March from 5pm to 1 am | Organised by Tibetan Community UK
By Tsering Passang, Founder and Chairman, Global Alliance for Tibet & Persecuted Minorities
From time to time, Tibet was invaded by foreign powers.
After the Communist Party of China (CCP) came to power and with the establishment of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Mao Tsetung declared the so-called “peaceful liberation” of Tibet from foreign imperialists, on 1st October 1949.
Soon, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) marched into Tibet. For Tibetans, this was the beginning of modern China’s invasion of Tibet in the post Second World War era.
“Seventeen-Point Agreement”
On 23rd May 1951, the “Seventeen-Point Agreement” was signed between the representatives of the independent Tibetan Government in Lhasa and the Chinese Communist Government in Peking. Tibetans have always maintained that the agreement was signed by the Tibetan representatives “under duress”.
His Excellency Lukhangwa, the lay Tibetan Prime Minister, plainly told Chinese Representative Zhang Jingwu in 1952 that the Tibetan “people did not accept the agreement”. Nevertheless, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet, who was a young teenager at the time, decided to work with the Chinese “in order to save my people and country from total destruction”, as he wrote in his memoir, ‘My Land and My People’.
For eight years, the Dalai Lama tried to abide by the terms of that document. The Tibetan Leader even relieved his Prime Minister Lukhangwa from his post, who had made no secret of his staunch opposition to the Chinese aggression.
Foreign trips & meetings with Chinese, Indian leaders
In 1954, the young Dalai Lama visited Peking. During his nearly 6 months’ stay the Dalai Lama had meetings with many Chinese leaders including Chairman Mao Tsetung and Premier Chou En-lai on a few occasions. Both of them gave assurances to him on Tibet’s good future.
Tibet’s highest spiritual leaders – The 14th Dalai Lama and The 10th Panchen Lama in the 1950s
In 1956, at the invitation of the Mahabodhi Society of India, the Dalai Lama travelled to India to join the 2500th Birth Anniversary Celebrations of Lord Buddha. During his India trip, the Dalai Lama had meetings with the Indian Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and discussed Tibet.
The Dalai Lama later expressed his intention to seek asylum in India but Nehru advised the Tibetan Leader to return and work within Tibet.
At the same time, the Chinese Premier Chou En-lai travelled to Delhi where he met both Nehru and the Dalai Lama and urged the young Tibetan leader to return to Tibet. Finally, the Dalai Lama returned to Lhasa.
His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama in 1956 in New Delhi
Tension rising in Lhasa, Tibet’s capital
By early 1959, a large number of the PLA troops entered central Tibet – about 20,000 were stationed in Lhasa alone. The tension was now rising in the Tibetan capital. Tens of thousands of Tibetans from east Tibet were retreating towards Lhasa while fighting continued in the east.
In early March 1959, the PLA invited the Dalai Lama to attend a planned cultural show at its headquarters without any Tibetan bodyguards.
The date for the theatrical show was set for 10th March.
Tibetan National Uprising in Lhasa, March 1959
The general public in Lhasa became suspicious and over 30,000 Tibetans gathered at the Norbu Lingkha, the summer palace of the Dalai Lama, for his security and requested him not to attend the show.
The Dalai Lama, who was then 24, faced a difficult dilemma. In his autobiography, ‘My Land and My People’ the Dalai Lama wrote, “…as if I was standing between two volcanoes, each likely to erupt at any moment. On one side, there was the vehement, unequivocal, unanimous protest of my people against the Chinese regime; on the other hand, there was the armed might of a powerful and aggressive occupying force.”
With the huge crowd surrounding the Norbu Lingkha palace, it was almost impossible for the Dalai Lama to leave.
The PLA generals were enraged when three of the Dalai Lama’s ministers told them that he would not be attending. A couple of days later, the Chinese army fired two mortars at the summer palace.
With the situation at boiling point, on the night of 17th March, the Dalai Lama decided to leave Lhasa immediately. According to his autobiography, the Dalai Lama, disguised as an ordinary soldier, rode out of his palace on horseback “unchallenged [and moved] towards the dark road beyond”.
The young Dalai Lama and his escape party is shown on the fourth day of their flight to freedom as they cross the Zsago-La pass, in southern Tibet, while being pursued by Chinese military forces, on March 21, 1959, after fleeing Lhasa.(Photo source: http://www.qt.com)
Tibet in Exile
After nearly two weeks of a treacherous journey, with protection provided by the volunteer Tibetan resistance forces, the Dalai Lama reached safety in India, on 31st March 1959.
The Dalai Lama of Tibet poses with his hosts, the wealthy Indian Birla brothers and their families April 28, 1959, at Birla house, Mussoorie, India.(Photo source: http://www.qt.com)
Some 80,000 Tibetan refugees followed him into India, Nepal and Bhutan.
The young and charismatic Dalai Lama re-established the Tibetan Government-in-exile (officially known as the Central Tibetan Administration) currently based in Dharamsala, northern India.
A staunch believer in democracy, the Dalai Lama has introduced this western democratic system into Tibetan society, little by little since 1960.
In 2011, the Dalai Lama decided to fully relinquish his previously inherited political leadership, which had been sustained for nearly 400 years, by passing the historic seal to the directly elected Sikyong (otherwise known as the President) Dr. Lobsang Sangay (a legal scholar from Harvard University), of the Central Tibetan Administration.
Under his amazing leadership, the Dalai Lama established a network of Tibetan settlements, schools, hospitals, monasteries, nunneries as well as cultural institutions to provide vital education, healthcare, welfare needs and cultural preservation in India, Nepal, and Bhutan.
Internally, his visionary leadership in exile for the Tibetan society has kept its identity and culture alive. Externally, especially after receiving the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989, the Dalai Lama gained new celebrity status on the global stage which helped to promote the Tibetan issue.
His message of peace and non-violence for resolving conflicts, promotion of religious harmony and human values got greater recognition.
The present 14th Dalai Lama, who turns 86 in July, is not only a Tibetan spiritual leader but a highly respected moral leader on the world stage.
The Dalai Lama meeting former US President Obama
Since coming into exile, Tibetans in India and around the world observe this poignant 10th March anniversary every year to condemn China’s repression in Tibet whilst remembering those who died in their struggle for freedom.
In Dharamsala as well as in major Tibetan settlements across India, the official functions include recitation of Buddhist prayers and singing of political Tibetan songs.
Every year, the President of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) and the Speaker of the Tibetan Parliament in exile issue official political statements on this day.
These are available on the CTA website www.tibet.net. The TibetTV – www.TibetOnline.tv also live webcast the official proceeding on this day.
Official website of the Central Tibetan Administration that virtually connects Tibetans in diasporas
Non-governmental Tibetan organisations such as the Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC), which call for Rangzen (Independence of Tibet), often organise political demonstrations worldwide around this historic date.
This can include demonstrations outside the Chinese Embassy in Delhi or engaging in hunger strikes in front of the United Nations in New York to draw their attention to the Tibetan plight.
This year, a Tibetan Youth leader and writer, Tenzin Tsundue, launched his latest campaign “Repeal One-China Policy” with a month-long march #WalkAMileForTibet from Dharamsala to Delhi, covering 500 kilometres distance on foot.
He is due to reach Delhi on 10th March. Tsundue started his march on Losar – Tibetan New Year, 12th February.
The One-China Policy is a diktat laid down by the CCP which denies any area currently under Chinese control the right ever to differentiate itself from China.
Thus Tibet, Southern Mongolia, East Turkestan [Xinjiang], Manchuria and Hong Kong must — according to this diktat – accept that they are forever an integral part of China and can never break free of communist control. Taiwan – a democracy – is included in this diktat.
Despite the COVID-19 restrictions, in London, Tibetans and activists are engaging in political activism this year.
A group of Tibetans and their supporters are taking part in the #WalkAMileForTibet in support of the “Repeal One-China Policy” campaign on this day.
The 14-mile march starts from Woolwich, headquarters of the Royal Borough of Greenwich. With a stopover at the Indian High Commission, the group will march to the Chinese Embassy, passing through Whitehall, the heart of the British Government.
The Royal Borough of Greenwich is going to hoist the Tibetan National Flag on 10th March once again this year in a show of solidarity and support to Tibet and the Tibetan people.
*Tsering Passang, a human rights advocate and political activist, is the founder of Global Alliance for Tibet & Persecuted Minorities (GATPM). He was the Director of London-based Tibet Foundation from 2019 to 2021. Elected as Chairman of the Tibetan Community in Britain, Tsering led the community organisation from 2014 to 2016.
(The above piece was first published in Taiwan Times on 10th March 2021.)
Tibet Protest March 2022 in London
Tibetans are observing 10th March 2022 as the 63rd anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising Day. The Tibetan Community UK and Free Tibet are urging their members and supporters to join the annual protest and commemoration events.
Protest – Tibetan Freedom March
Venue – 10 Downing Street, London SW1A 2AA
Date/Time – 10th March 2022, Thursday / Gathering from 09:30 am
Speeches and protest march towards Chinese Embassy start at 11:00 am.
Protest and demonstration in front of the Chinese Embassy from 12:00 pm to 01:00 pm.
The Tibetan Community UK and Free Tibet are urging their members and supporters to join the protest and commemoration events. Details of this year’s commemoration events as below:
Protest – Tibetan Freedom March
Venue – 10 Downing Street, London SW1A 2AA
Date/Time – 10th March 2022, Thursday / Gathering from 09:30 am
Speeches and protest march towards Chinese Embassy start at 11:00 am.
Protest and demonstration in front of the Chinese Embassy from 12:00 pm to 01:00 pm.
It is said that music has no boundaries. A person who enjoys his or her native, traditional music and art may also appreciates and adopts music from other cultures for entertainment. Those who turn to modern pop music, may prefer imported musical genre than their own native, traditional one. I suppose it’s quite natural for young people from all backgrounds.
Tibetans are no different from any other culture whether they are in China’s occupied Tibet or in exile. Dominant cultures are a big influence to the minorities. It is estimated that since the flight of the Dalai Lama into exile in 1959, some 140,000 Tibetan refugees have been living outside China’s occupied Tibet. Currently home to over 10,000 Tibetans, Nepal is frequently pressured by the Chinese government to ban Tibetan refugees engaging in any form of gatherings – political, cultural or human rights related. Nepal’s authorities have a fine balance to act – to please its northern communist neighbour whilst ensuring the Tibetan refugees enjoy the universal human rights in the landlocked country.
Today, I would like introduce a young Tibetan artist – a Thangka painter and musician, Kelsang Choedak, who was born and brought up in a refugee camp in Nepal. Kelsang received his full six-year training in the traditional Tibetan Thangka painting course from ‘Tsering Art School’ of Shechen Monastery in Boudhanath. This town in Kathmandu valley is a very well known pilgrimage site for Buddhists around the world.
Based in Kathmandu, Kelsang Kes (his stage name) spends his time between making music and managing his traditional Thangka painting studio, which he owns and also employs a number of artists. Kelsang Kes is a well sought after young Tibetan artist, whose latest release is ང་ཡི་སེམས་ཀྱི། or Ngayi Semkyi. His latest release on the Valentine’s Day, 14th February 2022 – a romantic Tibetan song is a treat for his fans.
In his social media posting on 12th February, Kelsang Kes wrote, “Hi guys, stay tuned for this Valentine’s song ‘ང་ཡི་སེམས་ཀྱི།/Ngayi semkyi’ by Pema Wangdi Lama creation, Featuring myself!”
Kelsang Kes also sings Nepalese, Bollywood and English songs beautifully. With no shortage of fans throughout the world Kelsang Kes has performed in many countries including in India, Bhutan and Nepal.
It’s Friday, enjoy Kelsang Kes music by clicking the Youtube links below!
On the eve of the opening of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Games, UK-based Tibetan, Uyghur, Hong Kong and Tigrayan communities hosted an Alternative Olympic Opening Ceremony in London (3rd February) to challenge Beijing’s #GenocideGames.
The Joint Statement from the coalition of rights groups and China’s persecuted communities in the UK, said, “Our demands for change and accountability are not just for Beijing. No, this is about every institution and individual that has put power and profit over human life – sponsors, broadcasters, and, of course, the IOC and Thomas Bach. To them, this is a game of money and influence and we should all be repulsed. We each have a responsibility to act when our fellow humans are enduring repression, torture and genocide. But these principles have been discarded, as soon as China was awarded the Winter Olympics. Those responsible wish we would stop holding them accountable. But for the past year we have refused them that luxury. And now, none can say that these Olympics have been pulled off with propagandist ease. It is thanks to our efforts that the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics will be memorialised in history as the Genocide Games.”
Supportive parliamentarians from across British political parties, including Lord David Alton, Nusrat Ghani MP and Afzal Khan MP addressed the rally whilst Barbara Keely MP joined the crowd in show of their solidarity and support. Condemning the Chinese government for its continued gross violation of human rights and Uyghur genocide, the parliamentarians were unanimous in declaring the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics as the “Genocide Games”.
Lord Alton explained about his visits to Tibet and Hong Kong. He exposed the Chinese government’s violation of human rights in Tibet and Hong Kong. He sternly criticised Uyghur genocide committed by the Chinese State and, acknowledged the wonderful work by the independent Uyghur Tribunal, chaired by Sir Geoffrey Nice QC. Lord Alton was addressing a crowd of several hundred people from the persecuted communities in the heart of London’s Piccadilly Circus. He said, “We won’t be silenced by anyone.” After his rally speech, Lord Alton tweeted: “Don’t let the moment pass. The true #Olympic spirit is about solidarity not indifference to tyranny #BoycottBeijing2022”
Lord David Alton addressing the rally
Nearly a year ago in March 2021, the Chinese government sanctioned a number of British parliamentarians who stood up for human rights, truth and freedom. They included Lord Alton and Nusrat Ghani MP, who have been strong critics of the Chinese government’s human rights abuses.
Nusrat Ghani MP address the rally
Nusrat Ghani MP, a former minister in the Conservative government, gave a very powerful speech to the crowd’s roar. She declared, “Tomorrow, we have the Beijing Winter Olympics. China will do its very best to paint the prettiest picture on what’s happening in the hands of the Chinese Communist Party. But, we know the truth. We want the world to see the crackdown against Hong Kong. We want the world to see the persecution against the Tibetans. And, we want to see the ongoing wheel-time genocide of the Uyghur people. No to the Genocide Olympics.”
Ms Ghani further added, “The Chinese Communist Party is engaging in a most expensive PR campaign. But, let me tell you this. We will not let China off the hook. We will not forget Hong Kong. We will not forget Tibet. And, wewill never forget, or forgive, the ongoing genocide against the Uyghur people.”
Afzal Khan MP addressing the rally
Echoing the crowd’s chanting, Afzal Khan, Labour MP from Manchester, said that the message to China is clear and simple: “Free Tibet, Free East Turkistan and Free Hong Kong.” Lambasting the Beijing 2022 Olympics Games in the midst of genocide against the Uyghur Muslims, Mr Khan questioned, “How can you have those [games] when there is genocide taking place?” The Labour MP said that there is cross-party support for China’s persecuted communities and they would continue to press on the British government to take a tougher stance on China. After his address, Mr Khan tweeted, “Ahead of the #BeijingWinterOlympics, I joined colleagues & friends to remember those suffering under CCP rule”.
China’s persecuted communities condemned the decision by the International Olympics Committee (IOC) to proceed with the event despite the crimes against humanity being carried out by the Chinese Communist regime.
Tsering Passang, Chairman of Global Alliance for Tibet & Persecuted Minorities
Tsering Passang, former Chair of Tibetan Community in Britain, who is also the Founder and Chairman of the Global Alliance for Tibet & Persecuted Minorities, addressed the rally along with the parliamentarians and representatives from other China’s persecuted communities. Passang said, “The 2022 Olympics Games should not be held in today’s repressive China, where gross violation of human rights is taking place, on a daily basis. And certainly, the Olympics should not have been awarded to a regime which persecutes its own people, including the peaceful Falun Gong practitioners as well as those in China’s occupied Tibet and East Turkestan.”
Criticising the IOC’s decision to award the Olympics once again to the CCP regime in 2022, Passang questioned, “Why are the IOC and its Chiefs pandering to the Chinese regime? The question does raise whether the IOC and its Chiefs are getting in complicity with the Communist Chinese regime, in committing crimes against humanity including Uyghur genocide”. The Tibetan activist declared, “For the persecuted communities, whether we are Tibetans or Uyghurs, we recognise the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics as the GenocidesGames of the 21st century.”
The Alternative Opening Ceremony in London was a part of the Global Day of Action in which groups from at least 20 countries voice their opposition to the Winter Games and urge the wider public to show solidarity with those living under CCP rule or affected by its foreign policy.
The remainder of the event saw colourful but determined activities including musical performances and poetry readings, a mock medal ceremony for Chinese President Xi Jinping and the lighting of an activist-made own Olympic torch.
Earlier a press release was issued by the organisers of the Alternative Olympics Opening Ceremony.
Tenzin Wangdu, Chair of Tibetan Community in Britain: “The 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics were preceded by brutal crackdowns in Tibet and the transformation of Tibet into a police state. In the past 14 years, things have only deteriorated. The IOC’s decision to award Beijing a second Olympics is a sick insult and an unforgivable error of judgement. It shows that the IOC has no concern for justice or human rights. We renew our call for everyone to boycott these bloodstained Winter Games. We call on everyone to turn their attention away from the Chinese Communist Party’s propaganda event and to join us in our struggle for freedom.”
The Hongkonger community (Hong Kong Aid, Power to Hongkongers, Hong Kong Liberty, Hongkongers in Britain): “We Hongkongers are boycotting the Beijing Winter Olympics because we do not believe the CCP, who has had a long history abusing human rights, conducting genocide, and destroying democracy, deserves to be “awarded” as an Olympic Games host. We further condemn the IOC for turning a blind eye to their horrible acts, betraying Olympism’s value to respect for universal fundamental ethical principles. We urge the international community to stand in solidarity with us. To boycott them by not watching it, by calling out CCP’s hypocrisy, and by spreading awareness about what is going on in Tibet, East Turkestan, Tigray and Hong Kong.”
The alternative opening ceremony is the culmination of a long-running campaign against the decision by the IOC to award Beijing a second Olympic event, despite a dramatic surge in human rights abuses by the Chinese government since the 2008 Summer Olympics. This includes:
Protesters
The detention of at least two million Uyghur, Kazakh, and Uzbek Muslims in “re-education camps”, where they are forced to endure systematic torture, rape, and political re-education.
The finding that the CCP has separated at least 80% of Tibetan children from their parents and into colonial boarding schools, where they face intense political indoctrination.
Draconian security measures in Hong Kong, including the National Security Bill, which have effectively criminalised protest and removed what civil liberties existed in Hong Kong.
Attacks on the culture and language of Southern Mongolians.
The scale of the human rights abuses perpetrated by Beijing, including the recognition by numerous governments that it is committing genocide against the Uyghur people, has led to the 2022 Winter Games being widely known as the “Genocide Games”.
Rahima Mahmut, Director of Stop Uyghur Genocide and World Uyghur Congress reading Coalition’s Joint Statement at the rally
Rahima Mahmut, UK Director of the World Uyghur Congress (WUC) and Executive Director of Stop Uyghur Genocide (SUG): “We are holding an alternative opening ceremony to remind the world – our leaders, corporations, the International Olympics Committee, and all of those watching – that a genocide is being perpetrated beyond the bounds of the Olympic Park. Whilst fireworks are set off for opening celebrations, millions of my fellow Uyghurs are tortured and violated in concentration camps. While the world watches media coverage of ski slaloms, my Uyghur brothers and sisters are subject to constant surveillance. Whilst athletes are presented with medals, Uyghur mothers mourn for children that have been stolen from them and indoctrinated in state-orphanages. This will prove to be an indelible moment of shame for everyone that remained complicit, particularly the IOC and Thomas Bach.”
The alternative opening ceremony and wider day of action are also being organised and attended by people affected by the CCP’s increasingly confrontational foreign policy. This includes the Tigray Youth Network, who oppose the Ethiopian government’s ongoing siege of Tigray, which has killed around 150 thousand people, and displaced a further 2.2. million Tigrayans, policies that have received material and diplomatic support from the Chinese government.
Rowena from the Tigray Youth Network: “Tigray Youth Network is boycotting the Winter Games because of China’s involvement in arming the Federal government of Ethiopia to continue the genocidal war on Tigray; China voted against the UN Human Rights Council motion to set up a three-member investigate team citing the war is an internal matter and objected a statement by the U.N. Security Council calling for an end to the violence in Tigray and to spotlight the millions in need of humanitarian assistance.”
Barbara Keeley MP with Tsering Passang (GATPM) and Tsering Tsomo (Office of Tibet)
Date: Thursday 3 February 2022 Time: 18:20-20:30 Where: Piccadilly Circus, London What: Tibetans, Uyghurs, Hongkongers and Tigrayans unite to protest the IOC’s complicity in the CCP’s crimes against humanity on the eve of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
In advance of the opening of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Games, Tibetans, Uyghurs, Hongkongers and Tigrayans will host an alternative opening ceremony in central London. Joined by campaign groups and supportive MPs, they will condemn the decision by the International Olympic Committee to proceed with the event despite the crimes against humanity being carried out by the Chinese Communist Party.
The alternative opening ceremony will take place hours before the official opening ceremony for the Winter Games on 4 February in Beijing. It will be part of a Global Day of Action in which groups from at least 20 countries will voice their opposition to the Winter Games and urge the wider public to show solidarity with those living under CCP rule or affected by its foreign policy.
Tenzin Wangdu, Chair of Tibetan Community in Britain said:
“The 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics were preceded by brutal crackdowns in Tibet and the transformation of Tibet into a police state. In the past 14 years, things have only deteriorated. The IOC’s decision to award Beijing a second Olympics is a sick insult and an unforgivable error of judgement. It shows that the IOC has no concern for justice or human rights. We renew our call for everyone to boycott these bloodstained Winter Games. We call on everyone to turn their attention away from the Chinese Communist Party’s propaganda event and to join us in our struggle for freedom.”
The alternative opening ceremony will start at 18:20 on Thursday 3 February, with an opening statement from representatives from each community followed by speeches from Afzal Khan, Lord Alton and Nus Ghani, who have been supportive of the No Beijing 2022 campaign.
The remainder of the event will consist of colourful but determined activities including musical performances and poetry readings, a mock medal ceremony for Chinese President Xi Jinping and the lighting of our own Olympic torch.
The Hongkonger community said (Hong Kong Aid, Power to Hongkongers, Hong Kong Liberty, Hongkongers in Britain):
“We Hongkongers are boycotting the Beijing Winter Olympics because we do not believe the CCP, who has had a long history abusing human rights, conducting genocide, and destroying democracy, deserves to be “awarded” as an Olympic Games host. We further condemn the IOC for turning a blind eye to their horrible acts, betraying Olympism’s value to respect for universal fundamental ethical principles. We urge the international community to stand in solidarity with us. To boycott them by not watching it, by calling out CCP’s hypocrisy, and by spreading awareness about what is going on in Tibet, East Turkestan, Tigray and Hong Kong.”
The alternative opening ceremony is the culmination of a long-running campaign against the decision by the IOC to award Beijing a second Olympic event, despite a dramatic surge in human rights abuses by the Chinese government since the 2008 Summer Olympics. This includes:
The detention of at least two million Uyghur, Kazakh, and Uzbek Muslims in “re-education camps”, where they are forced to endure systematic torture, rape, and political re-education.
The finding that the CCP has separated at least 80% of Tibetan children from their parents and into colonial boarding schools, where they face intense political indoctrination.
Draconian security measures in Hong Kong, including the National Security Bill, which have effectively criminalised protest and removed what civil liberties existed in Hong Kong.
Attacks on the culture and language of Southern Mongolians.
The scale of the human rights abuses perpetrated by Beijing, including the recognition by numerous governments that it is committing genocide against the Uyghur people, has led to the 2022 Winter Games being widely known as the “Genocide Games”.
Rahima Mahmut, UK Director of the World Uyghur Congress (WUC) and Executive Director of Stop Uyghur Genocide (SUG), said:
“We are holding an alternative opening ceremony to remind the world – our leaders, corporations, the International Olympics Committee, and all of those watching – that a genocide is being perpetrated beyond the bounds of the Olympic Park. Whilst fireworks are set off for opening celebrations, millions of my fellow Uyghurs are tortured and violated in concentration camps. While the world watches media coverage of ski slaloms, my Uyghur brothers and sisters are subject to constant surveillance. Whilst athletes are presented with medals, Uyghur mothers mourn for children that have been stolen from them and indoctrinated in state-orphanages. This will prove to be an indelible moment of shame for everyone that remained complicit, particularly the IOC and Thomas Bach.”
The alternative opening ceremony and wider day of action are also being organised and attended by people affected by the CCP’s increasingly confrontational foreign policy. This includes the Tigray Youth Network, who oppose the Ethiopian government’s ongoing siege of Tigray, which has killed around 150 thousand people, and displaced a further 2.2. million Tigrayans, policies that have received material and diplomatic support from the Chinese government.
Rowena from the Tigray Youth Network said:
“Tigray Youth Network is boycotting the Winter Games because of China’s involvement in arming the Federal government of Ethiopia to continue the genocidal war on Tigray; China voted against the UN Human Rights Council motion to set up a three-member investigate team citing the war is an internal matter and objected a statement by the U.N. Security Council calling for an end to the violence in Tigray and to spotlight the millions in need of humanitarian assistance.”
Dhondup Wangchen, a Tibetan filmmaker and former political prisoner, is currently travelling from Riga, capital of Latvia, to Vilnius in Lithuania, on a bus-ride. He is accompanied by Wangpo Tethong, a former Tibetan MP and the new Executive Director of the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) Europe.
Starting on 17th November 2021 from France, Dhondup Wangchen will soon end his three-month Europe Tour for Tibet on 10th February 2022 in Switzerland. Wangchen has been meeting and interacting with so many parliamentarians, government officials, journalists, media houses as well as individuals during his campaign tour to advocate for the Tibetan people as well as other persecuted communities in China despite the rising COVID situations across Europe.
Wangchen’s Baltic trip is the last leg of his planned Europe Tour, ahead of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Games. As his Europe Tour is soon coming to an end, Wangchen calls for action: “Wear Tibetan “Rangzen Bracelets” during the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Games. The former Tibetan political prisoner is very clear in his message – “Don’t forget us Tibetans! Don’t forget Tibet!”
Tibetans and rights groups label the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Games as the #GenocideGames.
When Wangchen wraps up the 15-countries Europe Tour next month, organisers in Switzerland will screen his documentary ‘Leaving Fear Behind’ once again.
Dhondup Wangchen was arrested and imprisoned by the Chinese authorities for making his documentary film in 2008. In his documentary, Wangchen was simply seeking the views of Tibetans in China’s occupied Tibet about their love for the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, and what the 2008 Beijing Olympics meant for them.
After serving over 6 years in Chinese prisons and further house arrest, Dhondup Wangchen escaped into exile in December 2017. He was granted political asylum in the US where he reunited with his family.
Wangpo Tethong, who is accompanying Dhondup Wangchen to the Baltics States, says that the former Tibetan political prisoner “is a tireless campaigner who inspires the folks around him.” Tethong further adds that Wangchen is “an authentic and talented storyteller” who “connects easily with all people” he comes across.
Noting the change of the international community’s attitude towards China, Tethong said, “Media and governments are ready to listen”. According to the former Tibetan MP, some countries in Europe announced a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Games after Dhondup Wangchen’s visit to the European countries. He said that the former Tibetan political prisoner’s “story may have well contributed to this success”.
At least 15 countries including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Japan, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, New Zealand, Scotland, The Netherlands, United Kingdom and United States have announced the diplomatic boycott of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Games.
Diplomatic boycott by these leading democracies is great news for Tibetans and rights groups around the world who have been campaigning for the boycott of Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Games. It is already a success even before the #GenocidesGames started. Tibetans and rights groups worldwide are staging further protests on 3rd February, as part of the Global Day of Action, to highlight the Chinese regime’s ongoing violations of human rights and Uyghur genocide.
Initiated by Switzerland-based Filming for Tibet, Dhondup Wangchen’s Europe Tour was coordinated by the International Tibet Network. His tour received amazing support from many Tibetan communities in Europe and campaigning groups including, the ICT Europe, Tibetan Youth Association in Europe and Students for a Free Tibet.
(All photos taken from Wangpo Tethong’s Facebook.)
Dhondup Wangchen’s Appeal:“The promises made by China for the 2008 Olympics have all been broken and have taken many innocent lives. People had to go through all sorts of hardships, it is our responsibility to make sure that such mistakes aren’t repeated. It’s crystal clear that people under repressive Communist Chinese rule don’t even have the right to express their views. Doing so might cost their lives. I had to face much danger to reach safety and to be able to speak out. So, my dear friends, I request each one of you to support me and make an oath. Thank you.”
Albert Leroy Shelton (1875-1922) was an American doctor and a Protestant missionary in Batang, Kham region of eastern Tibet, from 1903 until 1922.
In 1908, The Sheltons and another missionary family, the Ogdens, established the first Christian mission in Batang, a town of 350 Tibetan families. Shelton took many photographs of Tibetans in Kham and collected artifacts which he later sold to Newark Museum, New Jersey.
Shelton’s objective was to establish missions deeper into Tibet and ultimately to travel to Lhasa. On February 16, 1922, en route to Markam, he was ambushed by brigands a few miles outside Batang. He died of a gunshot wound the next day and was buried in Batang. Shelton wrote about his experiences in Tibet in an article “Life among the People of Eastern Tibet,” which was published in National Geographic Magazine in 1921 and the same year, he authored a book, ‘Pioneering in Tibet’. Shelton’s eldest daughter, Dorris Evangeline Shelton Still (1904-1997) also wrote about growing up in Tibet in a book, ‘Sue in Tibet’. It was a rare book in its time, in that the main character and heroine of the adventures was a girl.
After Tibet’s annexation in 1959, Dorris Evangeline Shelton still continued her relationship with Tibet and supported Tibetan cause and also had the privilege of meeting His Holiness the 4th Dalai Lama.
These photographs were taken by Dr. Shelton during his time in Kham, Tibet
China’s persecuted communities in the UK are hosting ‘Alternative Olympic Opening Ceremony’ on the eve of Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, which is scheduled from 4th to 20th February.
This ‘Alternative Olympic Opening Ceremony’ will be held in Piccadilly Circus, London W1J 9HS (Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain) on 3rd February from 6.30pm to 8.30pm. Victims of Chinese regime at home and abroad including, Tibetans, Uyghurs, Hong Kongers and Tigrayans, are coming together to protest against the International Olympics Committee (IOC) for awarding this year’s Winter Olympics to China and to highlight the Chinese Communist regime’s gross violations of human rights and crimes against humanity.
In addition to speeches from the affected communities, the ‘Alternative Olympic Opening Ceremony’ will feature political theatre, a ceremonial ‘torch lighting’, poetry readings and personal testimony from those who have been subject to the CCP repression.
Leading British political figures including Sir Iain Duncan Smith MP and Layla Moran MP will address this unique event.
It’s time to send a strong message and remind the Chinese regime and the International Olympics Committee (IOC) that the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games is nothing but the #GenocideGames of the 21st century.
Please join this unique ‘Alternative Olympic Opening Ceremony’ and show your support. Human rights matter.
Global Alliance for Tibet & Persecuted Minorities 
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