Rise against Rights Violation in Tibet: Monk

CHENNAI: Freedom for Tibet from Chinese clutches was the only slogan that filled the air as students from Tibet and eleven monks from Gaden Jangtse Monastery in Karnataka gathered in Chennai to protest the death of monks and the recent self immolation by a young monk in Tibet. On August 15, Tsewang Norbu (29), a monk from Nyatso Monastery in Tibet, in an act of desperation, and helplessness, committed self immolation to bring to focus the increasing human rights crisis in Tibet under  Chinese rule.Lobsang Jampa, a monk from Gaden Jangtse Monastery who participated in the hunger fast, gave a curtain call to fellow Tibetians: “This act of self immolation by the young monk mirrors the pathetic state of affairs in Tibet. It is high time we internationalise this issue. We call upon our brothers and sisters who live in exile all over the world to rise up and plunge into action. We cannot remain mute spectators while our brothers and sisters in Tibet suffer everyday under the Chinese rule.”The Chennai fast is part of a marathon hunger fast launched by the monks of the Gaden Jangste Monastery in various metros of India in an effort to internationalise the worsening human rights situation in Tibet.The Chennai fast was supported by the Tibetan Students Association of Madras (TSAM). Rinchem Namgyal, President of TSAM, said, “This hunger fast is an effort to internationalise the plight of our people who are suffering under the Chinese regime. We urge India to take up our cause.”