TYC to launch indefinite hunger strike in New Delhi/ENG

2012. augusztus 13./Tibet Sun/TibetPress

http://www.tibetsun.com/archive/2012/08/13/tyc-to-launch-indefinite-hunger-strike-in-new-delhi/

By Lobsang Wangyal

Three members of the Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC) will sit in an indefinite hunger strike campaign in New Delhi starting from 3 September, to highlight the current dire situation in Tibet.

The decision for the campaign was taken during the 43rd Working Committee Meeting in Bir on Sunday.

According to a TYC press release, the campaign will be to stand in solidarity with Tibetan brethren in Tibet to amplify the voices of the unprecedented number of self-immolations in Tibet.

Three Central Executive members, Dhondup Lhadar, Vice President; Penpa Tsering, Organisational Secretary; and Jigme (Sholpa), Cultural Secretary, are the three participants in the hunger strike campaign.

Starting with Tapey’s self-immolation in 2009, 46 Tibetans are confirmed to have self-immolated inside Tibet, and 35 of them are known to have died following their protest. The protesters have called for freedom from repression and the end of exile of the Dalai Lama.

The TYC Working Committee Meeting was held at Bir, Himachal Pradesh, for five days from 8 August. A total of 115 representatives from 42 regional chapters took part in the meeting.

The members were given trainings on cyber security, strategic planning, media communications, public speaking, teamwork, and grassroots activism in a two-day workshop prior to the meeting.

One of the staunch Tibetan independence advocates, Lhasang Tsering, attended the meeting as the chief guest. The meeting was opened with a minute’s silence for the Tibetans who sacrificed their lives for their country. The members then sang the Tibetan national anthem.

TYC is the biggest Tibetan grass roots organisation striving for the restoration of Tibetan Independence.