Indians stand for a “peaceful democratic” govt in Tibet/ENG

2012. április 11./Phayul.com/TibetPress

DHARAMSHALA, April 11: Indians living in northeast India have come out in strong support of a “peaceful democratic” regime in Tibet, where Tibetans can “take their own decisions to cherish lives.”

Members of rights body, civil society groups, and media persons in the state of Assam, while speaking at a public gathering at the Guwahati Press Club on Tuesday declared that a progressive democratic government in Lhasa, Tibet’s capital will be “beneficial for nearly 60 million people” of the Indian northeastern region.

The northeast Indian states of Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh share boundaries with Tibet, while other states in the region heavily depend on rivers, including the Brahmaputra, that originate from the Tibetan plateau.

China has repeatedly claimed around 83,000 sq kms of land in Arunachal Pradesh as their territory and has objected to visits by Indian prime ministers to the state.

The meeting organised by the Journalists’ Forum Assam began with a minute’s silence to pay homage to the Tibetans who have set their bodies on fire in the ongoing wave of self-immolations in Tibet.

Accepting Tibet as “an occupied country,” speakers at the meeting urged state governments and the central government to support the Tibetan cause.

The meeting resolved to send a memorandum to Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh urging him to support the cause of Tibetan people.

In other resolutions, the meeting called on the central government to put pressure on the Chinese government to immediately resume dialogue with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. The resolution further called for the release of all Tibetan political prisoners.