August 2021

འབྲེལ་གཏུགས་གསར་འཕྲིན།

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A Digest of Tibetan Issues and News from Inside and Outside Tibet RGD No. HPENG/2013/51798 | Volume: XXIII Issue:02| August 31, 2021

Tibetans Required to Submit Details of their Relatives Living in Exile

by Tenzin Samten Tibetans in Dingri County in the Tibet Autonomous Region’s (TAR) Shigatse prefecture have been ordered by the Chinese authorities to report names and other personal information relating to any family they have living outside Tibet. Tibetans were threatened with loss of state benefits such as land and housing for noncompliance, reports Radio Free Asia.

Tibetans who provided details of their families living in exile were interrogated and their mobile phones confiscated by the authorities – due to the suspicion that they would keep in contact with those outside Tibet. “Despite having given the authorities all the Continued on page 3

Prisoner’s Testimony

by Mary Trewartha Dorjee Tashi, the imprisoned Tibetan businessman and philanthropist who’s health is in a critical condition following years of torture while in prison, has documented the treatment he received during his pre-trial detention. The New York based Tibet advocacy group the International Campaign for Tibet has published his testimony, which details beatings with electric batons, being cuffed to an iron bar and hung in the air, simulation of suffocation, pouring hot chilli fluid through his nostrils and sleep deprivation. The Continued on page 3

Monastery Shutdown: Forced Eviction of Monks and Nuns

By Tenzin Samten Video footage has emerged from Linxia in Gansu province in north central China showing the Chinese authorities shutting down Kharmar [Ch: Hongcheng] Monastery, a Tibetan monastery known as the Red City Temple, or Royal Order of Pagoda Temple, and forcibly evicting the monks and nuns living there from their residences. Chinese diaspora media outlet mingdemedia.org reports that monks and nuns staged a sit-in protest against the eviction, many were crying, with some monks threatening to jump from a roof, some holding banners that read “Forcible defrocking of monks is illegal and unacceptable!”

Continued on page 5

Sikyong Penpa Tsering Visits Ladakh

by Tenzin Samten Sikyong Penpa Tsering, the newly elected President of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), also known as the Tibetan Government-in-Exile,has embarked on his first official travel as Sikyong outside Dharamshala by visiting the Tibetan communities in Ladakh in the far north of India. Sikyong arrived in Sonamling Tibetan Settlement on August 20 to a warm welcome from representatives of local associations and the public.

On his arrival, Sikyong visited the Tibetan Chief Representative’s office, the Office of the Continued on page 4 www.contactmagazine.net

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For more information about Lha, please visit: www.lhasocialwork.org Lha Charitable Trust, Institute for Social Work & Education Lha Charitable Trust Lha contacts: office@lhasocialwork.org (0) 98823-23455 / 1892-220992 Please also see Lha’s additional websites: www.tibetnature.net www.samdhongrinpoche.com www.contactmagazine.net Contact Newsletter is published monthly by Lha Charitable Trust. It has been a popular source of news and information on Tibetan issues, and the Dharamshala community, for 22 years and is acknowledged in Lonely Planet and other international travel resources. It is available free of charge and distributed around Dharamshala, Delhi and various diplomatic missions in India. Copies are sent to Tibetan schools, settlements, offices and NGOs in India and abroad. Contact is updated daily on our website www.contactmagazine.net and Facebook page. Contact is registered under the Registrar Office of the Newspaper, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India; registration number HPENG/2013/51798.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Sacred Place All religions teach the virtues of love, altruism and patience, although they may be at variance in philosophical and ideological terms. We should therefore respect all religions. Every religious faith has mde significant contributions to humanity for centuries in the past. In the future also, religious traditions will help us to promote peace in our own respective communities or at least to bring harmony and understanding between neighbours.

Philosophical differences are not imporant in that philosophy per se is neither the ultimate purpose, nor the goal of any religion.

Similarly, philosophy cannot help us in serving others. If we criticse each other’s ideology, we will find ourselves embroiled in unending arguements, which will only cause unhappiness and disharmony.

Whatever the differences between the philosophies and ideologies of different religions, the important thing is for all believers to practise the teaching of their respective religious traditions in their day-to-day life. For instance, if someone believes in the Creator, he must try to follow the law of the Creator. Otherwise, he cannot be referred to as a true follower.

Essentially, all religions teach us to develop our minds so that we can achieve tranquility and a kind heart. In other words, we should work towards spiritual development alongside material progress. We cannot achieve lasting happiness without a peaceful and transquil mind. If we harbour unhealthy motivation or evil designs, people will ultimately see through us, no matter what appearance we adopt.

As in the past, today we see conflicts and wars in the name of religion. People fight in the name of religion only because they are too parochial and unable to understand or practise the true message of their respective religious traditions. I say this because religion should never be the cause of war. Fights in the name of religion occur when people fail to grasp the true meaning of their respective religions.

- His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama From Gems from the Heart by HH the Dalai Lama Published by Tibetan Women’s Association

Contact Magazine Managing Director : Dorji Kyi Editor-in-Chief : Jenny James Editor : Tenzin Samten Circulation Manager : Tsering Wangdue Designed by : Karma Ringzin Topgyal Published by Lha Charitable Trust

Contact newsletter is sponsored by the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy (TFD). TFD’s kind contribution has made this publication possible. We thank TFD for their continous support.

Contact magazine | August 2021 | Page No 2

Email:editor@contactmagazine.net Facebook: ContactNews Instagram : tibetan_news_brief Printed at Imperial Printing, Dharamshala Phone:01892 -222390 Email: ippdsala@gmail.com

News Features Tibetans Required to Submit Details of their Relatives Living in Exile with their local authorities, along with details of their information they asked for, they were denied the benefits relatives’ names, photo, occupation and how long they they were promised anyway,” said RFA’s source speaking have been living in exile.

Tibet remains a restricted location for international on the condition of anonymity.

The Chinese authorities’ campaign to trace Tibetans reporters as China continues to deny free access. The only source of information about living in exile was reportedly what is happening in Tibet has been started in April this year. communication between people Restrictions on communication living there, and their contacts in that are in place in Tibet has exile. In recent years, authorities delayed the news reaching the have imposed “online surveillance” exile community until now. This to restrict communication in an effort programme has been launched to block information flow. Palden in other parts of Tibet as well, Gyal, a researcher at Tibet Watch, including Nagchu prefecture in the UK-based Tibet advocacy group, the TAR and Lithang County in says that this current campaign to Sichuan’s Kardze [Ch: Ganzi] Wechat has been used as the main medium of collect details of peoples’ contacts Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. communication between Tibetans inside Tibet and living outside Tibet is to “stop the Those Tibetans who have those in exile flow of news about protests and other admitted to having relatives or families in exile are required to register their own names politically sensitive information from within the region”.

Continued from page 1

Prisoner’s Testimony Continued from page 1

testimony identifies individuals directly responsible for carrying out acts of torture and corresponds to other reports on the use of torture in Tibet and to findings of independent international human rights experts.

The ICT has called on the international community, governments and United Nations human rights experts to urgently raise Dorjee Tashi’s case with the government of China, saying his life is in imminent danger while he is serving a sentence that has been handed down in an unfair trial, with credible reports of torture and ill-treatment. “Dorjee Tashi is a victim of the Dorjee Tashi Photo: ICT lawlessness in Tibet where merely standing out is enough to get a Tibetan persecuted. That is unacceptable.”

Dorjee has steadfastly denied any political involvement throughout the years of his detention. He was born in 1973, and was once recognised as one of the “ten outstanding youths in Tibet” by the Chinese government; he became a member of the Communist Party of China

in 2003. His philanthropy work had been widely praised by the government of the Tibet Autonomous Region as an outstanding contribution to poverty alleviation and economic development in Tibet.

His company, Tibet Manasarovar Group, owned a chain of luxury hotels in Tibet, including the famous Yak Hotel in Lhasa, and he was involved in other businesses. He has received multiple awards, including from the Chinese Communist Party and the government of the TAR, for his business and philanthropy. His Barkhor Street, the main commercial centre in Lhasa social welfare undertakings included helping and providing cash donations to the widowed, the elderly and the children of poor workers, and mobilising funds and volunteers during earthquakes and floods in Shigatse.

He was arrested following the 2008 protests for allegedly providing covert support to Tibetan protesters and for alleged connections with the exile Tibetan community. The political allegations were dropped but he was indicted for “loan fraud” and sentenced to life in prison with deprivation of political rights.

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News Features Sikyong Penpa Tsering Visits Ladakh two and a half months ago he has focused on two main tasks Federation Tibetan Co-operatives in India (FTCI), the local – the resumption of the Sino–Tibetan dialogue and looking Tibetan Assembly, Tibetan Children’s Village (TCV) School, after the welfare of the Tibetan public, particularly the poor local Men-tsee-khang clinic, local Tibetan healthcare centre, and elderly.

During his visit, along with representatives of Tibetan local Tibetan Justice Commission and TCV Ladakh’s home organisations in Ladakh, Sikyong met various local for the elderly.

The following day, Sikyong visited the Duchik nomadic dignitaries, including Thupten Tsewang, former member of settlement and met the eight nomadic families whose the Indian parliament and President of the Ladakh Buddhist Association, and Jamyang Tsering livestock were affected by the recent Namgyal, the honourable member outbreak of foot and mouth disease of Indian Parliament from Ladakh. that has seen more than 1,200 goats Meeting the Chairman and officials and sheep destroyed over the last of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill month, reports tibet.net, the official Development Council, Sikyong website of the CTA. Sikyong told extended his gratitude for their them that the Tibetan community constant support for the welfare in exile has raised funds through of Tibetans living in Ladakh and crowdfunding to compensate for their losses, and that the local Sikyong meeting the eight families living at Duchik the Chairman assured Sikyong of nomadic settlement his continued support for Tibetans administration has offered to provide Photo: tibet.net living in his region. veterinary help. While expressing Sikyong then travelled on to the Jhanthang (remote) his gratitude to the donors, Sikyong advised the nomads to prepare in advance in case of further disasters in the future. regions of Ladakh to meet nomadic communities living there.

Penpa Tsering was sworn-in as the new Sikyong Sikyong visited the Shey and Thiksey monasteries and (President) of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile on May 27. received blessings from Thiksey Rinpoche.

Tibet.net reports that while speaking to the public and to However, Parliament has been unable to elect a Speaker and the various representatives he met in Ladakh, he outlined Deputy Speaker because of the unresolved issues around the his three main goals as Sikyong: the resumption of the impeachment earlier this year of the Justices of the Peace Sino–Tibetan dialogue to resolve the Tibet issue, based on who conduct the swearing-in ceremonies for the Speakers. the Middle Way Approach envisioned by His Holiness the This in turn has prevented the new Sikyong from establishing Dalai Lama; looking after the welfare of Tibetans in exile his Kashag (cabinet). This ongoing parliamentary crisis has by strengthening the bond between the Tibetan public and created much confusion and concern in the Tibetan exile the Central Tibetan Administration and, thirdly, reinforcing community and has come to the attention of international the Tibet cause on the global stage by meeting world leaders supporters of the Tibetan cause. On August 2, Lisa Peterson, United States Acting Assistant Secretary of State, wrote to and diplomats.

Sikyong encouraged Tibetan community leaders to the Tibetan Parliament in Exile (TPiE), saying that failure by maintain productive relations with the local administration the TPiE to resolve the current parliamentary dispute risks and dignitaries. He emphasised the importance of “undermining the confidence placed by the Tibetan diaspora understanding the local situation before planning future and the international community in the CTA and TPiE” and projects, of keeping in mind the requirements of the urging the TPiE to “move past their differences and turn to population of the area and the potential benefits of the the pressing matters that need their attention”. projects to the public.

Stop Press Sikyong visited all 12 camps in the Sonamling settlement and Makhyu and Chushul nomadic settlements.

On his return to Dharamshala, Sikyong unveiled a memorial While visiting the settlement, he paid a visit to the family statue of Nyima Tenzing near Tsuglagkhang, the main of Nyima Tenzin, a Tibetan soldier and member of the temple in McLeod Gang. During the ceremony, Sikyong Indian Army’s Special Frontier Force, who died during the spoke of the soldier’s sacrifice saying, “Nyima Tenzing was Sino–Indian clash on the Ladakh–Tibet border last year. He not the first to sacrifice his life for India’s security. Tibetan assured the camp leaders that he will share their grievances soldiers have made contributions and sacrifices for the with the Ladakh Hill Council and with the Member of Indian Army during India’s 1971 war with Pakistan as well Parliament for Ladakh, and reassured them of the CTA’s as Kargil war. The martyr statue of the late Nyima Tenzing continuous support and assistance. is build for commemorating all Tibetan soldiers who [have Penpa Tsering said that since assuming the role of Sikyong been] martyred for India’s security.”

Continued from page 1

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News Features Monastery Shutdown: Forced eviction of Monks and Nuns Continued from page 1

The motive behind the forced shutdown of the monastery is unclear although, according to the report

by Mingde, the incident is linked to a donation of 300,000 yuan [$46,500/ £33,500] the monastery made as a gesture of compassion towards combatting the COVID-19 pandemic in China. The authorities have apparently used that as a pretext to demand the monastery share its wealth equally with the government.

Four videos published

by Mingde show a group of nuns staging a sit-in protest, chanting prayers and holding a banner in the Chinese language that reads, “Forcing the monastics to return to the secular life will not be tolerated by the national laws.” A second clip shows a group of nuns crying inconsolably; the third shows plain-clothed officials forcibly evicting the nuns, with female officials in civilian clothes also arriving to take part in the nuns’ eviction. The fourth video shows a monk threatening to jump off the roof while shouting “go away” to the officials on the monastery premises.

“The shocking videos of the suffering of monks and nuns as they are evicted from Kharmar Monastery are a reminder of the human toll of China’s war on religion.

China’s persecution of Tibetan Buddhists is a tragedy that not only threatens the survival of Tibetan culture but also undermines the very idea of religious freedom around the globe. With China continuing to erode international norms and values, the world must speak for the rights of Tibetan monastics,” said International Campaign for Tibet, the United States based advocacy group working to promote democratic freedoms for Tibetans.

Speaking to Radio Free Asia, a Gansu based historian named Gao said that the move was in line with the Communist Party of China’s campaign of Christian church demolition and the removal of religious crosses.

“Now they are targeting Tibetan Buddhism, forcibly defrocking monks and nuns. There is a fundamental lack of respect,” Gao continued.

Kharmar (literal meaning “red fort”) monastery belongs to the Sakya sect of Tibetan Buddhism and is a historic monastery. The monastery was completely destroyed during the Cultural Revolution and then rebuilt in 2011 using donations gathered by Gentsong Rinpoch, a religious leader.

China Builds Tibetan Military School Near Indian Border

by Tsering Wangdue New military camps for Tibetan youth have been set up in the south eastern Tibetan town of Nyingtri in Kongpo Gyuamda Country and just across the border from India’s north eastern Arunachal Pradesh state, which China claims as its own territory, and where there are ongoing border skirmishes between China and India. The camps were established earlier this year and targeted at training young Tibetan students aged from eight to 16 years old.

These camps provide a “crash course” in military discipline during the school holidays, including military drills and physical training.

Chinese state media has reported, “The purpose of these camps is to increase the spirit of patriotism and defending the nation, the physical and mental strength and the spirit of unity among the children.”

The first of these camps is known as the Young Tibetan Snow Hawk Military Summer Camp; a training camp for one hundred students, mainly from schools in Lhasa, took place in July. Another centre, known as the Tibet Rong He Military Training Centre, has been established with the sole aim of providing education that will nurture disciplined and obedient

children with strong physical and mental strength, reports Chinese state media.

Tibet support groups and human rights groups outside Tibet have criticised these camps, saying they are a tool to brainwash young Tibetans and further intensify the systematic sinicisation of Tibetan cultural and identity. “The Chinese military is attempting to indoctrinate Tibetan children into an army that defends their own occupation,” said John Jones, Campaigns and Advocacy Manager at Free Tibet, a Tibet support NGO based in UK. China’s systematic destruction and dismantling of Tibetan culture, language and identity has always been presented

by China as building a peaceful, happy and economically developed society.

Radio Free Asia reports that young Tibetans aged 18-21 are being offered an incentive to attend military training: those who enrol on a two-year military training course can receive a reimbursement of their school fees. Anyone who is already attending high school or college can continue and complete those studies after finishing the military training.

Students who receive state aid for their college courses are required to enrol on the military training courses.

Contact magazine | August 2021| Page No 5

News Features Arrests and Releases Inside Tibet Aug 6: Senior Monk Arrested Konmay, a 45-year-old disciplinarian monk from the Trotsik Monastery in Ngaba County in Kham [Ch: Sichuan Province], was arrested on July 20, according to sources at Kirti Monastery in Dharamshala, reports Radio Free Asia. Details of his arrest are currently unknown. Konamy is a senior monk in his monastery who supervises the daily activities of the monastery and the discipline of the monks. RFA’s source said, “he had performed prayers in [a] WeChat group, but he only talked about the number of prayers he had accumulated.” He is known as someone who is aware of politics, but does not talk about politically sensitive issues on social media.

News sources report that it is believed that his detention has to do with his prayer recitations in the Wechat group. Severe restriction on communications in Tibet stop the flow of information from within Tibet to the outside world. “There are tight restrictions in place in Ngaba at the moment, so I would advise Tibetans in exile not to try to communicate with Tibetans living inside Tibet,” said RFA’s source.

Aug 6: Lobsang Tenzin Released Lobsang Tenzin, a monk from Kirti Monastery in Ngaba, has been released from prison. He had served more than ten of his 13-year sentence, which he was given for his involvement in the selfimmolation of Lobsang Puntsok, who died in March 2011. Lobsang Tenzin was sentenced to 13 years in prison by Barkham Intermediate People’s Court on August 28, 2011. The court also sentenced him to three years of deprivation of political rights; this cancels his right to “free expression, association, assembly, publication, vote and to stand in elections”. The court also ordered that he be subject to surveillance. It is not known whether these conditions still apply to him following his release. Lobsang Tenzin hails from Shigligabma Village in Cha Township in Ngaba [Ch: Aba] County; he joined his monastery at a young age. Another monk with the same name who was convicted and sentenced with Lobsang Tenzin was released in 2018.

Aug 11: Three Arrested Rinchen Dorjee and Lhundup from Domda Township in Amdo [Ch: Qinghai] and Kalsang Nyima from Za Sershul County in Kham [Ch: Sichuan] have been arrested for sharing photos, via a WeChat group, of the official event organised by the government of Yushul in eastern Tibet to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Yushul Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. The Chinese authorities consider the sharing of photos to be an information flow between Tibetans inside Tibet and those in exile, which is regarded as a crime in Tibet. This despite the fact that Chinese official media platforms shared the same events online for propaganda purposes. A witness from the event said that three Tibetans were arrested at a checkpoint after an inspection of their mobile phones. The Chinese authorities suspect that the WeChat group, named Unity Group, on which the photos were shared, has many members living outside Tibet.

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News Features Arrests and Releases Inside Tibet Aug 11: Teacher Arrested Rinchen Kyi, a teacher at the Singdruk Taktse private school which was abruptly closed by Chinese authorities last month, has been arrested, apparently on charges of “separatism”. Tibet Watch, the UK-based Tibet advocacy group, reports that the school was closed because it taught in Tibetan, and taught traditional Tibetan culture.

Rinchen Kyi, who lives with her husband, 13-year-old daughter, and 79-year-old mother, is believed to have been so upset by the closure of the school that she had not been eating properly for several weeks and was refusing medical help. The school is also considered to be a home by many students in the area who were orphaned during the military occupation of the People’s Liberation Army, said Tibet Watch’s report. Before her family could seek help for her poor health, she was arrested on charges of separatism and taken to an unspecified hospital hundreds of kilometres from her home. “Transporting political prisoners to hospitals hundreds of miles away and charging families for their treatment is a common tactic by Chinese authorities,” said Tibet Watch.

Aug 12: 110 Arrested One hundred and ten Tibetans attending a popular horse racing festival were detained in Janglam Village in Nyanrong County in the Tibet Autonomous Region, accused of sharing online images and videos of the event which show official Chinese presence near the festival site. They have been interrogated, and 80 were later released on payment of a fine of 5,000 yuan ($770 /£560), reports Tibet Watch. Horse racing festivals are a popular part of Tibetan culture and tradition. The Chinese authorities had issued prior notice forbidding the public from taking photos, videos and sharing them online and had warned of fines. During the festival, officials conducted random searches of people’s mobile phones.

Armed forces and police were heavily deployed to maintain strict surveillance throughout the festival.

Aug 19: Teenager Arrested Sherab Dorjee, 19, has been arrested in Trotsik Township in Ngaba, Amdo [Ch: Sichuan] on allegations of rebelling against the Chinese government. Tibet Watch reports that he had refused to join a propaganda event in his town and had submitted an appeal for his school to be allowed to teach in Tibetan – this amid a campaign by the authorities to establish education provision in Chinese rather than Tibetan. Dorjee refused to attend a propaganda event entitled Meeting on praising the Communist Party of China and education on the security agenda. He was initially arrested with a few other students who were all later released. Sources believe that his arrest is related to his petition. Restriction on the use of, and education in, the Tibetan language has increased in recent years. In July 2021, the General Office of the Ministry of Education issued a notice announcing that from September 2021 onwards, kindergartens in all ethnic and rural areas will be taught in Mandarin Chinese to promote a standardised national language and equity of “high-quality education”.

See also STOP PRESS on page 9

Contact magazine | August 2021 | Page No 7

News Features His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s Teachings this Month

by Tenzin Samten His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibetans and Buddhists across the world, is keeping in touch with his followers through virtual teachings from his residence in Dharamshala. This month, His Holiness gave three teachings on different topics, each requested by a different group of people.

During the first teaching, which took place on August 11, His Holiness held a virtual discussion with over one thousand Indonesian students on the theme of the Jataka Tales – the stories of the Buddha’s previous lives from the book of Jatakamala or Garland of Birth Stories. The Jatakamala stories teach perfections, generosity, ethics and patience, and the Bodhisattva. His Holiness explains that underlying all the stories are the ancient Indian concepts of karuna and ahimsa — compassion and doing no harm.

“These themes are common to most religions, but whether we follow a religious tradition or not, we all need to be warm-hearted and compassionate if we want to be happy,” said His Holiness.

A student asked how to deal with negativity; His Holiness advised holding to the moral principles of honesty and compassion. His Holiness shared the difficulties he has faced in his own life, in Tibet and later as a refugee, saying that he has kept up his practice according to the Nalanda Tradition that Shantarakshita introduced in Tibet. His Holiness emphasised that the key point of the Jataka Tales is to acknowledge the oneness of humanity; to recognise that we are all the same in being human. He said that from a practical point of view, we are all dependent on each other and we can serve one another on that basis.

His Holiness explained that one of the qualities of Buddhism is that it takes in the scientific view of our minds and emotions and is able to explain ways to achieve peace of mind, it also teaches methods to reduce negative emotions and increase those that are positive. His Holiness concluded the discussion with advice to his listeners to share the idea of loving kindness and encouraged them to develop the human qualities of compassion and forgiveness, saying this will create a more harmonious, compassionate society. The potential for compassion is something all human beings have in common, he said, it’s the basis for mutual respect and being able to learn from one another.

The second teaching, on August 18, was at the request of the members of Labsum Shedup Ling Dharma Centre in South Korea who attended the online teaching on Compassion and Non-violence.

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His Holiness started by explaining that Buddhism as it spread in Tibet was established by Shantarakshita on the basis of the Nalanda Tradition – the tradition that His Holiness himself has studied as a monk. He reflected on what he has understood and experienced during meditation, and stressed that his teaching would be based on that experience.

His Holiness reiterated his message that all the different religious traditions, ideas and philosophical approaches in the world emphasise the importance of cultivating love, compassion and non-violence.

Speaking about the liberation of fellow beings from suffering he said, “the Buddhas do not wash unwholesome deeds away with water,” and continued, saying that it is only through the teaching of truth that beings can be liberated from suffering.

His Holiness said that the Buddhas first generate the awakening mind of bodhichitta. Having accumulated the two collections (of merit and wisdom), they attain enlightenment and then share their experience with sentient beings.

It is on this basis that the Buddha stated, “You are your own master.”

Whether or not you choose to engage in the practice of Dharma is in your hands.

His Holiness also emphasised that the root of suffering is the unruly mind, and the practice of Dharma is to transform the mind. Citing his own experience he said, “over the decades that I have studied the Dharma and applied what I understood, I’ve seen a transformation in myself”.

His Holiness spoke of the four noble truths, of suffering and causes, and emptiness, and then explained verses from Chandrakirti’s Entering into the Middle Way and Nagarjuna’s Root Wisdom of the Middle Way. His Holiness answered a wide range of questions from his online audience. Answering a question on how to keep good family relations in the context of different religious traditions, he advised that we are all the same in being human and that what is most important is to cultivate a warm heart, maintain close contact and to help one another. To cope with children feeling angry with their parents, His Holiness advised consultation of Shantideva’s Entering into the Way of a Bodhisattva saying that chapter six gives explicit guidance about the disadvantages of anger and learning to deal with it, while chapter eight extols the advantages of cultivating an altruistic attitude.

On August 25, His Holiness gave his third teaching of the month, speaking on the topic of Tibetan Culture and Its Potential to Contribute to Peace, as requested by Tibet Initiative Deutschland (TID), a Tibet Support Group in Germany.

News Features Tibetan Poet Dies

by Mary Trewartha Tsepa, 29, a Tibetan poet known as Chenbang, whose writing was critical of Chinese policies in Tibet, has died, reports Radio Free Asia. Tsepa was arrested and interrogated by the Chinese police in Tibet and subsequently suffered from health problems and alcohol abuse. He died as a result of these health problems in Chigdril County Hospital in Golug in Kham [Ch: Sichuan].

RFA’s source said, “He had been detained and

questioned earlier by the Chinese government for writing about Tibetan issues.” Tsepa’s writing included books and poetry which he published online; he “had been arrested and interrogated many times,” RFA’s source continued. RFA reports that Tsepa’s poems are being widely shared and that he is being praised “for his contributions to Tibet’s culture and the Tibetan language”.

Tsepa was born in Chigdril and graduated from the Northwest University for Nationalities in Gansu province.

Stop Press : More Arrests in Tibet Aug 27: 60 Arrested Around 60 Tibetans have been arrested in Dza Wonpo township, Kardze in Kham [Ch: Sichuan] after being found with photos of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, reports Radio Free Asia.

Those arrested include 19 monks; 40 other lay people who were arrested with them were subject to house searches. They are currently being held at the Sershul county police station.

Police followed up with a meeting, threatening penalties for anyone not attending, and warned people against keeping or sharing pictures of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. A second raid followed. At the meeting, people were reminded of the penalties imposed for circulating or keeping banned images, which include the cutting of state aid. Authorities inspected the local home for the elderly under the pretext of cleaning the facility; they confiscated a number of banned photos from the residents who were then given pictures of China’s president Xi Jinping and other Chinese leaders to put up in their place, reported RFA’s source. Dza Wonpo has been under tight surveillance since the widespread protests against the Chinese regime in 2008, and in 2012 Dza Wonpo local monastery refused to host the Chinese national flag on the monastery’s roof in the face of Chinese edicts to do so.

Aug 30: Two Teenagers Arrested Gyuldrak and Yangrik, both 19, have been detained for opposing the Chinese policy of Chinese language only education in Tibetan schools, reports Radio Free Asia. They are understood to have spoken out against the policy on WeChat, the popular social media platform. RFA reports that they are residents of Darlag county, Golog in Kham [Ch: Qinghai] and that they are now being held at the Darlag county police station. There is widespread opposition to the policy in Tibetan populated areas and parents have concerns about their children’s connection to their native language and culture. Tibetan parents are required to pick up the new Chinese language text books in place of the older Tibetan texts when they go for COVID-19 testing.

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Tibetan Headlines Aug 2: State Department Support Sikyong Penpa Tsering has met the heads of the United States Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labour in an online meeting, along with representatives of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile’s Department of Information and International Relations. Sikyong thanked the US government for its support and laid out his vision for a resolution to the Sino –Tibet conflict and for meeting the challenges faced by the Tibetan diaspora.

Aug 2: Indian Support A group of Indian Tibet support groups have agreed to observe October 20 each year as a protest day to show China that India will defend its territory at any cost, and tell the Indian government that Sino-India relations will only progress when the issue of Tibet is resolved. The main event will be held in Arunachal Pradesh, the north eastern Indian state claimed by China as its own territory.

Aug 3: Released?

The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy has called on China to clarify whether they have released Bangri Tsamtrul Rinpoche, a reincarnated lama and founder of the Gyatso orphanage home, who was due for release last week. He had served 18 years of his life imprisonment sentence in Chushur [Ch: Qushui] County Prison near Lhasa following a closed-door trial. There is concern for his health, which is believed to be poor.

Aug 5: Parliament Impasse The Tibetan Youth Congress, Tibetan Women’s Association, Students for a Free Tibet and the National Democratic Party of Tibet have appealed to members of 17th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile for an immediate resolution to the ongoing deadlock. The oath taking anomalies have created the impasse and Parliament has been unable to elect a Speaker and Deputy Speaker, which in turn has prevented the new Sikyong from electing his ministers. The NGOs also called for the formation of an independent committee to amend the ambiguities in the charter.

Aug 9: Shoton Festival Cancelled The annual Shoton or “Yoghurt Festival” has been cancelled in Lhasa, with the authorities citing risk of the spread of COVID-19 and to “ensure security and protect the activities connected to the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the peaceful liberation of Tibet as well as the

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wellbeing of all people in the city”. The festival includes a monastic ceremony with a thangka display and Tibetan opera performances.

Aug 9: Renovation Gepheling Phodang at Shiwa Tsel [Ladakhi: Jive Tsal], His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s official residence in Leh, the capital of Ladakh, is to be renovated. The Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council has conducted a review and wishes to provide the best possible facilities for His Holiness when he stays at Phodang, bearing in mind his health and age, including the provision of a lift.

Aug 10: Prisoners’ Justice Day

The Tibetan Womens’ Association has marked International Prisoners’ Justice Day with a photo exhibition. TWA President Tenzin Dolma said they want to, “express solidarity with the millions of people imprisoned unjustly by the Chinese Communist Party and to highlight their plight” and continued, “Under the Chinese rule, Tibet has been turned into a big prison, and every Tibetan a prisoner [who is] deprived of basic human rights and suffering injustices.”

Aug 11: Airport Opens The new Terminal 3 at Lhasa’s Gonggar Airport - the region’s largest airport - has opened, boosting the region’s rapid infrastructure development. The airport will now have the ability to handle nine million people and 80,000 metric tonnes of cargo annually: over 75 percent of Tibet’s passenger traffic. The state media Global Times said it will “help transform the region into an international logistics hub for South Asia”.

Aug 12: TIPA Celebrates!

The Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (TIPA) has celebrated its 62nd anniversary with the annual summer festival and Yarkyi cultural competition.

Sikyong Penpa Tsering, speaking at the event, lauded the artistes for their hard work and the quality of their performance, before highlighting the “rich cultural bond” between Tibet and its neighboring Himalayan regions, particularly that of Tibetan Buddhism and medicine.

Tibetan Headlines Aug 13: Meeting in Delhi Atul Keshap, the recently appointed United States Charge d’Affairs in India, met Ngodup Dongchung, the Representative of the Bureau of His Holiness the Dalai Lama based in New Delhi. Mr Keshap tweeted, “Enjoyed meeting with Ngodup Dongchung [...] The US supports the religious freedom and the preservation of Tibetans’ unique cultural and linguistic identities, and respects the Dalai Lama’s vision for the equal rights of all people”.

Aug 15: Independence Day India’s 75th Independence Day was celebrated in Dharamshala with a flag raising ceremony held by the Central Tibetan Administration. The Indian national anthem was sung and Sikyong Penpa Tsering, acknowledging India’s support of the Tibetan exile community, urged Tibetans inside and outside Tibet to “dedicate themselves wholeheartedly” to the restoration of independence in the future.

Aug 16: Karmapa to Return?

The Tibetan Journal reports that the Chief Minister of Sikkim is to invite Ugyen Trinley Dorje, the 17th Karmapa, to return to India to live at Rumtek Monastery in Sikkim where he is the ceremonial leader; he has been living abroad since 2017 with issues preventing his return. The report says that India now recognises the Karmapa’s importance, particularly with regard to the succession of HH the Dalai Lama.

Aug 18: Sino –Tibetan Strategy The Task Force on Sino –Tibetan negotiation, the Tibetan Government-in-Exile’s vehicle for negotiations with China, has been disbanded and replaced with a strategic planning committee. The Kashag (Cabinet) says that the change is necessitated by the fact that most members of the task force were based abroad or committed to other responsibilities. Nine rounds of talks have been held since the task force was set up in 1999.

Aug 18: Walking the Himalayas Tibetan writer and activist Tenzin Tsundue is embarking on a three month journey in the Himalayas along the north Indian border with Tibet from Ladakh to Arunachal Pradesh, using local transport and

walking. He says that “Chinese aggression on the borders has left people in the Himalayas shocked and worried [...]

Tibet’s independence is in the long term interest of India, how long can India suffer China?”

Aug 23: More “Celebrations”

China has held a further celebration of 70 years since their occupation of Tibet with an event in Lhasa, saying that their occupation was a “peaceful liberation” and that following the Communist Party of China’s leadership and pursuing the path of socialism is the only way that Tibet can achieve development and prosperity. The Tibetan Youth Congress has said that “Tibetans continue to suffer” under China’s “authoritarian and oppressive rule”.

Aug 24: Threatened with Shutdown The Gyalten Getza school in Tehor Rongbacha Township in Kham [Ch: Sichuan] has been ordered to teach through the medium of Chinese or face closure. The school, established in 1994, was founded by the revered Gyalten Lobsang Jampa Rinpoche and has received awards for its outstanding contributions and provision of free education for over 1,000 students.

Aug 24: Protest Against China Tibetans in New York have staged a protest against China’s 70-year occupation of Tibet to coincide with China’s celebrations of the anniversary. The event was organised by the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress, Students for a Free Tibet and Chushi Gangdug, a charity set which supports survivors of the Chushi Gangdruk Tibetan resistance against the Chinese occupation of Tibet.

Aug 26: Funding for Road Scheme A 300 lac rupees [$4,000 / £3,000] road development scheme has been approved by the Karnataka government for the Doeguling Tibetan settlement in Mundgod, Karnataka, in south India. Karnataka is home to the largest Tibetan community in exile.

Aug 28: Cycling for Tibet 80 Tibetans and Tibet supporters in Switzerland held a one day cycle protest against the Winter Olympics to be held next year in China. The protest was organised by the Tibetan Community of Switzerland and Liechtenstein who are calling on the International Olympic Committee, and the international community, to heed the voices of people who are living under the suppression of the Chinese communist regime.

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News Features Roadside Attack on Tibetans

by Mary Trewartha Despite a search by onlookers and local people, Rigdrak Two Tibetans who were travelling in a private car have was not found and it is believed that he must have been attacked without provocation at a police roadside drowned. checkpoint in central Tibet, reports UK based Tibet The car belonging to the police did not carry advocacy group Tibet Watch. One person is missing, registration number plates. The police did not produce believed dead, the second is in hospital after being shot. any official police ID or warrant papers.

Ringdrak and Sherab Rigdrak, who was in his 50s, Gyaltso were travelling hails from Shikog Village in in Sherab Gyaltso’s car Zhendu County. He is survived from Kyegudo to Domda by two daughters and his wife.

Township in Kyegudo in the Sherab Gyaltso, 26, from Yushul Tibetan Autonomous Dharmer Village in Domda Prefecture, accompanied by Township has five family a third friend, Gurkyab. members. His father’s name is All travellers were being Karma and his mother’s name stopped at the checkpoint and is Lhatsi. their vehicles investigated.

Tibet Watch reports that When the police, who were over the past two to three not in uniform, checked months, the authorities in Sherab Gyaltso’s car, Rigdrak Kham [Ch: Qinghai] Province asked the officers to produce have established numerous their police identity card and checkpoints, installed CCTV Bystanders gather at the scene details of their police office. cameras and deployed large Photo: Tibet Watch The police responded by numbers of security personnel, pushing him off the road; he fell down into the Yangtze including armed forces, in Tibetan areas. Citing River below. Sherab Gyaltso confronted the police, who preventive measures for a second wave of COVID-19, shot him. Onlookers took photographs of the incident. and maintaining public safety and stability, local Tibetans Bystanders intervened and took the injured Sherab and Tibetan travellers are randomly searched and their Gyaltso to a local hospital for emergency treatment. cars, mobile phones and belongings checked.

COVID-19 Update

by Tenzin Samten The Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) COVID-19 task force has reported a decline in the number of cases among Tibetan refugees living in India and Nepal. Their weekly briefing on August 27 stated there were 55 new infections and two deaths during the previous week.

Tenzin Dolkar from the CTA’s Health Department reported that a total of 1,315 Tibetans from three different Tibetan settlements in Nepal and 13 Tibetan settlements in India were contacted for the test and that the oldest among those tested was 94 and the youngest two years old.

There have been 6,171 COVID-19 positive cases to date. Of these, 5,932 have recovered while 148 people have succumbed; there are currently 91 active cases. The committee also announced that over 21,430 Tibetans in India are fully vaccinated and more than 28,370 have received the first dose. As for Tibetans in Nepal, 3,078 are fully vaccinated and 637 have received the first dose.

CTA’s COVID-19 emergency task force team is visiting

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Tibetan settlements in north east India to monitor the preparation for a potential third wave of the pandemic. The team is led by Palden Dhondup, Secretary of the Department of Health who is accompanied by Dawa Phunkyi, Chief Administrator of the Tibetan Delek Hospital and Dr Tenzin Tsundue, a medical officer from Delek Hospital. The team met the task force and they addressed the general public, giving details of precautionary measures to be taken ahead of a possible third wave, reports tibet.net, the official website of the CTA. Another COVID-19 task force team visited Tibetan settlements, monasteries and schools in Himachal Pradesh to assess the precautionary measures needed there in case of a third wave. This visit took place following advice from Sikyong Penpa Tsering and COVID Emergency Task Force advisors Dr Tseten Dorjee and Dr Tsewang Tamdin (both official physicians to His Holiness the Dalai Lama) who suggested visiting settlements and make advance preparations for a possible third wave in India.

NGO Profile Tibet Charity Adapts in the Face of the Pandemic

by Ben Byrne under the programme every year and reports of rabid dogs Tibet Charity was founded in Denmark in 1997 by Lakha have reduced substantially in recent years. Tibet Charity Rinpoche, a lama and philosopher who is the spiritual leader of also runs a sterilisation campaign to help stabilise the stray approximately 100,000 Tibetans in Batang, East Tibet. Mr Tsering dog population in the area. This programme attracts some Thundup, a former headmaster in Tibetan boarding schools in controversy but Tsering believes it is necessary to maintain North India, fronts the NGO’s operations in Dharamshala. the ecological balance.

During the COVID-19 lockdown this year, Tibet Charity is Tsering comments on the situation where people take stray continuing its efforts to serve the community. Staff are on-site dogs under their wing during their time in McLeod. He says bagging up clothes to hand out to impoverished families in that he prefers people, especially those who are here just for a nearby slum areas. “We visited the slum near Kangra on July short period of time, to feed the dogs on the street without taking 6, His Holiness’ birthday, to distribute them away from their natural habitat. rations to the residents of a slum near “Keeping these dogs as pets at home tends Kangra,” Tsering says, “We saw that to become a problem for the dog as they there were many children there without become habituated to get food fed to them clothes. So we set up this clothing rather than fending for food themselves,” drive. We will distribute clothes to the Tsering explains. “When people who keep families based on need. Each family such dogs as pets leave the place, these will get one of these bags that you can dogs are either abandoned or we are called see here.” Tsering points to some large to take them under our care which is not sacks full of clothes. Donated clothes possible because of the limited space we are strewn across the classroom floor. have. These dogs forget how to survive “There was a good response from the Tsering Lhundup, Director, Tibet Charity, India when they are cared for temporarily. On public, many donations.” top of that, it is difficult for them when This is just one of Tibet Charity’s social development they return to the streets as they are seen as encroachers by other initiatives. They also provide sponsors for people with no dogs who already live in the area.” source of income, with a particular focus on the elderly and Tibet Charity sent three dog catchers for training in monastics. Distribution of winter clothes and food items is a Sikkim. After tutelage under some of the world’s greatest dog staple of Tibet Charity’s work in the community. catchers in the high Himalaya, these fully ordained canine Other work includes a blood donation programme inspired capturers have now returned to ensnare and then sterilise or

by Tsering’s own experience when his mother was taken ill vaccinate the local dog population in the McLeod, Bhagsu and required a transfusion. “It was difficult to source donors,” and Naddi area. Tibet Charity has also organised Animal he explains, “there was no network or infrastructure in Birth Control camps in places outside Dharamshala as well. place.” Hence, Tsering decided to start a club of donors in the They have worked in Poanta Sahib, Bir and Mandi ,and every local area. There were once 300 donors but this number has year they travel to Bodhgaya to take part in a sterilisation reduced in recent years as the Tibetan population has started programme there. All in all, Tsering believes that the dogs in to dwindle. “The elders are passing on,” Tsering says, “and McLeod Ganj are calmer than those elsewhere. many of our donors are moving to the West, but we still have English classes at Tibet Charity are currently on hold something going.” Nurses employed by Tibet Charity take during the pandemic but usually take place year-round. As care of the donors during and after they make their donation, a former school teacher, Tsering has taken great interest providing transportation and aftercare. in this area. Tibet Charity has its own textbooks produced These nurses also travel around the local community by English language instructors from Canada. One regular offering assistance to the elderly. There are currently four Tibetan bilingual teacher is employed and volunteers are nurses at Tibet Charity engaged in daily home visits to the hired from abroad to teach for periods of at least three months. neediest members of the population in Dharamshala. They Tibet Charity only hires qualified TEFL (Teaching English as bathe them and shop for food, a service which is particularly a Foreign Language) instructors as volunteers and the threecrucial during the ongoing pandemic. month requirement means that the students have a chance to A major focus of Tibet Charity’s work is their animal care build a rapport with their teacher. programme, launched in 2006. At that time there was a spate Outside his office, Tsering points out a pile of PPE of cases of street dogs biting people and local livestock. Some (personal protective equipment used for protection from of the dogs were rabid and one bit a member of the Tibet coronavirus) equipment. “When they opened the bus routes Charity staff. Tibet Charity decided to take on the situation again, we distributed masks to all the drivers. This lot is in a more humane way. Every year in September, after World going to go to the police officers on the front lines.” Until Rabies Day, Tibet Charity leads a mass vaccination campaign normal service resumes Tsering has found a way to keep to control rabies. Roughly one thousand dogs are vaccinated Tibet Charity active as a positive force in the community.

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People story Lama Lobsang - a Social Worker

by Ben Byrne Since 2019, Lama Lobsang has been a regular on the circumambulation route around His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s temple in McLeod Ganj. He hauls his big muscular frame along the route nine times a day, all the while greeting friends and saying his prayers.

When India closed its borders in March 2020, Lobsang was left stranded. He had been scheduled to return to Wales in the United Kingdom, where he has been living as a refugee since 2006. In Wales he is known locally as somebody who is always willing to help people in distress. In 2014 he featured in a Welsh newspaper after he took a German teenager, who he found sleeping rough, into his home. He said in an interview at the time that “as a monk, I support people who experience difficult circumstances.” As COVID-19 has ravaged India, he has brought this philosophy of helping others to the community in Dharamsala.

Lobsang frequently provides food to needy individuals and families and has helped many daily wage workers who famously became stranded far from home at the beginning of the lockdown in March 2020. He has paid rent for over 200 people that have found themselves jobless since the pandemic struck. He also distributes masks to people and donated 50,000 INR worth of PPE kits to frontline workers at the DTR hospital in Mundgod; 50,000 INR for meals, sanitisers and masks for Khangtsen monastery; 108,000 INR for medical resources at Sera Monastery in Bylakuppe settlement and 300 kg of tsampa to the children and staff at TCV Gopalpur along with 11,000 INR worth of meals for the children spending lockdown at the school. The Tibetan Settlement Office has acknowledged his “great contribution” to the local population during this difficult time, noting another donation he made to sponsor four months’ salary for two nurses employed in Dharamsala.

Throughout the pandemic, Lobsang has helped with performing the last rites for the bodies of many who have passed away. Families have been reluctant to get close to their deceased relatives for fear of contracting COVID-19, but Lobsang has made sure that these victims of the disease have had a proper send off. “My health is good so I can help, I have been feeling healthy for these past two years. Now I have taken both shots of the vaccine so I am free to assist the community.”

Lobsang keeps simple accommodation in Amdo

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Village, McLeod Ganj. It’s one room with an attached bathroom and kitchen. He serves black tea and delicious Tibetan breads. “Having negative thoughts about the past or the future serves no purpose…Helping others and being compassionate brings its own benefits. It creates positive thoughts.” Compassion in action is a fundamental part of Lobsang’s Buddhist practice, “it is not enough to simply discuss compassion as an abstract theory, practitioners must perform compassionate acts in their daily lives.” Lobsang extends his compassion to all human beings, regardless of their religion, colour, race or creed, “We are all human beings first; these other labels, like Buddhist or Tibetan, are of secondary importance. There is not a difference whether high name or low name. I help anybody I can.”

Some in the community are cynical about Lama Lobsang and feel he promotes his good deeds too much on social media. He says that he maintains a strong social media for three purposes: 1. It raises awareness of those who are suffering and people can pray for them or offer their assistance.

2. For transparency purposes: Lama Lobsang can show those who have donated to him that he is putting their money to good use.

3. Lama Lobsang hopes his social work will inspire young people to follow in his footsteps.

The group Hong Kong Dharma Friends contributes greatly to Lama Lobsang’s social work and he wishes to thank them for their assistance from the bottom of his heart. He also receives support from other people around the world. Over the years, Lobsang has hosted meditation retreats across Wales and in Italy. Beneficiaries of his teachings have rallied to donate to him during this difficult time. They are confident that he will put their money to effective use. “I have many friends because of my loving actions,” Lobsang says. As I interview him, he receives a donation from a follower in the UK. This follower received a monthly bonus from his boss and decided to give some of it to further Lama Lobsang’s charitable activities. Lama Lobsang replies with an audio message thanking the person for their kind contribution. Many Tibetans are also contributing financially and engaging directly in helping Lama Lobsang with his work.

Sitting alongside me is a young man named Tenzin who is deeply grateful to Lama Lobsang and his compassionate approach. Tenzin’s mother recently suffered a ruptured appendix and needed urgent hospital treatment. The hospital, however, refused to treat her until they received payments upfront. The family asked Lobsang for help and he provided the financial assistance necessary to save Tenzin’s mothers life. He also found appropriate blood donors for Tenzin’s mother. “Lama Lobsang has changed many lives,” Tenzin tells me, “His work sends a message to be kind to others.”

Tibet-Related Websites News:

tibet.net - official website of the Central Tibetan Administration in exile phayul.com -Phayul is published in Dharamshala, has opinion, reviews, photos, etc contactmagazine.net - Contact magazine online news rfa.org/english/news/tibet - Radio Free Asia’s mission is to provide accurate and timely news and information to Asian countries whose governments prohibit access to a free press thetibetpost.com - Tibet Post International online news tibetexpress.net - Tibet Express online news guardian.co.uk/world/tibet - the UK Guardian newspaper’s Tibet pages scmp.com/news/china - the South China Morning Post – one of the more independent news sources in China tibetanreview.net - Tibetan Review online news

News, information and campaigning:

dalailama.com - for broadcasts of His Holiness’s teachings, his schedule and information about Tibet and the Dalai Lama tchrd.org - Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy - a non-governmental organisation and a research centre to protect the human rights of Tibetan people and promote the principles of democracy tibetanyouthcongress.org - an international non-governmental organisation that advocates full independence for Tibet from China studentsforafreetibet.org - a global grassroots group campaigning for full Tibetan independence freetibet.org: - UK-based campaigning organisation, also a good news source tibetwatch.org - Tibet Watch works with Free Tibet to promote the human rights of the Tibetan people through monitoring, research and advocacy. savetibet.org - Website of the International Campaign for Tibet and a good resource for news, campaigns, fundraising and projects tibetnetwork.org/home - a coalition of more than 190 Tibet organisations dedicated to campaigning to end human rights violations in Tibet and restoring rights to the Tibetan people tibetanjournal.com - Tibetan Journal - news, reviews and opinions rukor.org - a discussion site on Tibetan nomads and their fate bitterwinter.org - A magazine on religious liberty and human rights in China

Writings:

highpeakspureearth.com/category/woeser - occasional translations of Woeser’s enormously popular blog – Woeser lives in Beijing and is continually harassed by the Chinese government for her courageous writings.

Contact is published by Lha Charitable Trust Institute for Social Work and Education We have moved! (see map on next page)

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DHARAMSHALA CONTACTS Delek Hospital Gangkyi, Central Tibetan Administration Hours: Outpatient services: 9am-1pm, Mon-Sat Specialist clinics: 2-4:30pm Emergencies: 24-hrs, daily Phone: 222 053,223 381

Mcleod Ganj Police Station: 01892 221 483 Kangra Airport: 01892 232374 Bhagsu Taxi Union: 01892 221034 Tourism Office: 01892 224430 223325 Rail Booking & Enquiry: 01892 265026 Police Superintendent: 01892 222244

McLeod Ganj Post Office Location: Jogiwara Rd Before the Peace Cafe Hours: 9:30am-1pm and 2-5pm Mon-Fri; 9:30am-noon, Sat Parcels and money orders can be sent in the mornings only Phone: 01892-221 924

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