By Tsering Tsomo Chatsug,
Phayul Reporter
Delhi, February 22 – A year after its formation, Students For a Free Tibet (SFT) Delhi chapter, as a part of their Tibet awareness campaign, organized the Tibet Awareness Concert yesterday at Delhi University’s Hindu College auditorium. The concert stage was designed free of cost by the students of the prestigious School of Planning and Architecture (SPA) Delhi.
A small ceremonial function, attended in droves by students from Delhi University, preceded the concert. Tibetan Parliamentary and Policy research Center displayed a colorful Tibet themed photo exhibition at the venue. The guest speakers at the function were Dr Senthil Ram who is associated with various branches of SFTs in the west and Mr Tenzin Tsundue (Activist and poet ). Mr Tsundue, in a moving tone, shared his ordeal in a Chinese prison when he visited Tibet illegally and secretly in March 1997. He explained why the cause of Tibet was the cause of India and pointed out the constant threat India faces after the forceful occupation of Tibet by the communist China in 1959. Describing his emotional status as a landless refugee, he said he was “living between dreamland Tibet and an exile heart”. Stating firmly that the Tibetan cause was as relevant today as it was when Tibetans first lost their freedom, Tsundue urged the younger generation of Tibetan refugees to pool in their knowledge, skills and resources and work towards the creation of a mass movement for a Free Tibet. He thundered, “We (the younger generation of Tibetans in exile) won’t take it down. We take up the cause of Tibet. We question you (China)”. In a short speech, Dr Senthil Ram said India had paid enough in terms of lives and resources in its unending border scuffles with China and warned that China’s growing military power and its ever-increasing tentacles within Asia was a serious threat to India’s security. He further stated that the lasting solution to India-China border crisis was the restoration of independence to Tibet.
A documentary film “Escape from Tibet” was shown later. The documentary was presented by Lobsang Yeshi , a Tibetan youngster who escaped from Tibet into India nine years ago. He shared his experiences of walking on foot for 22 days overcoming raging rivers and high snow mountains all for the taste of freedom and to seek HH the Dalai Lama’s blessing.
The concert followed immediately after where three Delhi-based Indian rock bands and an all-Tibetan band, ‘Dharamsala Blues” played freedom-themed songs that filled the air with patriotic flavor and mood. The Delhi-based bands who volunteered to play at the concert were the McPie, Basement Blues and Nakshatra. All the band members wore SFT’s Free Tibet T-shirts on stage to show their support and solidarity to the Tibetan cause.
The event was jointly supported and sponsored by the Tibetan parliamentary and Policy Research Centre (TPPRC) and India-Tibet Coordination Centre.
As it was, it was very inch a pure Tibet’s day at the Delhi University yesterday.
Tsering Tsomo can be contacted at ttchatsug@rediffmail.com
