New York, May 4 – More than 2,000 Tibetans and supporters gathered at the Chinese Consulate in New York to protest the brutal crackdown in Tibet. The crowd included Tibetans and supporters not only from New York, but also the Tibetan communities of New Jersey and Philadelphia. The protests in New York have been held continuously for the last fifty days.
Colorful banners, the Tibetan National Flag and the sound of the slogans attracted a lot of New Yorkers and tourists. Although a cloudy morning, it eventually gave way to a pleasant sunny day. Several speakers gave encouraging speeches to the crowd about the importance of the momentum. It was clear that individuals and groups took upon themselves to make contributions in their own ways. While some brought water, others had food. While some distributed flyers, others displayed banners they had created.
As the slogans reverberated through the streets and several blocks away, members from the Students for a Free Tibet distributed flyers in the heart of the Chinese rally in City Hall. The flyers contained messages from His Holiness the Dalai Lama to the Chinese brothers and sisters in which He appeals to them to help dispel the misunderstandings between Tibetans and Chinese created by the Communist regime and to also help find a peaceful lasting solution to the problem of Tibet through dialogue. Other flyers were of Chinese intellectuals who sent a memo to the Chinese government highlighting the importance of speaking the truth and avoiding the one-sided propaganda adopted by them. The memo also demanded the Chinese government provide evidence for their accusations of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
In between the call for human rights and freedom, several short inspirational speeches were
made by young Tibetans. One such speech was by a Tibetan girl, Tsechu who said those in exile were the voice of the voiceless and that we represented the 6 million Tibetans in Tibet whose voices have been silenced by the Communist regime.
Namgyal Yeshi mentioned that Tibetans in Tibet are being tortured every single day, keeping that in mind we should try to contribute in whatever way we can. It was encouraging to see many young Tibetans express honest views from their heart.
Ama Tse Dolker advised the Tibetan crowd to continue its struggle and encouraged the young Tibetans to come out to the rallies in large numbers. She further added, “I have difficulty walking however I come to the rally all the time. I shaved my head for all the Tibetans who were killed in Tibet.”
The highlight of the rally was the ‘banner in the sky’ made possible by a few young Tibetans from their contributions. The banner read ‘Free Tibet Support Non-Violence’.
Since the morning weather was not favorable they had the pilot on standby confident of their effort and hope of flying their message in the New York skies for all to see. Amid loud cheers the plane with the banner flew over Hudson River towards downtown (Chinatown) and east river symbolizing the peaceful nature of the Tibetan struggle and its never dying spirit.
