67th Day of Peace March to Tibet, 15th May 2008:

The marchers left Petsahab at 8am, walking 24 kilometers. The marchers set up camp at the Inter-Government College in Dhaulchhini. In the evening, a giant rainstorm flooded all the tents. Luckily, the college and a community hall allowed the marchers to stay there and they were able to good night’s sleep under a solid roof.

68th Day of Peace March to Tibet, 16th May 2008:

The marchers departed at 7am, and walked 31 kilometers. It was one of the most tiresome days so far. They paused after the first 18 kilometers, eating lunch on the side of the road.

Camp was set up at Sheraghat. For the second day in a row, it rained in the evening. Fortunately this time, the tents stayed dry.

In the evening, the sub-district magistrates (SDMs) of 3 neighboring districts visited the campsite to raise their concerns about the March.

India stops 300 Tibetans from marching to Lhasa

New Delhi, May 19 (DPA) - More than 300 Tibetans who were stopped from marching to Lhasa on India’s border with China’s Tibetan Autonomous Region have resorted to camping in the area, a news agency reported Monday. The group of Tibetans, which was marching to Lhasa to protest against China’s alleged atrocities in Tibet and to demand Tibetan independence, were stopped by Indian authorities in the Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand state, the Press Trust of India reported.

The Tibetan marchers, mostly monks, were camping in the Seraghat area in the district that lies more than 400 kilometres north-east of Indian capital New Delhi.

“We have requested the marchers to turn back from here and we are committed not to let them go ahead for their own security reasons but instead they have been camping in the Seraghat for the last three days,” District Magistrate, D Santhil Pandian told the PTI.

Meanwhile, local police officials said that the Tibetans could be shifted to another area shortly.

The report said that about 500 security personnel from the police and the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) were deployed at the camping site.

The Tibetan group began their journey on March 10 from Dharamsala, the seat of their spiritual leader, Dalai Lama, to coincide with the Tibetan Uprising Day.

“The march is aimed at drawing the attention of the world to China’s repressive regime in Tibet,” B Tsering, one of the organizers of the march, said earlier.

More than 100,000 Tibetan refugees live in India along with the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government-in-exile.

The Indian government has said that it would not stop the peaceful demonstrations by Tibetans but it cannot allow the refugees in India to cross borders without the required documents.

Press Release: No stop for the March

For Immediate Release
May 20, 2008

No stop for March to Tibet despite warning from local authorities

Dharamshala - More than 300 Tibetans marching back to Tibet are determined to continue their March to Tibet despite warnings from the authorities in Pithoragarh District, which is adjoined to the Tibet border. Contrary to May 19 media reports, the March has not been stopped by the local authorities. The March organizers have decided to camp at Seraghat for a few days in order to assess the situation and discuss the matter with the authorities.

On May 16, local authorities visited the campsite of the marchers at Seraghat to warn them of the possibility of being stopped at some specific cordoned area citing “security reasons.”

The Organising Committee and the marchers remain committed to upholding the principles of non-violent direct action and to seeing this March continue.

All the Marchers dream of reaching Tibet and in order to realize that dream, the Organising Committee has been discussing the matter with the local authorities. They are striving to resolve the issue so that the marchers will be allowed once again to hit the road that leads to their homeland. “Through our contacts so far, we are very optimistic that the matters will be resolved soon,” said Dr. B. Tsering, one of the Presidents of the organizing NGOs of the March to Tibet.

The March to Tibet started on March 10 from Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh, and reached Seraghat after traversing through many states over the course of 68 days. On the fourth day of the March, the first group of 100 Core Marchers were arrested and put under judicial custody for 14 days. However, a second group of 48 Tibetan exiles resumed the March two days after the arrest and were joined by the first group soon after their release.

Tibetans living in exile in India launched the March to Tibet as part of the Tibetan People’s Uprising Movement. This historic movement aims to revive the spirit of the Tibetan National Uprising of 1959, and by engaging in non-violent direct action to bring about an end to China’s illegal occupation of Tibet.

Contact:
Tsewang Rigzin: 9805 297 259 (President, Tibetan Youth Congress)
B.Tsering: 9418 792 810 (President, Tibetan Women’s Association)
Ngawang Woebar: 9418 102 483 (President, GuChuSum)
Chime Youngdung: 9418 069 179 (President, National Democratic Party of Tibet)
Tenzin Choeying: 9816 368 335 (National Director, Students for a Free Tibet, India)

73rd Day of Peace March to Tibet, 21st May 2008:

At 10am, the marchers gathered in a meeting to be updated on the discussions with the local police and authorities. This was followed by an update on the situation inside of Tibet from Tenzin Jigme, the field research officer for the International Campaign for Tibet, who was visiting the March. His briefing was from a research perspective and included the latest protests in Kardze County [Ch: Ganzi], Sichuan Province.

The marchers were deeply saddened to hear of a bus accident in the nearby town of Gangolihat, in which 20 people were killed. In the afternoon, they conducted prayers for those who died.

In the evening, the marchers watched the two documentaries about the March and the slideshow presentation about the international Tibetan uprising with photos of protests around the world and inside Tibet. They also watched the documentary “Bringing Down a Dictator”.

Our thank yous go out to four Tibetans from Berinag, Namgyal Dhondup, Dhondup Tsering, Tsering Dolma, and Pema, who generously donated bottled water to the marchers today.

74th Day of Peace March to Tibet, 22nd May 2008:

The marchers left Seraghat at 8am after the usual singing of the Tibetan and Indian national anthems. They walked 19 kilometers to Banspatan. They were in high spirits today as the marchers were all excited to be marching again. There was no interference on the part of the police.

The March was joined by 8 new marchers today, who traveled from Kathmandu, Nepal, to participate.

In the evening, the marchers watched the documentary “The Shadow Circus: The CIA in Tibet” with commentary provided by the producer and director, Tenzing Sonam.

75th Day of Peace March to Tibet, 23rd May 2008:

The marchers spent the day in Banspatan. A downpour at 9am flooded many of the tents, forcing the marchers to find higher and drier locations to pitch their tents.

At 11am, the highest lama on the March led a group of 20 monks to the site of the Gangolihat bus accident, where they prayed for the souls of those who were killed on May 21.

In the evening, the marchers watched the documentary “Orange Revolution”, with translation and commentary provided by Lhakpa Tsering, a member of the organizing committee.