Washington DC: Tibetan delegation participated in a conference in the US Congress building on the topic “Religious Freedom Under Oppression: Confronting China’s Suppression of Religious Freedom.”
In the conference, the former Tibetan political prisoner Namkyi was invited as a speaker. She shared how she and her sister, who was only 15 years of age at the time, were arrested by the CPC after she held a peaceful protest by displaying a portrait of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. She described the unimaginable discrimination and torture that she and other Tibetan prisoners endured in prison. The CPC’s intensified suppression of Tibetans’ religious freedom, the deprivation of freedom of movement for Tibetan political prisoners even after their release and how relatives and entire communities face severe intimidation with absolutely no freedom of movement. She appealed for continued support from the US government for the Tibetan cause.
Tencho Gyatso, President of the International Campaign for Tibet; Chemi Lhamo, Tibet advocate, and Tibet Action Institute’s Senior Researcher Tenzin Dorjee gave presentations on various advocacy topics related to the theme. The conference was attended by many participants including US State Department officials, Congressional staff, and representatives from various international NGOs. The organising committee also issued a joint statement.
Namkyi visited the office of Congressman Michael McCaul, former Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and the office Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, where she briefed about the increasingly severe and deteriorating situation inside Tibet and appealed for increased support from the US government. She also visited major international NGOs including Human Rights Watch, Freedom House, Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, and Vital Voice, where she explained the critical situation in Tibet to the researchers from these institutions. Also, the news agency Associated Press (AP), conducted a special interview with Namkyi.
-Report filed by Office of Tibet, Washington
