Free Tibet march in Taipei
A march to commemorate the 49th anniversary of the Tibetan Uprising was held in Taipei today. The march was organised by the Taiwan Friends of Tibet. Several hundred people including members of the local Tibetan community and supporters of Tibet gathered at Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall. From there they marched through the streets of Taipei to the finishing point at Taipei 101. Many people in the march shouted slogans like "Boycott Beijing Olympics!" and "Free Tibet!".
It should be noted that although many Tibet Support Groups are campaigning for a boycott of the Beijing Olympics, His Holiness the Dalai Lama supports the games. His position on the issue is clarified on the Tibetan Affairs blog.
Two monks say a short prayer at the start of the rally.
The official representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in Taiwan, Tsegyam, gave a short speech at the start of the rally.
Amongst the groups participating in the march was the "Freddy action team". They are members of the DPP's youth campaign team in the Presidential election.
This poster is a sobering reminder that the whereabouts of the 11th Panchen Lama, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, remain unknown. He went missing, presumably taken prisoner by the Chinese government, shortly after he was recognised by the Dalai Lama in May 1995. The sign says, "youngest political prisoner, Panchen Lama".
Two women holding a Tibetan flag with the words, "Tibet will be free".
The march went on a route through the eastern part of Taipei. The photo above was taken on Zhongxiao East Road.
The march came to an end at Taipei 101. An announcement was made that the Tibetan Olympic torch will return to Taipei on 3 July.
*more photos in the Free Tibet march set at flickr.
Update: Report on the march in the Taipei Times: Parade marks Tibetan uprising.
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310 Tibet action in Taipei
Don’t forget Tibet
Posted: March 9th, 2008 under Buddhism, Human rights, News & media, Photos, Taipei City, Taiwan.
Tags: protest, tibet
Comments
Comment from Carrie
Time 9 March 2008 at 11:38 pm
Well done David. This is a great post. I really enjoyed it.
Pingback from 316 DPP rally in Taipei – David on Formosa
Time 16 March 2008 at 11:44 pm
[...] sure the crowd would have all been very sympathetic to their cause. In the week since I joined the Free Tibet march in Taipei, the situation in Tibet has suddenly exploded into violence. There are certain to be strong calls [...]
Comment from nostalgiphile
Time 17 March 2008 at 4:29 am
Excellent post, David. I wish more people would pay attention to Tibet’s situation and see it in the context of Taiwan’s own plight. The two are not as dissimilar as many believe. Hopefully something can be done to stop the PRC, but It’s hard to be optimist when you look at videos like this.
Comment from David Reid
Time 17 March 2008 at 9:43 am
nostalgiphile, many thanks for the link to the video. It is very informative. I feel despair for what is happening in Tibet.
Comment from don
Time 3 November 2008 at 2:31 am
david-what should i say but nice, good, worth every effort…kudos from toronto
Keep the flame burning.
Comment from Phuntsok Tseten
Time 26 February 2009 at 4:15 pm
Hi David,
Thanks for the post. It was awesome. My name is Phuntsok and I am a Tibetan student at UC berkeley. I would like to thank you and all the Taiwanese people for supporting the Tibetan Freedom Movement.
Peace
Comment from Joe Gray
Time 9 March 2008 at 10:28 pm
Thanks for the coverage David – very interesting and good pictures too.