Dharamsala, June 20 – The Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi Sunday called for a “more secure, just and peaceful future for Sudanese, Tibetan and other refugees around the world”.
Pelosi said in a statement issued on the World Refugee Day, “On Sunday, United Nations World Refugee Day, we again bring attention to the plight of men, women and children all over the world who have been forced to flee their homes for safety. The theme of this year’s World Refugee Day is: ‘They have taken my home, but they can’t take my future.’ This is especially fitting given the current statistics on refugees around the world.”
The UN figures indicate there are 43 million refugees and internally displaced persons worldwide. Sudan has the largest refugee population – 2.6 million have been internally displaced and 250,00 Darfuri refugees are in Chad.
“In India and Nepal, there are approximately 70,000 Tibetan refugees who have escaped Chinese repression over the dangerous Himalayan mountain passes. There continues to be no resolution in sight as the Chinese government will not engage directly with His Holiness the Dalai Lama in a peaceful dialogue.
“Today, we must honor the people of Sudan, Tibet, and so many other refugees around the world who have been uprooted from their homes by helping to build a more secure, just and peaceful future,” she added.
Pelosi was rebuked by China this year after she expressed her support to the Dalai Lama’s March 10 statement. An article published March 19 by the People’s Daily, the mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party, called her “anti-China crusader in the House” and said she always votes “no” in issues that favor China.
Pelosi and nine other members of the US congress, met with the Dalai Lama here in March 2008 amidst growing unrest across the Tibetan plateau. She criticised the Chinese government’s handling of the protests saying, “The violent response by Chinese police forces to peaceful protesters in Tibet is disgraceful.”
