DHARAMSHALA, August 25: The south India leg of the ‘Flame of Truth’ torch relay is currently campaigning in the popular Indian tourist destination of Goa.
Addressing the press at the launch of the Goa leg of the relay, Karma Yeshi, a member of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, spoke on the critical situation inside Tibet and underscored the demands of the torch relay.
“Since 2009 there have been 49 cases of self-immolations inside Tibet, out of which 39 have died,” Yeshi said. “These are mainly youngsters in the age group of 16-40, sacrificing their lives for the freedom of Tibet.”
He added that the “problem of Tibet is as much of a problem for India too” as the vast Tibetan plateau has for ages acted as a buffer zone between India and China.
“China is storing weapons in Tibet and dumping nuclear waste there. It is a threat for India as many of its major rivers originate in Tibet like the Brahmaputra.”
He also appealed to the world leaders and the global community to support Tibet by standing firmly behind the Tibetan freedom struggle.
The ‘Flame of Truth’ relay will be held today in the Goan capital Panjim following which, a delegation of Tibetans and Indians, led by Yeshi will meet local leaders.
The torch will then travel to Karwar, district, situated at the border of Goa and Karnataka, from where it will be handed over to the Mundgod Tibetan settlement.
The ‘Flame of Truth’ began its global journey on July 6, coinciding with the 77th birthday of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, to express “solidarity with the courageous and selfless acts” of Tibetans inside Tibet.
The campaign calls on the United Nations to discuss the issue of Tibet based on its earlier resolutions, to send an independent international fact-finding delegation to Tibet and to take special responsibility to ensure that the basic aspirations of the Tibetans inside Tibet are fulfilled.
Presently, the north-India leg of the Torch is in Solan while the northeast India leg of Torch is in Gangtok.
The second leg of the ‘Flame of Truth’ relay will begin from September 2, coinciding with the Tibetan Democracy Day. The Torch relay will take its campaign to more than 30 countries in North America, Europe, South-east Asia, Africa, and Australia.
The relay, after traveling around hundreds of cities all over the world will conclude on December 10, World Human Rights Day, with the submission of the petitions, simultaneously to the UN Headquarters in New York City, UN Human Rights Council in Geneva and UN information office in New Delhi.
