New Delhi, July 14: Today is the sixth day since the TYC-led indefinite hunger strike began on July 8 here at the Jantar Mantar, New Delhi.
The 14 Tibetans staging the indefinite hunger strike are looking resolute as ever.
As the hunger strike entered its day 6, splashes of rain in the morning gave a cooling touch to the otherwise extreme heat of Delhi and fueled a pleasant weather throughout the day.
Six days without food now, the health of the hunger strikers is beginning to show off the toll of their ordeal. Their body weights dropping down considerably, some of them are are now finding trouble walking by themselves to bathroom. The number of hunger strikers getting cold feet has increased as three more were detected with cold feet by the assisting volunteers today.
However, growing support and expression of solidarity seem to be adding more strength and determination and keep these 14 selfless but, physically failing souls going. Ms Lobsang and Ms Dawa Tsamchoe, working in the French Embassy, have made up their mind to come and collect their clothes for laundry every day.
Tibetan staff members from the Sarvodhya Office, and three representatives from the Tibetan Market Association, Ladhak Buddhist Vihar, today visited the camp to express their support and solidarity to the 14 determined Tibetans undergoing rigorous hunger strike campaign. A few prominent Indian visitors, including a prominenet lawyer in the Indian Supreme Court visited the place to express their support.
In the Northern Indian town of Dharamsala, where the exiled Tibetan leader, the Dalai lama has been residing since coming into exile; the regional chapter of TYC organised a candle light vigil starting at 6:OOpm, in solidarity with the ongoing indefinite hunger strike in New Delhi and to generate a mass people’s movement on August 8 this year. The candle light vigil from Bhagsu Road converged at the Tsuglagkhang Courtyard after rallying around McLeodGanj town.
The mass gathering at the Main Temple was addressed by TYC’s president Mr Kelsang Phuntsok. Mr Kelsang mainly stressed on the need to create a voluntary mass Tibetan people’s movement which was officially launched by TYC last month. According to him, the movement is a departure from the traditional approach of appealing to International community for support. “It’s time to put direct pressure on the Government of People’s Republic of China through direct actions and making them reposnse to our call,” he said.
A pamphlet distributed by Regional TYC of Dharamsala described the TYC-led “The People’s Movement” as a new approach to bring about a renewed vigour and vitality in the Tibetan Freedom Movement.
The People’s Movement calls for Tibetan masses to voluntarily create a movement parallel to the March 10 uprising of 1959 in Lhasa where thousands of Tibetans came out openly on street to defend the safety of their leader and freedom of their country from Chinese aggression and oppression.
In a deeply moving speech yesterday evening, Mr Kelsang asked the Tibetan people to show their solidarity to the 14 hunger strikers in Delhi by turning up in huge numbers to the mass people’s protest on 8 August 2007.
The program ended with prayers for the fourteen hunger strikers in Delhi.
The Indefinite Hunger Strike in Delhi is part of the Tibetan Youth Congress-led Mass People’s Movement, pressing demands for accountability from China regarding vexed Tibet’s situation.
