Dharamsala, June 7: A former under secretary staff in the Tibetan Government-in-Exile has been appointed the President of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organisation (UNPO).
Ngawang Choephel was appointed the president during the organisation’s 10th general assembly which concluded last week in Rome, Italy.
The Tenth Session of UNPO General Assembly, which was held from May 27 – 30, concluded with the election of Mr. Choephel from Tibet as the President of the organization and Ms. Lana Agrba from Abkhazia as the Vice President. They will serve their terms until the next session which will take place after 18 months.
Ngawang formerly worked as an under secretary at the Department of Information and International Relations (DIIR) in exile Tibetan Government before leaving for Switzerland in 2005. He has also earlier served in the Office of Tibet, Geneva.
The resolution on the People’s Republic of China passed at the Tenth session of UNPO General Assembly’s resolution included concern and support for the Tibetans. It says: “While fully supporting the freedom struggle of Mongols, Tibetans and Uyghurs, remains deeply concerned that the survival of their cultural, religious and national identity is today threatened by China´s policy of population transfer and implantation of Chinese settler.”
Founded in 1991, UNPO is an international organization formed entirely by its members who are not adequately represented at international forums like the United Nations.
The membership, which has now grown to 60 members worldwide, are the indigenous people, minorities, unrecognized or occupied territories who have joined together with a common aspiration to protect and promote their human and cultural rights, to preserve their environments, and to find nonviolent solutions to conflicts which affect them.
UNPO says it works to provide a platform for the members to get an equal opportunity to present their case and address the consequences of marginalization, promote their democratic causes, to provide information, and to articulate creative and nonviolent strategies for progress, and to ensure that their voices are heard.
