March 24 – The Tibetan Womens Peace March reached its 13th day today with the marchers becoming more determined and stronger with each passing day. Pain, blisters and sweat as their second skin; the women are walking with enduring passion and zeal to restore the dignity and freedom of a long-deprived nation. Wen Jiabao cannot ask for a more inspiring and poignant welcome than this when he arrives in India.
There are reports of marchers from Siliguri to Kolkata facing yet another series of hardships. On March 21, a participant from Kalimpong received the most dreaded news of her life: her young son died in her absence. The woman had joined the peace march when her son was down with a serious illness. The leaders of the march immediately arranged for transportation and sent her back to perform the last rites. The night of March 22 was hard for the marchers. The police spent long hours in finding them a shelter. Rain and storm typical of a coastal region created added pressure. The marchers couldnt advance further as there was a roadblock due to storm playing havoc. All took shelter in the crammed ration-truck until 12 oclock in the night. At 1:00 am, the group had their dinner prepared by tired, sleepy and drenched cooks. On March 23, the march reached Mohanpur and stayed there for the night.
As of now, the group has left for Barasat that is considered the first Kolkata or the place from where Kolkata begins.
The Dharamsala-Chandigarh marchers reached Ghanauli on March 22 and left for Ropar town yesterday morning. Finding Ropar the largest town after Una, the group toured the whole area and held a public meeting in the middle of the traffic intersection. Statements were read out in Hindi and English and pamphlets distributed extensively. The regional press and television journalists attended in hordes. Thanks to the relatively extensive coverage of the march by regional papers, the group met many people who already knew about the march. Interestingly, many Indians have taken note of the US Secretary of State, Condoleeza Rices recent advice to the Chinese leadership to get into talks with the Dalai Lama. The march has helped them know more about the ongoing contacts between the envoys of the Dalai Lama and the Chinese leaders and about the Dalai Lamas Middle Way Approach.
The marchers left Ropar this morning and later sought permission from the principal of an engineering college to hold a meeting with the students. The Engineering and Technology College is situated in Mallikpur and has 2000 students. The meeting did not happen as it was sought in a very short notice.
However, the principal told the marchers that he was aware of the march about which he read in the newspaper everyday. He said, I regard highly of the Dalai Lama and strongly support the non-violent struggle of Tibet.
He also let the marchers distribute any literature or pamphlets in the college campus. The college students were very inquisitive and curious about the issues raised by the peace marchers. They also first knew about the march from the media. The regional media have been very generous and cooperative in their coverage of the peace march. The marchers are now nearing Mohali where they plan to stay for the night.
The Dekyiling to Delhi marchers reached Motinagar on March 23 and spent the night at Lakshmi Narayan temple where they had a gathering of local people who were informed about the plight of Gendhun Choekyi Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama. This was followed by some 800 people signing the Panchen Lama petition to the UNO and the Chinese president Hu Jintao. Next morning, the group held a brief prayer ceremony and left for Ghaziabad. Joined by Mrs. Saroj Sharma (BJP Zila Parishad), Mr. Ashok Monga (ex-councillor, Nagar Nigam), BJP activists and members of the Himalayan Parivar, the marchers reached Chameli Chadha Vishwas Girls college in Ghaziabad. The local leaders there hosted a reception for the marchers followed by a press conference. The guest speakers at the conference was Mr. DC Garg (Mayor of Ghaziabad), Mrs. Asha Sharma (Councillor, Nagar Nigam), Ms. Renu Aggarwal (Treasurer, Women Association, Ghaziabad), and Mr.Jagdish Sahana (General Secretary, Small Scale Industries) accompanied by local BJP leaders. Many print and TV journalists from DD news, Ankhon Dekhi, Etv, Amar Ujala, Dainik Jagran etc attended the press conference.
The mediapersons asked about the detained Panchen Lama, the possibility of any negotiation with the Chinese in the near future and the present situation in occupied Tibet. The marchers today reached Delhi and were received warmly by the Tibetans in Majnu-ka-Tilla Tibetan colony. A closing ceremony at Delhi will mark the finale of the peace march.
