They have been living in exile for almost five decades. Now they are planning to return to their homeland in an effort to reassert their identity and ties.
As the countdown to the 2008 Olympics begins, Tibetan exiles and their supporters all over the world have renewed their resolve to counter China's stranglehold on Tibet. They are bracing for a "return march" to Tibet, which is slated to begin on March 10 from Dharamshala.
With a 100-odd core participants and more joining in on the way in batches, the group plans to reach the border and cross over into Tibet in August, to coincide with the opening of 2008 Olympics in Beijing, in order to attract the attention of the international media present there to cover the sports event. "Our message to the Chinese leadership is loud and clear - that after 50 years, Tibetans in exile are determined to return to their homeland," said Ngawang Woeber, president of the Gu Chu Sum, the ex-political prisoners' association.
Poet and activist Tenzin Tsundue, who has been spearheading various efforts in the fight for a free Tibet, says it's too early to decide the exact point on the 4,000 km-long Indo-Tibetan border for the cross-over, if at all. "The last time I went to Tibet in 1997, I was arrested by the Chinese authorities, beaten up, interrogated, starved and finally thrown out of Tibet after being in their jail for three months in Lhasa. But this time, I am not alone."
Asked if they had taken permission from the Dalai Lama for the march, he says, "Since it will be a peaceful march, inspired by Gandhi's salt march, I do not think anyone - either Indian authorities or Chinese - would impose themselves on us."
Other activists of the group say they will not be seeking the approval of the Dalai Lama, as he has a more moderate position and is okay with Tibet getting partial autonomy rather than complete independence. Officials in the Dalai Lama's office say they are aware of the march but the government-in-exile neither plans to participate nor disrupt the initiative.
B Tsering, spokesperson of the Tibetan Women's Association, says, "We stand at a historic point as two important events approach - the Olympics and the 50th commemoration of the March 10 uprising against China's occupation of Tibet. We need to take this opportunity and give impetus to our freedom movement."
Choeying of Students for a Free Tibet says: "China will use the Olympics to legitimise its colonisation of Tibet. It will parade the Tibetans in colourful costumes along with the people from other occupied countries like Mongolia and the Islamic East Turkistan (Xinjiang) to show ‘unity' in China. We want to participate as an independent nation."
The march is a part of the Tibetan People's Uprising Movement, a united effort by five groups: Tibetan Youth Congress, Tibetan Women's Association, Gu-Chu-Sum Movement of Tibet, National Democratic Party of Tibet and Students for a Free Tibet, India.
Tibetans have been taking special exception to the Beijing Olympics. In August last year, they held a friendly football match between Delhi-XI and Team Tibet, although they had to shift the venue after cops refused permission for the event to held at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Delhi.
divya.aggarwal@timesgroup.com
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