Mr Jia Qinglin is a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. His "goodwill visit" to London has been over shadowed by Tibetan protesters using non violent direct action and demonstrating at his hotel by shouting "Free Tibet", "China out of Tibet" and slogans related to the cold blooded killing last month of Tibetan escapees at the Tibet - Nepal border.

Tibet supporters gathered at 11:30 GMT at Royal Garden Hotel in London , ready for the arrival of the guest of honour of the China - Britain Business Council. In the midst of protest two coach loads of Chinese supporters arrived, as if from nowhere and tried to storm into the Tibetan protesters, who had earlier been cordoned-off into a crowd control enclosure by the police. The protest was organised jointly by Tibet Society of UK, Tibetan Youths in UK , Students for a Free Tibet and the Tibetan Community in Britain.

Dear Students for a Free Tibet UK supporter,

China's top political advisor Jia Qinglin, Chairman of the ChinesePeople's Political Consultative Conference is due to make his official 'goodwill visits' to Europe including Britain. Mr Jia is the fourth-ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China, and a former Mayor of Beijing. During his time as leader of the city, he was instrumental in bringing the 2008 Olympic Games to the Chinese capital.

On Tuesday 24th October 2006, the China-Britain Business Council will host a lunch in honour of Mr Jia Qinglin, at Royal Garden Hotel. The lunch will provide guests with the opportunity to hear Mr Jia give a keynote speech.

Tibetans and their supporters will be staging a demonstration during his visit to London to protest against China's ongoing occupation of Tibet. SFT UK is calling on the British business community to make measurable improvements in human rights a precondition to trade with China.

Last week, according to a Chinese government report
(http://english.gov.cn/2006-10/10/content_409343.htm), Jia addressed a Chinese “Forum on Tibetan Culture” to stress the importance of the cultural preservation of Tibet. He misses the point. It is not the role of
the bureaucrats of Beijing to preserve Tibetan culture. The Tibetan people can look after their own culture, in a free Tibet.

We’ll see you in the street!

When : 11:30 am - 4pm, Tuesday, 24th October 2006
Where : Outside the Royal Garden Hotel, 2-24 Kensington High St, W8
4PT
Map : http://tinyurl.com/yxnnrm

In peace,
Students for a Free Tibet, UK.

This summer I went to Tibet for 4 weeks to see for myself what the situation is like. Having been campaigning for a free Tibet for 5 years, I was expecting to see a strong Chinese presence in Tibet. My main surprise was the rate at which Tibet's infrastructure is expanding, probably the result of China's 'Western Development Strategy". It was my experience that the further an area was from a Chinese administrative centre, and the more inacessible it was, the better the Tibetan way of life has been preserved. Therefore, the startling rate at which China is building transport links throughout the Tibetan plateau must be a grave concern for Tibet campaigners, since it threatens the isolated regions of Tibet where the Tibetan culture is still strong.

Below are a few examples of the overt Chinese presence in Tibet. The first is an image taken at the Shigatse horse festival in July. It was encouraging to see so many (thousands) of Tibetans gathered together, with virtually no Chinese present. They were trading wares and seemed to be enjoying themselves as far as possible at a performance of Lhamo (Tibetan opera), despite having to peer through the many PLA officers on stage in front of the performers. The Chinese find large gatherings of Tibetans a potential threat, and had probably positioned the army on stage to pre-empt any political messaging. The second is an image of the huge monument planted in the square in front of the Potala Palace. There is nothing Tibetan about the style of this Chinese monument, and the area has been cleared of its former Tibetan houses. The third shows one of the many new residential areas being built around Tibet's fast-expanding capital, Lhasa. Many of these houses were inhabited by Tibetans (you could tell by the prayer flags outside), but Chinese flags were displayed prominantly at the same position on each house. It seemed obvious to me that this was not a voluntary display, but that residents had been provided with the flags and told to display them.

I arrived in the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) in mid July, after travelling through parts of Amdo. My visit to the TAR coincided with the opening of the railway, it opened on July 1st, so I was able to see some of its early effects. A traveller could immediately see the scale of the influx of people into Lhasa, it was virtually impossible to find a place to stay, and despite the many new hotels, Lhasa was unprepared for the extra thousands of visitors per day it was taking on. July being high tourist season, it seemed that the trains coming in to Lhasa were mainly filled with innumerable Chinese tourists, which bring their own problems. In low season, however, the same number of places may be filled with thousands of new Chinese immigrants to Tibet daily. China aims to "even' its spread of population, which means transferring huge numbers of people to the sparsely populated Western regions. This will mean that China's control and claim to Tibet will strengthen as it attempts to settle its own people there.

Below are several images of the new railway system. I must admit that I thought the station was architecturally quite sympathetically done, and some effort seemed to have been made to maintain crossing points and migration routes along the railway line itself, with underpasses every 50-100m. This might be lip-service paid by the Chinese government to international concern about the impact of the railway, but it only masks the real destructive influence the railway will eventually have.

Roads in Tibet are being built at an astounding rate, and this was a pattern I saw in all areas I visited in both Amdo and the TAR. The roads are in their final stages of development, so that it was still difficult for us to travel to Gyantse and on to Everest base camp, but all along the route we saw a smooth new expressway being built. This is a very serious concern. Of the areas I saw, Lhasa, Shigatse and Kumbum monastery were the most changed by Chinese influence. I believe this might be down to Kumbum's proximity to the Chinese city of Xining and it's value as a tourist site, Lhasa being the capital of Tibet would not have escaped Chinese 'development', and Shigatse I felt may have been changed not just because of it's size, but because of the fast highway connecting it with Lhasa. Gyantse, by contrast, although closer to Lhasa, was not so Chinese, perhaps because of it's poor road connections. Below are some images of the new roads in Tibet, and another example of disruption of local environment and community, the building of dams.

I did see some encouraging sights during my travels also. Because of my campaigning background, I was expecting the worst. But some of what I found in Tibet gave me hope, and it was great to see that despite adversity, Tibetans in Tibet are preserving their culture sucessfully. This encouraged me to continue campaigning, because although the Tibetan way of life is under threat, it's not too late. Below are some pictures of the better sights I saw in Tibet. Labrang monastery is in an isolated area, has substantially recovered from the Cultural Revolution (although there are still only a quarter of its former 4000 monks!), is largely restored, and is relatively undisturbed by tourism. It again resembles a monastic city. In Lhasa, Tibetans of all ages continue to make pilgrimages and perform their daily koras around the Jokhang, Tibet's holiest temple. In Langmusi in Amdo Tibetan life is relatively undisturbed. By some accounts I have heard, some areas of Amdo have some autonomy, which cannot be said of the TAR, despite it's name.

Post script - Please note that these are my opinions and do not necessarily reflect opinions held by the rest of the SFT UK board. Also, I have concentrated on environmental and development issues rather than writing about individuals' situations in particular instances to avoid causing them trouble.

Shocking footage of the Nangpa-la footage was shown on primetime Romanian TV (on Pro-TV) last week, and is now available to see in English.

There is also an interview with the camera man available here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=KfVI9kOTZhE (original source Protv.ro).
Spread the word and take online action HERE

Yep, it's the announcement everyone's been waiting for... the date of SFT UK's annual conference! So, get out your diaries, cross out your plans for 10-12 November and come join us in London for an action packed weekend of training in the skills and strategies of non-violent action and grassroots organising. It'll feature talks by inspiring Tibetan activists and testimony of life in Tibet today and workshops will include grassroots organising, campaign strategy, using the media, non-violent direct action, ‘Teaching Tibet,’ fundraising, and more. Also, new for this year, we are planning to run session on climbing skills for direct-action!

So, for a chance to get 'skilled up' and meet fellow SFTers, and all for a mere £12 (in advance or £15 on the day - includes lunch and crashpad accommodation) email Ben to register (ben[at]sftuk.org).

Tibetans and Students for a Free Tibet activists demonstrated outside the Chinese Embassy today to protest against the recent fatal shooting of unarmed Tibetans as they tried to escape across the Himalayas from Chinese occupied Tibet into neighbouring Nepal.

Shocking eyewitness reports from members of the party have confirmed that Chinese forces opened fire on the group on 30 September 2006, killing a 17-year-old nun. Up to five more Tibetans are feared dead after the soldiers, stationed at the Nangpa Pass between Tibet and Nepal, opened fire on the caravan of more than 70 escaping Tibetans, which included children as young as seven. The news first broke on the popular mountaineering website www.mounteverest.net. Foreign mountaineers at the nearby Cho Oyu advance base camp witnessed the incident and described how the soldiers took careful aim and fired repeatedly on the defenceless Tibetans, even as they attempted to escape.

Forty-three people from the group have successfully crossed into Nepal and have now reached the United Nations sponsored Tibetan Refugee Reception Centre in Kathmandu. The fate of the other Tibetans, including at least 14 children, remains unknown. There is concern that many of them may have been injured during the shooting and apprehended by the security forces.

Pema Yoko of Tibetan Youth UK said “The killings expose the true nature of China’s brutal rule in Tibet and contradict recent Chinese propaganda reports touting China’s benevolent policies towards Tibetans. As a Tibetan living in the UK, it’s important for me to voice my protest to the Chinese government on behalf of Tibetans in Tibet who face this persecution and cannot speak out for fear of government reprisal.”

“While the Chinese government has ruled out the use of force against North Korea, it continues to use lethal force against Tibetans trying to escape China’s brutal occupation of their homeland,” said Conall Watson of Students for a Free Tibet UK. He continued: “The shooting of unarmed Tibetans as they flee across the Himalayas is a shameful act by Chinese military forces, and deserves international condemnation. This latest brutal episode shows that while the Chinese government is keen to court foreign investment and dabble in diplomacy, it has not stopped using its military power for the violent oppression of Tibetans and other minority groups.”

There are frequent reports of Tibetan refugees being shot at on both sides of the Nepal-Tibet border but this is the most serious known attack in recent years. The fact that many Tibetan traders frequently cross the Nangpa Pass to sell goods in a nearby market without attracting the attention of the border patrol suggests that this was a calculated attack.

It is estimated that approximately 2500 Tibetans make the dangerous crossing of the Himalayas into Nepal every year. Around one-third of Tibetan refugees are children, sent to India to receive an education in the Tibetan language and culture, which is denied to them under the Chinese occupation. Many others fleeing Tibet are Buddhist monks and nuns seeking to practice their religion freely in exile.

Tibetans and Students for a Free Tibet activists are organising demonstrations around the world against China’s horrific shooting. Protests are planned in New York, Paris, Zurich, San Francisco, Toronto and Dharamsala, the exile home of the Dalai Lama in India.

6 October 2006

At least two Tibetans were killed and seven others wounded when Chinese border guards opened fire on them, a refugee support group has said. The head of the UN-sponsored Tibet Refugee Reception Centre in Nepal, Loudhup Dorjee, said the alleged incident happened on Saturday.

He said about 70 Tibetan men, women and children had been trying to
cross the Nangpa La pass from China into Nepal.

Forty-two managed to enter. He had no information on the fate of the
others.

'Two people down'

Earlier, mountaineering website MountEverest.net carried what it said was an eyewitness report of the shooting from an unnamed climber in the area.

"Without warning, shots rang out. Over, and over and over. Then the
line of people started to run uphill," the climber said.

"We saw two shapes fall. The binoculars confirmed it: two people were down, and they weren't getting up. Then more Chinese army swarmed through
Advanced Base Camp."

There has been no word from the Chinese authorities.

Correspondents say hundreds of Tibetans try to cross the Himalayan
border every year in an effort to flee Chinese rule.

Yak Caravan crossing Nangpa Pass
A Tibetan nun in her mid twenties was shot dead by Chinese border patrols and at least one other Tibetan may have been killed while on their way into exile in Nepal on the Nangpa pass five days ago, according to eyewitness reports. Tibetans traveling with the nun were unable to bring her body, with evident wounds from several rounds of bullets, with them because they feared arrest before entering Nepalese territory. There are reports that up to seven more Tibetans may have been killed after the group was fired upon by Chinese armed personnel, but these could not be confirmed. The incident took place on the glaciated Nangpa Pass at 18,753 ft, just a few kilometres west of Mount Cho Oyu, and was witnessed by a number of international mountaineers at advance base camp, who saw Chinese military personnel kneel down, take aim and open fire on the Tibetans, some of whom were children as young as ten.

One of the climbers summiting Cho Oyu, which is approximately 20 km west of Mount Everest at the border between Tibet and Nepal, said in an email communication by satellite that the shooting happened in the early morning of September 30: "I saw a line of Tibetans heading towards the start of the [Nangpa] pass - a common sight. Then, without warning, shots rang out. Over, and over and over. Then the line of people started to run uphill. Watching the line snake off through the snow, as the shots rang out, we saw two shapes fall. The binoculars confirmed it: two people were down, and they weren't getting up."

A second climber, a British mountain guide, told ICT that other climbers had witnessed one of the Tibetans getting up after they had fallen, indicating that one of the two might have survived, although it is not known if the person died later from their injuries. Mountaineers contacted by ICT did not wish to be named until they had left Chinese territory, and the full circumstances of what led up to the incident are not known.

Forty-three Tibetans from a group of more than 70 escaping from Tibet were apparently able to escape from the gun-fire and safely reach Nepalese territory, where they are now en route to the Tibetan Refugees Reception Center in Kathmandu. Most of the group, including children as young as ten as well as Tibetans in their twenties and thirties, are apparently from Kham in eastern Tibet. According to local sources, the Tibetans feared that there might be more than one fatality. The whereabouts of the more than 30 remaining Tibetans from the group is not known. A local Tibetan source said that these Tibetans might have been apprehended by Chinese security forces because Chinese military vehicles, including ambulances, had been seen at a motorable road close to the incident area on the same day. Another local Tibetan source said that members of the group had been forced to abandon the bullet-ridden body of the nun on the pass, because they feared that carrying it out of Tibet might lead to their arrest.

The British mountain guide, who was summiting Cho Oyu at the time, told ICT: "There could have been as many as 60 climbers at Advance Base Camp who witnessed the incident. They could see Chinese soldiers quite close to Advance Base Camp kneeling, taking aim and shooting, again and again, at the group, who were completely defenceless. We didn't know what the targets were but the climbers could see they were human beings. A couple of hours later, a caravan of yaks came along the pass from Nepal and there was no shooting. Clearly distinctions were made between intended targets. This was a deeply shocking incident for all of us."

The Nangpa Pass serves as a main trading route between Tibet and Nepal, and is commonly used as an escape route by Tibetans fleeing into exile. Tibetan refugees escaping from Tibet into Nepal have been fired upon before on both the Chinese and Nepalese side of the border, but this is the most serious incident for some years.

The shootings are likely to have been carried out by the People's Armed Police, a paramilitary unit formed from the PLA in the early 1980s, which is responsible for internal security, border control, and protection of state installations, including prisons. The PAP is the main body that patrols the high mountain passes where Tibetans attempt to escape into Nepal.

Between 2,000 and 3,000 Tibetans make the dangerous crossing through the Himalayas via Nepal to India each year, seeking refuge after repression in Tibet, simply to be in the presence of the Dalai Lama, or for other personal reasons. Approximately a third are children who are being sent to study in Tibetan exile schools. Many others are monks and nuns seeking a religious education that is not possible in Tibet due to the restrictions imposed in monasteries and nunneries.

Yak caravans and Tibetans escaping from Tibet are often seen by climbers in Cho Oyu's Advance Base Camp, particularly at this time of year, which is a peak climbing season. ICT reported on a similar incident in October 2003, when a group of 34 Tibetan refugees were fired upon by Chinese border security while attempting to cross into Nepal over Nangpa La. One of the Tibetans in the group told ICT that only 17 members of the group of 34 had successfully made it over the Nangpa la while the others were caught by border security. It is not known if any of the 17 who did not make the journey were shot. (See China Constructs Road Near Nangpa La to Stem Flow of Tibetan Refugees to Nepal December 3, 2003, ICT report).

In 2002, there were separate eyewitness reports by Western mountain climbers of Chinese border police firing upon Tibetan refugees as well as pursuing refugees across Nangpa la into Nepalese territory. Nepalese police in Namche Bazaar, the main trading village south of Nangpa La, told ICT that during their investigation of the border incursion, they collected at least a dozen spent rifle shell casings on the Nepalese side of the pass. No public reprimands of the Chinese were made by the Nepalese authorities at the time.

An American who lived and worked on the south side of the Nangpa La, and who has been to Cho Oyu base camp, said: "Sherpa and Tibetan traders from border villages on both sides of the pass are allowed to travel freely for purposes of informal trade, and those who transit the Nangpa La regularly say that it is not uncommon for the PAP (People's Armed Police) to chase refugees well into Nepal - though never down as far as the Sherpa villages proper." In at least two incidents in recent years, Western climbers in the area have been fired upon by Chinese border patrols.

There were more than 10 large expeditions at Cho Oyu at the time of the shooting on Saturday, and one source estimated that as many as 100 people could have witnessed the shooting on September 30. But most climbers refused to speak publicly until they were safely out of Chinese territory and in Nepal. Tom Sjogren from the online adventure portal Explorersweb Inc, who was in touch with some of the climbers on Cho Oyu at the time, said: "Right away, there was pressure at base camp by some commercial outfitters to keep this quiet. Rumours are circulating that the people shot was ‘smugglers', and climbers are being told that they should keep quiet - at least until they are out of China. We believe there is absolutely no reason for western climbers to be afraid of the Chinese government if they speak up, other than a commercial risk for certain guiding operators, but even that is not likely." There were several reports of a strong presence of Chinese security personnel at Cho Oyu's advance base camp after the incident.

The risks for Tibetans transiting through Nepal have increased over the past two years due to increasing Chinese influence on the Nepalese government. In 2005, the office of the Dalai Lama's representative in Kathmandu and the Tibetan Refugee Welfare Office, both critical for the security and welfare of Tibetan exiles in Nepal, were given notice to close. Due to the volatile political situation and precarious security conditions, persons of concern to the UNHCR such as Tibetans fleeing into exile, are constantly under threat of losing their rights to protection.

Tibetans face dangers on both sides of the border. On the Nepal side, there are increasing risks of forced repatriation or refoulement (the return of persons to a country where they fear persecution). Towards the end of 2005, it became apparent that the Nepalese police were showing less restraint in capturing and detaining Tibetans traveling through the Nepalese border areas to Kathmandu. In October 2000, a Tibetan monk died on his way to hospital in Kathmandu after being shot by Nepalese police following his escape across the border into Nepal.

For more news and information click here

Things are hotting up here in Dharamasala, capital of the Tibetans in exile. SFT are running the first SFT Action Camp to take place in India and it's starting in a few days. There's accomodation, workshops, transport, banners, participants, weather, ropes, flip-charts, ice-breakers and a hoast of other logistics to think about for the crack team of Tibetans organising this camp. Oh yeah, and not forgetting some scrumptious Tibetan food to prepare!

Three members of the SFT UK board (Alice, Iona and myself) will be helping at Camp. I arrived a few days ago and this morning attended the first session of another exciting venture. Friends of Tibet have brought 15 students from Delhi's universities to Dharamasala for a week long trip aimed at educating them about the Tibetan issue. The students will be visiting important institutions and meeting influential members of the TIbetan community so they may appreciate the refugee situation for themselves.

Lot's happening here in India and we hope to bring even more enthusiasim back to the UK. Check for a camp update soon!

The pictures from the Robin Wood action climbing training.