MSPs, Edinburgh residents, Tibetans and students all congregated outside St John's Church on Edinburgh's main shopping street for the opening of a new mural this Saturday to mark the 50th anniversary of Tibetan Uprising Day.

The mural depicts a Tibetan Monk being shot for calling 'Free Tibet'. Last year a similar mural depicting a monk in Tiananmen square was defaced with a spray can. The painting marks 50 years since the Dalai Lama was forced into exile and one year since the unrest and crackdown in Tibet in March last year.

Iain Thom, Edinburgh resident and board member of Students for a Free Tibet UK who hit the headlines before the Beijing Olympics by scaling a floodlight outside the Bird's Nest stadium and unfurling a pro-Tibet banner, will be present and said,

“Last March we saw a brutal crackdown by the authorities in Tibet. This March marks 50 years of resistance and struggle for Tibetans. We want our politicians to take a stand and call on the Chinese Government to stop the violence against peaceful protest and allow an independent UN delegation into Tibet.”

IMG_3598Mike Pringle MSP said, “Tibetans have been fighting for their freedom for 50 years. I sincerely hope that Gordon Brown managed to talk about Tibet and human rights with Barack Obama at his meeting this week.”

This event is timed to mark 'Tibetan Uprising Day' which remembers March 10th 1959 when thousands of Tibetans took to the streets of the capital Lhasa to protest the invasion of their country by China. Within weeks, the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government escaped to safety exile in India and thousands of Tibetans were killed in the aftermath of the Uprising. This year is the 50th anniversary of Tibetan Uprising Day and the one year anniversary of last years protests and uprising.

News coverage: http://news.scotsman.com/politics/Mural-marks-anniversary-of-Tibetan.5046465.jp