London, 6th August'09 – Protesters gathered opposite the Chinese Embassy, braving the torrential 'summer' rain to mark the anniversary of the release of the film 'Leaving Fear Behind' (Jigdrel), Tibetans and supporters protested against the imprisonment of Dhondup Wangchen. The Chinese government has charged Dhondup Wangchen, the Tibetan film-maker who made Leaving Fear Behind, of "inciting separatism," a charge which carries a severe prison sentence in China. His trail will be held in Siling in eastern Tibet (Chinese: Xining, Qinghai Province). Dhondup Wangchen's lawyers have been barred from representing him, casting serious doubt over the fairness of his trial. He has been subject to torture while in detention and is in very poor health after being brutally beaten and tortured by Chinese authorities.
Jigdel of Students for a Free Tibet UK clearly outlined the demands of the protesters - 'We demand the immediate release of Dhondup Wangchen, and that the Chinese government give fair trials to all political prisoners, so that miscarriages of justice like this do not happen.' The charges against Dhondup Wangchen follow a wave of harsh sentences carried out as part of the Chinese government's violent campaign to silence and intimidate Tibetan voices of dissent. China's crackdown against the mostly peaceful protests that spread across Tibet in March 2008 continue today, with more than 1,000 Tibetans still detained, imprisoned, or missing. As Tibetan areas remain largely closed off to foreigners and journalists, getting information out about the situation on the ground is very difficult, making it even more important that people worldwide hear the voices of Tibetans speaking in this film.
Last year, two members of SFT UK unfurled banners outside the Bird's Nest Olympic Stadium in Beijing, two days before the Opening Ceremony of the 2008 Olympics. In the subsequent twelve months, China's Olympic pledge to improve it's human rights record has been exposed as an outright lie.
Please help promote the film 'Leaving Fear Behind' by organizing a screening on your campus or in your community. For more information about the film, go to: http://sftuk.org/cms/LEAVING-FEAR-BEHIND
