As Australia’s leaders scramble to form a government, Tibetans are preparing to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Tibetan democracy. On 2 September 1960 the first groups of thirteen Tibetan People’s Deputies took their oaths of office in Dharamsala, setting in motion the Dalai Lama’s vision of a fully democratic exile community and a model for eventual democratic self-rule in Tibet.
A half century later, and after a succession of gradual reforms, Tibetan democracy has entered an exciting new phase. Read more
A new report from Human Rights Watch has confirmed many of Tibetans’ worst fears over the extent and brutality of China’s response to the 2008 Tibet protests. Titled “I Saw It with My Own Eyes: Abuses By Chinese Security Forces in Tibet, 2008-2010”, the 73-page report details a harrowing range of abuses committed by security forces, beginning with disproportionate force in breaking up protests and continuing with arbitrary arrests and the brutalizing of detainees.
Based on more than 200 eyewitness accounts and previously unreported official Chinese sources, it is the most comprehensive independent analysis to date of the events that unfolded during and after the protests. Read summary and download report in full
The Central Tibetan Administration has denounced China’s appointment of the sixth incarnation of the Gyalrong Dedrug Rinpoche, a senior religious figure associated with Tibet’s Drepung Monastery, as politically motivated. For Tibetans it is the latest incident in a bizarre Chinese effort to increase Communist Party control over the region by supplanting the traditional Tibetan religious hierarchy. Read more
Public celebrations were held in Canberra and Sydney to mark the 75th birthday of His Holiness the Dalai Lama last week.
In Canberra, Australian Greens leader Senator Bob Brown and senior Liberal Party member Hon Peter Slipper MP were among the distinguished guests at a special function hosted by the Tibet Information Office and Tibetan Communities of Australia. The celebrations continued on Saturday 10 July with Sydney’s “Festival of Tibet”. Read more
As Australia’s leaders scramble to form a government, Tibetans are preparing to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Tibetan democracy. On 2 September 1960 the first groups of thirteen Tibetan People’s Deputies took their oaths of office in Dharamsala, setting in motion the Dalai Lama’s vision of a fully democratic exile community and a model for eventual democratic self-rule in Tibet. 
A new report from Human Rights Watch has confirmed many of Tibetans’ worst fears over the extent and brutality of China’s response to the 2008 Tibet protests. Titled “I Saw It with My Own Eyes: Abuses By Chinese Security Forces in Tibet, 2008-2010”, the 73-page report details a harrowing range of abuses committed by security forces, beginning with disproportionate force in breaking up protests and continuing with arbitrary arrests and the brutalizing of detainees. 
Public celebrations were held in Canberra and Sydney to mark the 75th birthday of His Holiness the Dalai Lama last week.
