New York, July 31 – A joint protest was organized Thursday by the Students of Free Tibet, US Tibet Committee and the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress of New York & New Jersey at the Chinese Consulate in New York.
Around 50 Tibetans and supporters gathered at the Chinese Consulate to demand an unconditional release of Dhondup Wangchen, arrested by China for making a film that opposed China’s rule in Tibet and called for the return of the exiled Tibetan leader the Dalai Lama.
Dhondup’s film “leaving fear behind” documents the Tibetan resentment against Chinese rule and features interviews with Tibetans that sharply criticize the Chinese government policies in Tibet. The tapes of the film were smuggled out of Tibet to Switzerland where Dhondup’s cousin edited them and distributed around the world bringing a much needed boost for the Tibetan campaign against the Beijing Olympics, 2008.
Charged with “inciting separatism”, Wangchen was recently denied the right to be represented by the lawyer chosen by his family. His wife, living in Dharamsala, recently said she feared her husband who suffers from hepatitis B is not given proper medical care in the prison.
Tibetans and supporters worldwide have launched various campaigns to secure the release of Dhondup Wangchen.
The three organizations based in New York have sent signed petitions to China’s Minister of Justice, Wu Aiying, China’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Zhang Yesui, and Qiang Wei, Secretary of the CPC Qinghai Provincial Committee and Qinghai’s top party official.
