Asian Age

‘100m Black Flag Unfurls for Tibet’
by D Chaudhuri
(The Asian Age | March 10, 2003)

young tibetan man with 'free tibet' bandana, tibetan flags

As the 100 meter-long black banner of protest unfurled along Marine Drive, Bombay the undying efforts and dedication for a 'Free Tibet', from the clutches of the People's Republic of China.

Celebrated as Tibetan National Uprising Day world-wide, March 10 is remembered in memory of the massacre of 10,000 Tibetans at the Chinese Army at Lhasa in 1959. The banner which took six men and three days to paint was to mark 44 years of this struggle. Organised by Friends of Tibet (INDIA), fifteen Tibetans from different parts of India, all in their mid-twenties, the Tibetans were in the city to strengthen the link that was formed years ago, with the arrival of the Dalai Lama at the small Himachal Pradesh town of Dharamshala.

Speaking to The Asian Age, Friends of Tibet (INDIA) Generel Secretary Tenzin Tsundue said, no efforts by the Chinese government will stop them from trying to free Tibet. "My words are that of thousands of Tibetans, both in and out of our homeland. Free Tibet is not just a dream or a conviction. We are confident that we'll live to see Tibet free from the Chinese atrocities — a Tibet where we all will be able to follow Buddhism without being punished."

"The political atmosphere in Tibet is all set to explode. Besides the seething tension between the minority Tibetan population and the Chinese community communal violence is commonplace. These problems can only be solved by giving back Tibet to us," Mr Tenzin Tsundue said.