Gallery 12

March 10, National Uprising Day

Photos by Tenzin Wangden Andrugtsang

 

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Dear Joe Omigo, Thank you for your email. For a brief description on the 10th March......As it was the Chinese forces had arrived in Lhasa the capital of Tibet in 1959. It was in the March when the Chinese forces, stationed on the outskirts of Lhasa, invited His Holiness the XIVth Dalai Lama to a stage show that they claimed to have prepared especially for the Dalai Lama.

What aroused the suspicion of the Tibetan people at that time was that the invitation came with a sort of command stating that the Dalai Lama should not be accompanied by anyone, not even His personal bodyguards. The Tibetan people had lost all trust with the Chinese. When this news spread in Lhasa, without having to announce, Tibetans from all walks of life, old and young came to the Norbulinga (the summer palace of the Dalai Lama) and formed a human shield shouting long life prayers for the Dalai Lama. They pleaded with the Dalai Lama not to attend the program. The Dalai Lama sensing the volcanic situation, which could erupt anytime, assured His people that He would not attend the program and asked them to return home. He sensed that the Chinese forces would come to get Him to attend the program and His people outside would not allow them to do so and ultimately this would lead to massacre of His peace loving and unarmed people. His Holiness was advised to escape through a secret passage and leave the palace, as it was life-threatening to be there. With a heavy heart, He slipped through the people dressed as a common man into safety.

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The Chinese were enraged to learn that the Dalai Lama had turned down their invitation and what happened next was as the Dalai Lama has foreseen. The Chinese started bombarding the palace and many thousands of Tibetans who were there as human shield were massacred mercilessly by the Chinese force. The Tibetans tried to fight back with sticks, stones and knifes. This incident spread quickly and swiftly through to other parts of Tibet and there was wide spread resentment against the Chinese. People rose up against the oppressors that day in many parts of Tibet.

This day, March 10, 1959, went down in the history of Tibet as the First National Uprising Day against the Chinese invasion. To this day, we Tibetans in exile all over the world commemorate this day to remember our brothers and sisters who gave away their lives selflessly and our message to the Chinese that we Tibetans will never forget this and all the other atrocities that they had let loose on us Tibetans. That our commitment towards our struggle is even stronger and will continue to grow stronger with each passing year.

March 10, 2004 marked the 45th Uprising Day.

My regards to Sazzy and Sheri. That's it Omigo, Take care my friend, Adeious, Wangden Tibetans observe Uprising Day

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dear Joe,

The second photo (left) of the two person posing are of those two persons who had volunteered to sit for the hunger strike unto death in year 1997 or '98 I am not sure but their strike was broken forcefully by the Indian police after about 45days. One person named Thupten Ngodup burned himself to death in protest of the Indian police high handedness. He is a martyr. The one on left is Karma and the other on the right is Yongdung. Enjoy the photos,

Take care and Adeious Omigo Wangden

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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