Students for Free Tibet (SFT) marked International Human Rights Day with the launch of their "Write for Rights" campaign, a significant initiative aimed at securing justice for Tibetan political prisoners. This was stated in a report by ANI.
The event, held in Dharamshala today, Tuesday, December 10, was an appeal to China to uphold human rights and release these prisoners.
Exiled Tibetan activists gathered to commemorate the day, urging the global community to support the cause of Tibet by signing an online petition or sending postcards advocating for the release of five Tibetan political prisoners.
The campaign's goal is to amplify these voices and deliver these messages directly to the Chinese Embassy, calling for unconditional release.
Tenzin Lekdhen, Campaign Director of SFT, emphasised the campaign’s dual purpose of commemorating World Human Rights Day and the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the Dalai Lama. "Today is World Human Rights Day. It's a day that we also commemorate the Nobel Peace Prize to His Holiness, the Dalai Lama... Today, we are highlighting some of the Tibetan political prisoners that are currently in Tibet," he said.
He elaborated on the prisoners' diverse backgrounds, including environmentalists, writers, and singers, who face lengthy imprisonments for advocating for Tibetan rights. "We are highlighting five of them... We are going to send these postcards to the Chinese authorities and ask them to release these political prisoners unconditionally," he added.
When asked if the campaign would influence China, Lekdhen acknowledged, "They may or may not, but it's important that we do highlight these political prisoners or else their voice won't be heard."
Tenzin Passang, National Director of SFT India, highlighted the severe lack of basic human rights for Tibetans. She explained the Write for Rights campaign's aim to mobilise public action through postcards, emails, and social media advocacy.
"Today, as we commemorate World Human Rights Day... we also know that our brothers and sisters back in Tibet have no basic fundamental human rights. They were deprived of that, and that's why we are here highlighting and advocating for some of the political prisoners," she said.
Passang stressed that the campaign underscores prisoners’ efforts to protect Tibet’s environment, language, identity, and culture. "We urge the general public to write postcards, emails, petitions, Twitter posts, and demand the release of political prisoners... and give them the justice that they deserve," she concluded.
