Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Feb 4: Hundreds of Tibetan exiles conducted a protest gathering opposite the Chinese Embassy in New Delhi on Friday, criticising the Beijing Winter Olympics and demanding freedom for their homeland.
The demonstrators carried Tibetan flags and placards that said “No Rights, No Games” and “Say No to Genocide Games.” They demanded that China withdraw from Tibet and urged the international community to take action against Beijing.
“The Olympic Games represent the spirit of love and peace, but this time they are being hosted by Beijing, which is responsible for the murders of thousands of Tibetans and the breaches of millions of people’s human rights,” said Tibetan Youth Congress General Secretary Sonam Tsering.
Protesters also chanted anti-China slogans and burned the Chinese flag. After jumping over security barriers and attempting to dash into the Chinese Embassy, some were apprehended by police.
Since the Dalai Lama departed Tibet after a failed uprising in 1959, a substantial number of Tibetans have been living in exile in India. China refuses to recognise the Dalai Lama’s self-declared Tibetan government-in-exile in India, accusing him of attempting to split Tibet from China.
The Beijing Winter Olympics have been branded the “genocide games” by human rights organisations, and the United States and other countries have boycotted the event due to human rights violations.
China rejects any human rights violations, calling them “lie of the century.”
Meanwhile, India’s top diplomat in Beijing will not be attending the Winter Olympics after the honour of carrying the Olympic torch was given to a Chinese soldier injured in a deadly border conflict between the two countries two years ago.
