Dharamshala, India — Three Tibetans from Canada began their Peace Rally Marathon For Tibet to highlight the Chinese government’s repressive policies in Tibet and call on China to release all political prisoners in Tibet.
Three Tibetans, Pema Kunga, Tenzin Shedup, and Dechen Wangdi started their Peace Rally Marathon For Tibet from the Chinese Consulate in Montreal on October 1, 2021, and will end their marathon at the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa-Toronto on October 12, 2021, with three demands or calls to China and the international community.
Their three demands are the resumption of the Sino-Tibetan dialogue, a boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, and the release of Tibetan political prisoners.
“we would like to urge Communist Party of China to resume dialogue with His Holiness the Dalai Lama to dissolve the longstanding Tibet issue, and to allow H.H. Dalai Lama to visit his homeland, Tibet,” they said.
“ Boycott Beijing Winter Olympic 2022: With ongoing mass atrocities and serious human rights abuses in Tibet, East-Turkestan (Xinjiang), and Hong Kong. More than 180 organizations have called on governments to boycott Beijing 2022 because of reported human rights abuses against ethnic minorities,” they urged.
“Release political prisoners in Tibet: According to U.S. Congressional-Executive Commission on China, there are more than 270 Tibetan political prisoners currently in detention merely for asserting their right to practice their culture, religion, language and for resisting Chinese oppression. In 2016, Tibetan language activist Tashi Wangchuk was arrested and sentenced for five years by Chinese authorities for advocating Tibetan language rights in Tibet,” they said.
The Peace Rally Marathon For Tibet is a campaign, voluntarily initiated by Pema Kunga, Tenzin Shedup, and Dechen Wangdi, Tibetan residents from Toronto, Canada. The three runners are from Miao Choephelling, Arunachal Pradesh, India, who immigrated to Canada under 1000 Tibetans resettlement project.
The three marathon runners will be joined by Kunsang Dechen, Dawa Sangpo and Tenzin Dhondup. Their common goal in running the 648km marathon is to highlight Chinese government's repressive policies in Tibet, which are aimed at deliberately destroying Tibetan culture, religion and identity. It also highlights the deteriorating human rights situation in Tibet, the inhumane plight of Tibetan political prisoners.
