For Immediate Release        
March 31, 2008

Contact: Tenzin Dorjee in Paris, +33 618 279 183
              Tenzin Choeying in Delhi, +91 981 636 8335
              Lhadon Tethong in Delhi, +91 98 0523 7015

GLOBAL PROTESTS TARGET OLYMPIC TORCH ARRIVAL IN BEIJING
THOUSANDS DEMAND “NO TORCH IN TIBET” AS CRACKDOWN INTENSIFIES

Paris/Delhi –Tibetans and supporters around the world protested the arrival of the Olympic torch in Beijing today with demonstrations, candlelight vigils and the launch of an animated video linking China’s torch relay to the current bloody crackdown inside Tibet, available at: www.torchrelaybeijing2008.org. Thousands of people participated in the Global Day of Action, intensifying pressure on the Chinese government and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to withdraw Tibet from the torch relay route. The world's fastest-growing online petition, signed by 1.38 million people, which calls on China to hold talks with the Dalai Lama, was presented to Chinese government officials and decision-makers in 80 cities in 27 countries around the globe.

“Tibetans and people of conscience worldwide are voicing their opposition to China’s global torch relay, which the Chinese government is using as a political tool to gain global acceptance and legitimize its occupation of Tibet,” said Tenzin Dorjee, Students for a Free Tibet’s Deputy Director in Paris. “It’s virtually impossible to protest the torch in Beijing given the Chinese government’s iron-clad control over the city. But through creative online tools and images, we continue to shine the global spotlight on the true reality of China’s brutal rule in Tibet.”

The online flash video mocks China’s torch relay logo and slogan “Light the Passion, Share the Dream” in an attempt to expose China’s cynical Olympics propaganda. Today’s protests were co-sponsored by Avaaz.org, a global online advocacy organization that launched the million plus signature drive.

Today’s Global Day of Action marks the third week of a national uprising inside Tibet, where protests continue and the situation remains critical. Food and water shortages were reported at the three major monasteries in the capital, and tens of thousands of troops continue to be deployed throughout the region. As the Chinese government prepares to run the Olympic torch through 20 countries around the world, thousands of Tibetans are being rounded up, imprisoned and likely tortured for speaking out against China’s occupation of their homeland.

"It is shocking that the International Olympic Committee and torch relay sponsors like Coke insist that the global relay go ahead as normal while the Chinese government is engaged in a brutal military crackdown inside Tibet," said Tenzin Choeying, Students for a Free Tibet India's National Director in New Delhi. "Thousands of Tibetans and supporters worldwide are taking action today and will turn up the heat on the IOC and corporate sponsors in the coming days until Tibet is withdrawn from the relay route and China releases those detained in the recent protests."

China’s torch arrived in Beijing amidst reports that several hundred Tibetans have been removed from Lhasa by train to an unknown destination and “truckloads” of Tibetans have been rounded up and detained through house-to-house searches. Those detained include former political prisoners and Tibetans who have studied in India.

For more information, visit: www.torchrelaybeijing2008.org
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