Protesters turn the heat on China’s Defence Minister

A Tibetan activist protesting against China's Defence Minister being taken away by the police in New Delhi on September 5, 2012  September 5: Tibetan activists kept up their pressure on the visiting Chinese Defence Minister with the third straight day of protests in the Indian capital New Delhi. Earlier today, Tibetan activists staged a noisy protest in front of the historical Qutub Minar, where General Liang Guanglie was scheduled to visit. Activists of the Student’s for a Free Tibet, India unfurled Tibetan national flags and raised slogans calling for global intervention in the unfolding Tibet crisis. One of the protesters even climbed a tall pole, grabbing attention of everyone present there. Dorjee Tsetan, National Director of SFT, India, who also took part in the protest, said that India being the largest democracy in the world and the land of Mahatma Gandhi has a “moral obligation to stand in solidarity with the Tibetan people's nonviolent struggle for freedom.” “Now is a critical time for India to add her voice to the multilateral pressure on China to stop the crackdown in Tibet. Tibet’s resolution can only bring a true solution to the current Sino-India matter,” Tsetan said. The group had earlier launched an online petition addressed to the Indian External Affairs Minister S.M.Krishna urging him to make a strong and clear statement condemning China's crackdown in Tibet and calling for a multilateral forum to resolve the crisis. In the Indian capital, the three Tibetan indefinite hunger strikers, who were arrested for the second consecutive night yesterday were taken to Tihar jail at midnight. They were lodged in the jail along with 30 odd Tibetan boys and girls who were arrested yesterday evening for carrying out a protest against General Liang near one of his meeting venues. Tibetan Youth Congress in a release expressed disappointment at the heavy-handed actions of the Indian authorities and said that the hunger strikers have vowed to continue their fast in the jail in “solidarity with the self-immolators inside Tibet and to appeal for immediate international intervention” in Tibet. “Our protests and means of expression for our cause has always been determinedly peaceful and non-violent but the turn of events today and the nature of the response and treatment from Delhi Police has deeply disappointed and hurt us,” TYC said in the release. General Liang, who is scheduled to retire as China’s Defence Minister next month, will remain in India till September 7.