Stand With Tibet
Dear friends,
After decades of repression under Chinese rule, the Tibetan people's
frustrations have burst onto the streets in protests and riots. With
the spotlight of the upcoming Olympic Games now on China, Tibetans are
crying out to the world for change.
The Chinese government has said that the protesters who have not yet
surrendered "will be punished". Its leaders are right now considering a
crucial choice between escalating brutality or dialogue that could
determine the future of Tibet, and China.
We can affect this historic choice--China does care about its
international reputation. China's President Hu Jintao needs to hear
that the 'Made in China' brand and the upcoming Olympics in Beijing can
succeed only if he makes the right choice. But it will take an
avalanche of global people power to get his attention--and we need it
in the next 48 hours.
The Tibetan Nobel peace prize winner and spiritual leader, the Dalai
Lama has called for restraint and dialogue: he needs the world's people
to support him. Click below now to sign the petition--and tell
absolutely everyone you can right away--our goal is 1 million voices
united for Tibet:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/tibet_end_the_violence/97.php/?cl_tf_sign=1
China's economy is totally dependent on "Made in China" exports that we
all buy, and the government is keen to make the Olympics in Beijing
this summer a celebration of a new China, respected as a leading world
power. China is also a very diverse country with a brutal past and has
reason to be concerned about its stability -- some of Tibet's rioters
killed innocent people. But President Hu must recognize that the
greatest danger to Chinese stability and development comes from
hardliners who advocate escalating repression, not from Tibetans who
seek dialogue and reform.
We will deliver our petition directly to Chinese officials in London,
New York, and Beijing, but it must be a massive number before we
deliver the petition. Please forward this email to your address book
with a note explaining to your friends why this is important, or use
our tell-a-friend tool to email your address book--it will come up
after you sign the petition.
The Tibetan people have suffered quietly for decades. It is finally their moment to speak--we must help them be heard.
With hope and respect,
Ricken, Iain, Graziela, Paul, Galit, Pascal, Milena, Ben and the whole Avaaz team
PS - It has been suggested that the Chinese government may block the
Avaaz website as a result of this email, and thousands of Avaaz members
in China will no longer be able to participate in our community. A poll
of Avaaz members over the weekend showed that over 80% of us believed
it was still important to act on Tibet despite this terrible potential
loss to our community, if we thought we could make a difference. If we
are blocked, Avaaz will help maintain the campaign for internet freedom
for all Chinese people, so that our members in China can one day rejoin
our community.
Here are some links with more information on the Tibetan protests and the Chinese response:
BBC News: UN Calls for Restraint in Tibet - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7301912.stm
Human Right Watch: China Restrain from Violently Attacking Protesters - http://hrw.org/english/docs/2008/03/15/china18291.htm
Associated Press: Tibet Unrest Sparks Global Reaction -
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gSSpPcDOPMoAiRLhPUyezuCRiXBQD8VFDD680
New
York Times: China Takes Steps to Thwart Reporting on Tibet Protests -
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/18/world/asia/18access.html?ref=world
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ABOUT AVAAZ
Avaaz.org is an independent, not-for-profit global campaigning
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world's people inform global decision-making. (Avaaz means "voice" in
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