The 52nd Anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising Day 10th March 2011 at Bern.

The Tibetan Community of Switzerland and Liechtenstein commemorated the 52nd anniversary of the Tibetan peoples uprising day in Bern, capital of Switzerland. A huge crowd gathered at 11:30 am at Weissenplatz. The rally started at 13:00 hr and marched towards the Helvetiaplatz.  Joined by monks from Rikon Monastery and the local Tibetan folk dance group, the rally proceeded raising slogans demanding Human rights, continued rounds of dialogues with the Government in exile and improvement of conditions in Tibet.

The march halted at Helvetiaplatz where the Tibetan National Anthem was sung followed by talks from various eminent guests and speakers. The Tibet office representative Mr.Dawa Gyaltso read out the 52nd anniversary of Tibetan uprising statement by His Holiness The Dalai Lama. Speakers from various organizations followed ensuite. The rally was also joined by the President of the Chinese Democracy Activist Group and the President of the Peoples Association of Inner Mongolia. Member of Swiss parliament, Mrs maya addressed the rally. The event concluded with prayers for those who sacrificed their lives for the cause of Free Tibet and for the long life of His Holiness The Dalai Lama.

Following last years trend, the rally this year also was denied procession to the Chinese embassy. A selected member of only 10 person, representing the various groups of organizations was allowed to continue the rally under the vigilance of police to hand over the memorandum to the Embassy of China. The demands of the memorandum were

1. To immediately meet with the Envoy’s of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to resolve the Tibetan issue

2. To consider the Memorandum of genuine autonomy for Tibetan people and its note submitted by the envoys of His Holiness the Dalai Lama,

3. To fully respect basic rights of Tibetan people including religious freedom, freedom of speech, press, association and education as guaranteed in China’s constitution and international laws,

4. To release unconditionally all the arrested and imprisoned Tibetans political prisoners,

5. To allow UN independent fact-finding mission “full unhindered access” to Tibet, The rally ended at 4.00 PM with the summation of the submission of memorandum to the Chinese Embassy in Bern.

6. To end vilifying His Holiness the Dalai Lama.                                      

The rally ended at 4.00 PM with the summation of the submission of memorandum to the Chinese Embassy in Bern.