Dharamsala, September 9, 1995

PRESS RELEASE

Condemn Chinese Assault on UN's Fourth World Conference on Women

China has unleashed an unholy crusade against all human rights elements of the UN's Fourth World Conference on Women and the parallel NGO Forum. These two largest ever world gatherings on women's issues, now underway in Beijing, have been fraud with obstacles and controversies right from their earliest preparatory stages. Specific advocates of human rights in China and, particularly, in Tibet under Chinese occupation rule have been the targets of China, the ironic host country to both the meetings.

Countries advocating universal observance of all human rights had been armed-twisted into submitting to the Chinese Government's demand that Tibetan and Tibet-advocacy NGO's be banned from the conference. Overwhelming number of More than 80 Tibetan women entitled as of right to participate in the NGO Forum were denied visa in gross contempt of the host country's legal and moral obligations. Nine Tibetan women who managed to make it to Beijing were targeted for unseemly surveillance and assault. The Host country does not care what it is supposed to be playing the host to. Its attitude is: Damn human rights, damn UN, this is China. It ordered its interpreters to ignore all references to Tibet in statements presented to the meetings.

The exile Tibetan Administration condemns China's systematic human rights abuses in Tibet and its persistent attempts to sabotage this issue from ever reaching the Fourth World Conference on Women. It notes with grave concern China's violations with impunity its binding obligations under international law and norms, including obligations it had specifically undertaken to observe by specific bilateral agreements, or by deliberate signature and ratification of international human rights instruments. It condemns in unequivocal terms China's morally reprehensible practice of setting captive Tibetan women from Tibet against exile Tibetan participants as a cynical plot against the very purposes and principles of the UN's Fourth World Conference on Women of which China has undertaken to be the solemn guardian. China's persistent attitude of harassing, in a very high-handed manner, the few exile Tibetan women who have managed to make it to the NGO Forum has bared before the whole world the true colour of Chines

e attitude towards, and the situation of Tibetan women in Tibet. We greatly appreciate those participants from all over the world who have expressed their solidarity with the harassed exile Tibetan women participants for their exhibition of wholehearted commitment to the highest principles of the universally recognised human rights standards. The Tibetan Administration in Exile continues to believe that Beijing was from the very outset the wrong choice of venue and that it will leave the UN's credibility and integrity fatally impaired as far as its human rights mission is concerned.

Tenzin P. Atisha

Joint-Secretary

Department of Information

and International Relations

Central Tibetan Administration

Dharamsala- 176215, H.P.

INDIA