Published by: World Tibet Network News, 96/04/04 23:00 GMT
From: Larry Gerstein, Coordinator March for Tibet's Independence
Re: Progress Report #2
Date: April 4, 1996
We have now walked about 225 miles & are close to the New Jersey border. Our core group currently consists of 6 Tibetans & 4 Americans. Geshe Monlam from Philadelphia joined the walk a week ago & will complete the "March for Tibet's Independence." We are very happy to have Geshe-la with us. He has been a great inspiration & has helped to increase our laughter level. Most days there are 11-13 individuals walking, with larger numbers (15-20) on the weekend. Our weekend walkers have been mainly Tibetans from the NYC area who have also greatly inspired us. We welcome more of you to join us on the weekends.
Thus far, we have been extremely successful with the printed media. Local stories have appeared almost every day & the Baltimore Sun & Philadelphia Inquirer have also published articles. Hopefully, the national news services & TV stations will pick up our story in the near future.
Our visit through Philadelphia was incredible. The members of the Tibetan Buddhist Center in Philadelphia along with the US TIbet Committee-Philadelphia strongly supported our visit & helped to make it a huge success. The Mayor of Philadelphia signed a very strong proclamation recognizing March 30, 1996 as "March for Tibet's Independence" day. As far as we know, this was the first time that a U.S. city clearly & openly supported Tibet's independence. This proclamation was timed with our demonstration at the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia. Approximately 100 people (50+ Tibetans) participated in this demonstration. Our visit to the Liberty Bell was quite moving as we all realized the significance of this symbol of freedom, justice, & independence to the world community.
Our presentation at the University of Pennsylvania was also impactful. About 75 individuals including members of the press attended the talk given by Thubten Jigme Norbu, Palden Gyatso, & Larry Gerstein. The discussion after the presentation revealed that the audience was not only sympathetic about the Tibetan situation, but also well informed. Next week we will give similar presentations at Trenton State University (April 10) & Princeton University (April 11).
Plans for our arrival in NYC are being finalized by the Office of Tibet, the U.S. Tibet Committee, & Students for a Free Tibet. Our goal is to fill up the Staten Island Ferry on April 25 with Tibet Supporters. We intend to take the ferry from the Staten Island Ferry Plaza at 9AM, arriving in Battery Park-NYC at 9:30AM. Since the Statue of Liberty is such a powerful symbol of freedom & independence, we highly encourage all of you to join us. By filling up the ferry, we will definitely attract the worldwide media. We will be greeted in Battery Park with a breakfast & will then walk to the United Nations up Broadway. As a reminder, April 25th is Gendhun Choekyi Nyima's birthday & we will demand that China release the 6 year old Panchen Lama. Therefore, a major goal of our ferry ride & walk to the U.N. is to educate people about the Panchen Rinpoche & call upon world leaders to secure his release & safety.
Once again, please note our new e-mail address (kmurphy@nuvo.net) & check out our website (http://www.nuvo.net/tibet) for updates. Until Wednesday morning April 10 we can be reached between 6PM-10PM at 215-536-7772. If absolutely necessary, we can also be contacted between 9AM-5PM on our cellular phone (301-452-7095).
Rangzen!
