Below is a
letter from Larry Gerstein, President of ITIM:
On behalf of
the International Tibet Independence Movement (ITIM), Tibetan
Cultural Center (TCC; Bloomington, Indiana), and Indiana University
Students for a Free Tibet, I am very pleased to inform you that
we will be coordinating a March for Tibet's Independence.
Beginning on
March 6 from the TCC, a group of Tibetans and Tibet Supporters
will walk to Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana.
This walk will end on March 10 which is the 44th Anniversary
of the Tibetan Uprising in Lhasa, Tibet. The walk will be led
by Jigme Norbu and Professor Larry Gerstein (President, ITIM).
Mr. Norbu is the Director of the TCC, son of Thubten Jigme Norbu
(Taktser Rinpoche), and nephew of His Holiness The Dalai Lama.
Why are we walking?
--Because Tibet
Belongs to Tibetans
--For the Tibetans in Tibet
--To educate people about the situation in Tibet
--To dialogue with Chinese individuals about the history and
current situation in Tibet
--To advocate for the release of Gendhun Choekyi Nyima, The Panchen
Lama
--To advocate for the release of other Tibetan prisoners, particularly
Tenzin Delek Rinpoche
--To stop the railroad and pipeline being built in Tibet by China
--To promote a Boycott of China's Goods
--To encourage people to Buy Tibetan
--To stop the environmental destruction in Tibet
--To stop the marginalization of the Tibetan population
--To advocate for democracy in China
--To ask China to negotiate with no preconditions with the Tibetan
Government in-Exile
--For Tibet, Eastern Turkestan, Southern Mongolia, and Taiwan's
independence.
We strongly
believe our previous five walks were highly successful, in part,
because of the involvement and support we received from people
like you. We need your help once again (a detailed list of how
you can help follows).
We warmly request
that, if appropriate, you promote the walk in your newsletter,
website, and/or mailings to your membership. Next, we need help
recruitingTibetan walkers. If possible, we ask that you sponsor
a Tibetan to come walk with us, the entire time or part of the
time. Having Monks and Nuns on the walk, for instance, greatly
enhances our message to the public.
In addition to helping with the recruitment of walkers, we need
your financial assistance to cover our operating expenses. These
expenses include, for instance, telephone, faxing, copying, printing,
fuel and other costs for our support vehicles, and food for the
walkers. Any amount of money you could afford would be very useful
and much appreciated.
Finally, if appropriate, we invite your organization to Co-Sponsor
this project. In 2000 when we walked from San Francisco to Los
Angeles and from San Diego to Los Angeles, over 125 organizations
co-sponsored the walk. To be included on the walk materials,
we need to know your decision by February 21.
We are confident this project will be a great success not only
in terms of educating people and securing their support for Tibet,
but also obtaining media attention for the cause. We trust you
will be inspired to support the March for Tibet's Independence.
It is absolutely
essential we all keep up the momentum for a Free Tibet. I look
forward to hearing from you very soon and walking with you. Please
contact me if you have any questions about this project or our
request.
Bhod Rangzen!,
Larry Gerstein
President, International Tibet Independence Movement
rangzen@aol.com; www.rangzen.org
317-579-9015 phone; 317-579-0914 fax
How to help?
1. Have your
organization support the walk as a Co-Sponsor. Any way that your
organization can contribute/support would be acceptable.
2. Assist with promotions and media coverage, including publishing
an announcement of this walk in appropriate newsletters and mailings.
3. Provide a link to our website (www.rangzen.org).
4. Walk with us for any part of the route.
5. Sponsor a walker. The core group of walkers will be about
20 people. We estimate it will cost $50 per walker to cover each
person's living expenses.
6. Sponsor meals for the walkers each day ($10 per walker or
$200 for all the walkers each day).
7. Contribute $10 for each day of the walk ($50 total).
8. Contribute $30 to cover the daily cost of fuel ($150 total)
9. Coordinate your own March for Tibet's Independence--even a
one-day event on March 10th.
10. Contribute any amount you can afford.
Please send financial contributions to:
International Tibet Independence Movement
PO Box 592
Fishers, Indiana 46038-0592
United States
ITIM is a 501c3
not-for-profit organization and donations are tax deductible
to the extent permitted by law.
Larry Gerstein
President, International Tibet Independence Movement
