Santa Feans rally for peace in Tibet
Mar. 10—The Tibetan national anthem rang out in Santa Fe Plaza Sunday morning.
Dozens of demonstrators sang along, forming a choir equipped with signs and banners demanding "Free Tibet."
They hoisted the Tibetan flag, draped it around their shoulders, wore miniature versions of it stitched onto hats and arm bands. And sometimes, when the wind was just right, the flag's bright yellow border and central yellow sun overlapped with New Mexico's flag, their yellows blending into one.
During the gathering, Santa Fe's Tibetan community and supporters joined people all over the world in observance of the 65th anniversary of the failed Tibetan Uprising, which resulted in the expulsion of the Dalai Lama as well as thousands of other Tibetans from their homeland.
Sunday's event was intended to issue a renewed call for religious, linguistic and cultural freedom for all Tibetans, said Jamyang Thayai, a Tibetan born in exile and president of the Tibetan Association of Santa Fe.
"I see lots of supporters here, so they will help us to spread the word," Thayai said. "Tibet is still in Chinese rule, and we are suffering."
China occupied Tibet in 1951. While the Chinese government framed the move as a "peaceful liberation" of Tibet, its parliament-in-exile asserts China "exerted duress" to take possession of the northern Himalayan region.
On March 10, 1959, Tibetans protested against Chinese control in the capital city of Lhasa, the uprising ultimately quashed by Chinese armed forces.
In the decades since, both the U.S. and the United Nations have identified human rights violations in the region. A 2022 report on human rights practices in Tibet by the U.S. State Department found "significant human rights issues," including extrajudicial killings and detentions, torture, censorship and severe restrictions on religious freedom. Earlier this month, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk demanded China implement his office's recommendations to halt human rights violations in Tibet.
The continued Chinese occupation amounts to "cultural genocide," Thayai said, as efforts to wipe out the Tibetan language and Tibetan Buddhism continue.
In a statement commemorating the 65th anniversary of the uprising, Tibet's parliament-in-exile accused China of "exterminating the Tibetan identity" by banning the teaching and use of the Tibetan language and placing significant restrictions on Tibetan Buddhism.
"They're trying to make Tibet into China, so that is sad for us," Thayai said. "We are still outside [of Tibet], but we are trying to preserve our culture, religion in Santa Fe."
The Tibetan Association of Santa Fe is dedicated to that goal, Thayai said. The association hosts weekly classes to teach Tibetan Buddhism, language and even cooking classes to maintain cultural traditions, as well as celebrations honoring the Dalai Lama's birthday and other holidays.
March 10 — the anniversary of the Tibetan Uprising — is one more day that the association commemorates.
Local and state officials honored the day with proclamations Sunday. Per Mayor Alan Webber's decree, the day was known as Tibet Rights Day throughout the city while the state observed March 10 as Tibet Day, by proclamation of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.
After declaring Sunday Tibetan Freedom Day in Santa Fe County, Commissioner Anna Hansen, a practicing Tibetan buddhist for decades, expressed her appreciation for the local Tibetan community.
"I'm so deeply moved by my connection to the Tibetan people and the fight for Tibet. ... Thank you all for making your home here and being part of our community — because it is such a rich heritage and gift to all of us," she said.
