On Monday, a global day of action delivered the 1.5-million strong Avaaz Tibet petition to Chinese embassies and consulates worldwide. Click to see photos, and to urge your head of state to join the call for change:

Dear friends,

On Monday, thousands of people in 84 cities worldwide marched for justice for Tibet–and delivered the 1.5 million-signature Avaaz petition to Chinese embassies and consulates around the globe. (Click below for photos.) Avaaz staff have engaged with Chinese diplomats in New York and London, delivering the petition and urging action. And a growing chorus of world leaders is joining the call.

China is on the fence–indicating an openness to talks with the Dalai Lama, while at the same time pressuring other governments to support its continuing crackdown. Each day, more leaders declare their stance. It’s time to redouble our efforts–click below to send a personal message to your head of state, urging support for dialogue with the Dalai Lama–and check out the photo gallery from Monday’s day of action!

http://www.avaaz.org/en/tibet_report_back/5.php/?cl=69872680

Together, we’ve built an unprecedented wave of global pressure. The Avaaz petition is one of the biggest and fastest-growing global online petitions on any topic in history; since it launched on March 18, it has been signed by 100,000 people per day–an average of more than 4,000 per hour, day and night.

Politicians understand that there is power in numbers. We need to show them that they have more to gain by listening to their own people–and heeding the cry for help from Tibet–than by giving China a pass in the lead-up to the Olympic Games. Take action now

http://www.avaaz.org/en/tibet_report_back/5.php/?cl=69872680

We’re privileged to be alive at a time when people anywhere can reach out and support people everywhere–instantly. If we have the power to make things better, we have a responsibility to act. Thanks for what you’ve done so far, for the people of Tibet and for a more humane world for all.

With hope,

Ben, Ricken, Graziela, Galit, Paul, Iain, Pascal, and the Avaaz team

PS - The more people sign the petition, the more powerful our call for change. We will hope to deliver it to the Chinese government again once we reach our target of 2 million signers. If you haven’t already, please forward the email below to your friends and family, and urge them to sign the Tibet petition!

________ here’s a message to forward to friends _________

Dear friends,

After decades of suffering, the Tibetan people have burst onto the streets in protests and riots. The spotlight of the upcoming Olympic Games is now on China, and Tibetan Nobel peace prize winner the Dalai Lama is calling to end all violence through restraint and dialogue–he urgently needs the world’s people to support him.

China’s leaders are lashing out publicly at the Dalai Lama–but we’re told many Chinese officials believe dialogue is the best hope for stability in Tibet. China’s leadership is right now considering a crucial choice between crackdown and dialogue that could determine Tibet’s–and China’s–future.

We can affect this historic choice–China does care about its international reputation, and we can help them choose the right path. China’s President Hu Jintao needs to hear that the ‘Made in China’ brand and the upcoming Olympics in Beijing will succeed only if he makes the right choice. But it will take an avalanche of global people power to get his attention. Click below now to join 1.5 million others and sign the petition–and tell absolutely everyone you can right away–our goal is 2 million voices united for Tibet:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/tibet_end_the_violence/97.php/?cl=69872680

China’s economy is dependent on “Made in China” exports that we all buy, and the government is keen to make the Olympics in Beijing this summer a celebration of a new and respected China. China is also a sprawling, diverse country with much brutality in its past. And it has good reasons to be concerned about stability — some of Tibet’s rioters killed innocent people. But President Hu must recognize that the greatest danger to Chinese stability and development today comes from hardliners who advocate escalating repression, not from those Tibetans seeking dialogue and reform.

We have presented the petition at protests, marches, rallies, and private meetings with Chinese diplomats around the world–and we will keep sending it as long as it keeps growing. Please forward this email to your address book with a note explaining to your friends why this is important, or use our tell-a-friend tool to email your address book–it will come up after you sign. The Tibetan people have suffered quietly for decades. It is finally their moment to speak–we must help them be heard.

With hope and respect,

The Avaaz team

Here are some links with more information on the Tibetan protests and the Chinese response:

“China softens Dalai Lama stand” — Wen Jiabao calling for dialogue
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1080401/jsp/foreign/story_9081121.jsp

Dalai Lama expresses appreciation for world reaction, appeals for continued support; also sends appeal to the Chinese people:
http://dalailama.com/news.221.htm
http://dalailama.com/news.220.htm

China announcing support from governments around the world:
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/20/content_7829212.htm

Leaders across Europe and Asia starting to back dialogue as the way forward:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7300157.stm

Chinese Prime Minister attacks “Dalai clique”, leaves door open for talks:
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/18/content_7813194.htm

Other Chinese signals:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/China_looks_at_India_to_talk_to_Dalai_Lama/articleshow/2875142.cms
——————————————–

ABOUT AVAAZ
Avaaz.org is an independent, not-for-profit global campaigning organization that works to ensure that the views and values of the world’s people inform global decision-making. (Avaaz means “voice” in many languages.) Avaaz receives no money from governments or corporations, and is staffed by a global team based in London, Rio de Janeiro, New York, Paris, Washington DC, and Geneva.

Dear friends, In just 7 days over 1 million of us have signed the petition supporting human rights and dialogue in Tibet - the fastest growing internet petition in history! After decades of injustice, the Tibetan people are crying out to the world for change, and the world is answering. As China’s leaders decide whether to respond to Tibetan grievances with increased repression or dialogue with the Dalai Lama, an International Day of Action has been declared for Monday, March 31st. In 4 days, thousands of people in cities across the world will march to Chinese embassies and consulates, and stack hundreds of boxes containing our petition outside them. 1 million signatures makes a mountain of boxes - it’s a powerful way to deliver our message. We have just 4 days left until the petition delivery, so we’re redoubling our efforts to build the petition even larger - to 2 million signatures - in that time. Please sign below, and then forward this email to all your friends and family: http://www.avaaz.org/en/tibet_end_the_violence/75.php/?cl=67617278 China’s hardliners are lashing out publicly at the Dalai Lama–but many Chinese leaders believe dialogue is the best hope for stability in Tibet. Governments around the world have begun calling for dialogue, and there are many hopeful signs that, if we can keep the pressure up, China will agree. Already, we have had constructive discussions with Chinese officials about the message of our campaign. Chinese President Hu Jintao values his country’s international reputation, and he needs to hear from us that the ‘Made in China’ brand and the upcoming Olympics in Beijing will succeed only if he chooses dialogue over the hardliners’ repression. An avalanche of global people power is moving to get his attention. Our petition recognizes the concerns of Chinese leaders that riots and separatism could lead to dangerous instability. But we support the position of the Dalai Lama, that the best path to stability and development for China lies through dialogue and respect, not repression. This is the most promising moment in decades to address the injustices of Tibet - but already the media is moving on to other stories. We need to seize this moment with a massive statement of global support this Monday — for the next four days, let’s pull out all the stops for Tibet. With hope, Ricken, Graziela, Ben, Iain, Pascal, Milena, Galit, Paul, Esra’a and the whole Avaaz team PS - Here are some links for more information: Reuters reports unrest continues: http://www.reuters.com/article/vcCandidateFeed1/idUSPEK369654 China allows first journalists back into Lhasa, monks speak out: http://www.chinapost.com.tw/china/local%20news/tibet/2008/03/27/149167/Tibet-monks.htm Europe and the US step up calls for dialogue: http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/03/27/europe/27europe.php Prominent Chinese Intellectuals call for fair approach to Tibet: http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/03/24/asia/chinasub.php ———– ABOUT AVAAZ Avaaz.org is an independent, not-for-profit global campaigning organization that works to ensure that the views and values of the world’s people inform global decision-making. (Avaaz means “voice” in many languages.) Avaaz receives no money from governments or corporations, and is staffed by a global team based in London, Rio de Janeiro, New York, Paris, Washington DC, and Geneva. Don’t forget to check out our Facebook and Myspace pages!

I thought some of you might be interested in this:

Dear friends,

In just 36 hours, 253,553 of us have supported the Dalai Lama’s call for dialogue and human rights in Tibet. This is an incredible response–if each of us can get 4 more of our friends to sign the petition, we’ll hit 1 million this week!

China’s leaders are lashing out publicly at the Dalai Lama–but we’re told many Chinese
officials believe dialogue is the best hope for stability in Tibet. China’s leadership is right
now considering a crucial choice between crackdown and dialogue that could determine Tibet’s–and China’s–future.

We can affect this historic choice–China does care about its international reputation, and
we can help them choose the right path. China’s President Hu Jintao needs to hear that the
‘Made in China’ brand and the upcoming Olympics in Beijing will succeed only if he makes
the right choice. But it will take an avalanche of global people power to get his attention.
Click below now to join 250,000 others and sign the petition–and tell absolutely everyone
you can right away–our goal is 1 million voices united for Tibet:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/tibet_end_the_violence/22.php

China’s economy is dependent on “Made in China” exports that we all buy, and
the government is keen to make the Olympics in Beijing this summer a celebration
of a new and respected China. China is also a sprawling, diverse country with much
brutality in its past, so it has good reasons to be concerned about stability — some
of Tibet’s rioters killed innocent people. But President Hu must recognize that the
greatest danger to Chinese stability and development today comes from hardliners
who advocate escalating repression, not from those Tibetans seeking dialogue and
reform.

We will deliver our petition directly to Chinese officials in New York, London and Beijing,
but it must be a massive number first. Please forward this email to your address book
with a note explaining to your friends why this is important, or use our tell-a-friend tool
to email your address book–it will come up after you sign.

The Tibetan people have suffered quietly for decades. It is finally their moment to speak
–we must help them be heard.

With hope and respect,

Ricken, Iain, Graziela, Paul, Galit, Pascal, Milena, Ben and the whole Avaaz team

Here are some links with more information on the Tibetan protests and the Chinese response:

Crackdown in Tibet, but protests spreading:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar/19/tibet.china
http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/crackdown-on-protests-widens/2008/03/17/1205602289349.html

Dalai Lama calling for dialogue and restraint, and an end to violence:
http://www.dalailama.com/news.216.htm
http://www.agi.it/world/news/200803191258-pol-ren0032-art.html

Leaders across Europe and Asia starting to back dialogue as the way forward:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7300157.stm

Chinese Prime Minister attacks “Dalai clique”, leaves door open for talks:
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/18/content_7813194.htm

Other Chinese signals:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/China_looks_at_India_to_talk_to_Dalai_Lama/articleshow/2875142.cms
—————————————————

ABOUT AVAAZ
Avaaz.org is an independent, not-for-profit global campaigning organization that works
to ensure that the views and values of the world’s people inform global decision-making.
(Avaaz means “voice” in many languages.) Avaaz receives no money from governments
or corporations, and is staffed by a global team based in London, Rio de Janeiro, New York,
Paris, Washington DC, and Geneva.

Don’t forget to check out our Facebook and Myspace pages!

To contact Avaaz, please do not reply to this email. Instead, write to info@avaaz.org.
You can also send postal mail to our New York office: 260 Fifth Avenue, 9th floor,
New York, NY 10001 U.S.A.

If you have technical problems, please go to http://www.avaaz.org.

Melissa sent the following:

Vickie sent this link, along with: The author — and in possession of excellent writing skills — has revealed the depth of China’s duplicity in its dealings with Tibet …

Let the glass house fall

As an aside…the author starts with several quotes, including this one from Alfred Adler:

Life happens at the level of events, not of words. Trust only movement.
—Alfred Adler

Philosophically, I consider myself an Adlerian Objectivist. Having had the benefit of learning about Alfred Adler (and Ayn Rand) from my longtime friend, an Adlerian psychologist, I am very familiar with Alfred Adler. To put the above quote into Steve’s words, “Watch the tongue in the shoe. Don’t listen to the tongue in the cheek; it lies through the teeth.”

Fears of another Tiananmen as Tibet explodes in hatred

The Olympics, just months away, will not stop Beijing cracking down on riots that may have left more than 30 dead

VENGEFUL rioters returned to the streets of the old Tibetan quarter of Lhasa yesterday, defying the gunshots and tear gas of Chinese troops surrounding the centre of the city. Read the article

Sunday, March 16, 2008

By Jill Drew
Washington Post Foreign Service
Friday, March 14, 2008; 7:58 AM

BEIJING, March 14 — A week of tense confrontations over Chinese rule in Tibet erupted in violence Friday, as hundreds of protesters clashed with police and set fire to shops in the center of Lhasa. Doctors reported dozens of wounded streaming into area hospitals and one witness said the downtown area was “in a state of siege.”

The rare breakout of violence, the worst in 20 years in the capital city of a remote mountainous region that is the heart of Tibetan Buddhism, posed a challenge to the Chinese government as it prepares to host the 2008 Olympic games in August. Seeking to make the games a worldwide celebration of its swift economic progress over the past three decades, the Chinese government has steadfastly attempted to project an image of harmony and stability, even while tightening its grip over the restive region.

“This spiraling unrest has triggered the scenario the Chinese prayed would not happen,” said Robbie Barnett, director of modern Tibetan studies at Columbia University. “Now we’re just watching the clock tick until people get off the street or the Chinese open fire.”

The U.S. Embassy in Beijing, citing “first-hand reports from American citizens in the city who report gunfire and other indications of violence,” issued an advisory warning tourists to avoid Lhasa. A doctor said in a telephone interview that he received 41 wounded at the Tibetan Autonomous Region People’s Hospital in Lhasa. An official at the People’s Hospital of Lhasa said there were many wounded, but gave no details.

A person who answered the phone at a Lhasa firehouse confirmed “many places are on fire,” but said there were “too many” to be specific.

The protests began Monday, when a few Buddhist monks and nuns demonstrated in a public plaza to commemorate Tibet’s 1959 failed uprising against China. Hundreds of monks from a nearby monastery marched to join them, but were stopped by police, who arrested between 50 and 60 of them, according to news reports. Hundreds more monks took to the streets on Tuesday to demand the release of those arrested, and were reportedly dispersed with tear gas. By Wednesday, police and paramilitary officials had surrounded at least two monasteries and the monks could not leave, witnesses said. By Thursday, the roads to the three main monasteries in the mountains near Lhasa were blocked and reports emerged that two monks had attempted suicide and others were staging hunger strikes.

Early Friday morning, there were reports of armed personnel carriers stationed on the road to the monasteries. Fu Jun, a spokesman for the local Chinese government, said in a telephone interview that the situation had “stabilized.”

But at 11 a.m., monks from a small monastery in the heart of Lhasa attempted to start a demonstration, the Times of London reported. As police attempted to break it up, hundreds of Tibetans stepped in and the fighting began.

As evening came, bars and restaurants in the city center closed down. “We want to stay inside,” said one bar manager in a telephone interview. “It’s safer.”

The Chinese government had no immediate comment on the violence, but had previously blamed the violence on the Dalai Lama, Tibetan Buddhist’s spiritual leader, who fled to exile in India after the 1959 uprising. “This is a political scheme by the Dalai group, attempting to separate China and try to make some unrest in the normal harmonious, peaceful life of Tibetan people,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang told reporters on Thursday.

Sonam Dagpo, secretary of information and international relations for the Dalai Lama’s organization in Dharamshala, said that was not the case. “The Dalai Lama has always advised events to be peaceful,” he said in an interview on Friday morning. “His holiness did not ask anyone to protest.”

Meanwhile, in India, a group of 100 Tibetan exiles who had pledged to march back to Tibet to call attention to their demands for religious freedom and Tibetan independence from China, were sentenced to 14 days in detention by a local magistrate after being stopped by police on Thursday near Dehra. They had walked about two hours from their starting point in Dharamshala.

“We are totally focused and committed right now to the march and our effort right now is to secure the release of the marchers,” said Tsewang Rinzin, president of the Tibetan Youth Congress, in a telephone interview. “We know what is going on. We can see that India appears to be cozying up to China at all costs, and that is a disappointment.”

Rama Lakshmi contributed to this report.