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Today in Seattle a rally was held at Westlake Mall. Over two hundred people attended - the largest turn out ever for a Tibetan event according to some of the local Tibetans.

Ani Wangmo la, with the help of a translator addressed the crowd:
"Tibet is occupied by the Chinese and we are in a very desperate situation and those people with compassion and love supporting the Tibetan cause I want to give thanks. When you are wealthy and you have lots of money it's easy to find many friends. When you are in a very poor and desperate situation it's very hard to find good friends, so those who come here with love and compassion when Tibet is in a really really bad situation to support our cause it's really true friends. In addition the fellow Tibetans who are here today who left behind their friends and relatives and neighbors and have come to exile in the United States my gentle heart wants to say again thank you for coming here."

"For the first time I'm seeing Ani Wangmo la," said Tsoltim N. Shakabpa, former President of the Tibetan Association of Washington, "and I'd like all of you take a look in her eyes. She's got eyes of a very simple person. Eyes of compassion. But in her heart there is a lot of fire burning. Burning for Tibet. And that is what I hope is happening today for all of us."

"I am here today to talk on behalf of Tibet," he continued. "For the independence of Tibet. I don't see one sign here that says 'Autonomy for Tibet' or 'We will live under Chinese rule.' Every sign I see says 'China out of Tibet,' 'Free Tibet' and 'Free Mongolia' and that is what we are here for. So let me begin my speech.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. had a dream! We, too, have a dream! Dr. King had a dream to liberate his people from slavery and discrimination. We, too, have a dream to liberate our countrymen, our friends and family, our priests and nuns from the illegal occupation of our country, Tibet. To liberate them from oppression, from torture, from imprisonment, and yes! from discrimination too!

It took the black people of this nation over 200 years to gain their freedom, and they are still struggling today to make that freedom a genuine freedom. But they have come so far, so well, because they had a dream that never faltered, a leadership that listened to the voice of the people, and a people that stood united in the face of any storm or temptation to acquiesce. History is full of examples of such dreams, of such determination, and of such achievements, and history will continue to be made in such manner by the oppressed and colonized nations and peoples of the world.

The annals of history are marked with the rise and fall of empires and the victory of those nations that never faltered on their principles and remained steadfast in their objectives. Just as modern science changes the course of nature, so too will nature change the course of mankind. Just as it has always been our nature to be Tibetan, the very fibers and cells in our body will revolt if we try to be anything else; and anyone or anything that tries to change our nature or deprive us of our natural rights, better be prepared for the storm that the Tibetan "El Nino" will wreck.

I tell you, my friends, our day of victory too will come. But it will come only if we stand united and struggle relentlessly for the truth. The truth is, and the truth will always remain, that Tibet belongs to the Tibetans and Tibet will once again, be an independent nation.

If you believe in anything less, you might as well have stayed home and read chairman Mao's 'Little Red Book.'"

Linda Smith, a Washington state Congressperson spoke, "I stood on the Congressional floor debating Most Favored Nation status and I heard people say, 'but you understand, if we raise enough money it raises up people everywhere.' and I thought, 'how dare you talk about that man or woman in the slave labor camp in China as if you have a clue!' I have to believe that the American people, if they knew, if they could see, that they would be marching by the millions in the streets. So, you that came across country and are fasting, who are walking for what you believe in, thank you. You, that are here today, who are standing here when others are shopping, thank you. You see if America doesn't stand for freedom and human rights, I want to ask you this, who is going to? Our Administration is wrong. Our Republican leadership is wrong. Our Democratic leadership is wrong. Our President is wrong."

ORIES FROM THE MARCH...

International Tibet Independence Movement
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