Tibetans Participate In Human Rights Summit in Geneva[Tuesday, 9 March 2010, 1:01 p.m.]

Phuntsok Nyidron, a former Tibetan political prisoner (2nd L) at the human rights conference in Geneva on 8 March 2010

Geneva: The
Second Geneva Summit on Human Rights, Tolerance and Democracy is being
organised jointly by over 25 human rights groups from across the globe.The
Tibetan Women’s Association in Switzerland is one of the organisers of
the two-day conference which started yesterday in Geneva. The
conference features political dissidents and activists from Iran,
China, Cuba, North Korea, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Burma and Vietnam. John
Suarez of the Cuban democracy group, Directorio, opened the session.
Recalling the spirit of the summit’s co-chairs, Vaclav Havel and Lech
Walesa, he urged human rights defenders to come together, brainstorm
and collaborate. Another Cuban dissident, Nestor Rodríguez
Lobaina, has been barred by the Cuban government to attend the
conference. “Yet, thanks to the mobilization of international
organizations and civil society, you can contribute to making sure
democracies fulfill their responsibility to humanity,” said Isabel
Rochat, Conseil d’Etat of Geneva. “We may forgive but we will never
forget. That is the best response to indifference.”Speakers of
the first panel titled “Rising Powers, Rising Rights Compliance? Case
Study of China” included Ms. Rabi Kadeer, Uyghur activist, Ms. Phuntsog
Nyidron, former Tibetan political prisoner and Mr.Yang Jianli, Chinese
dissident who shared their personal stories of suffering and survival
from brutal oppression of Chinese communist regime.  Called
the “mother of the Uyghur nation,” Rebiya Kadeer spent six years in a
Chinese prison after standing up to the authoritarian Chinese
government. Her own sons are serving decade long sentences in China
without due process. She also told that the case of a young Uyghur
protester, whose wounded, lifeless body was anonymously returned to his
family.  The Chinese government has cut internet and telephone
communications,” said Kadeer. Many other such cases exist and are not
recorded. Moderator Ambassador Alfred Moses underlined that “the repressive regime in China will not survive. Oppression cannot survive. “The
panel’s second speaker, Mr. Yang Jianli, said that he was locked in
solitary confinement for five years after taking part in the 1989
pro-democracy demonstrations in Tiananmen Square.  He pressed the
importance of the Internet to push forward democracy in China.  Mr.
Jianli said, “The cost of censorship will outpace the cost of
circumventing censorship. It will be impossible to maintain, China will
not be able to control the will of a billion citizens.”Ms.
Phuntsok Nyidron, former political prisoner and the recipient of 1996
Reebok Human Rights Award said that she was given total of 17 years
sentence. Her crimes were secretly recording songs with inmates in
praise of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in prison and saying “Long Live
Dalai Lama and “Free Tibet”. She further said that “I want to
tell you what a day was like in a Chinese prison. My right hand was
stretched over my right shoulder and a guard stood on a table and
pulled me up by my handcuffs. Electric batons were put in my mouth, my
fingers were poked by shoe sewing machine needles and cigarettes burned
on my face. I was shocked with electric wires until I fell unconscious.
The prison guard poured cold water to wake me up and tortured me again.
That day, I was neither given a single drop of water nor food.” She
urged audiences to help protect and support rights of Tibetan people
who have been struggling for their basic rights under brutal Chinese
communist regime through non-violence. According to
organisers, over 800 participants had signed up to this conference from
50 countries.  Yesterday’s conference was attended by over 200 people
including some diplomats.–Report filed by Tenzin Samphel, Office of Tibet, Geneva