New York [US] August 16 (ANI): A Tibetan delegation, accompanied by two family members of late Tibetan independence activist Lobga Rangzen, met with United Nations Human Rights Council Special Representative Anne Siyota at the United Nations and urged the international rights body to take more decisive action over the deteriorating human rights situation in Tibet, according to a Phayul report.
The delegation was led by former 13th and 14th Tibetan Youth Congress Centrex President and former Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile member Tsewang Rigzin. The delegation held discussions with Siyota for nearly an hour and submitted six demands addressing what it described as continuing violations of Tibetan rights and the erosion of Tibet’s cultural and national identity.
The first demand called on the United Nations to implement its earlier resolutions on Tibet adopted in 1959, 1961 and 1965. These resolutions had raised concerns over violations of the fundamental rights and freedoms of the Tibetan people and called for an end to policies undermining their rights, including their right to self-determination.
The delegation also urged the UN to dispatch an independent fact-finding mission to Tibet and recognise Tibet as an independent country, with sovereignty vested in the Tibetan people.
The delegation raised concerns over China’s education policies in Tibet, particularly the expansion of state-run residential boarding schools for Tibetan children.
Rigzin told Phayul that the delegation called on the UN to pressure Beijing to dismantle the boarding-school system, which they alleged was designed to accelerate the assimilation of Tibetan children into Chinese society by distancing them from their families, language and cultural traditions.
The delegation further urged the United Nations to publicly oppose China’s recently implemented Law on Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress and called for the legislation to be withdrawn immediately.
The sixth demand focused on what Rigzin described as the need for the United Nations to show greater solidarity and sympathy for the Tibetan people.
As part of the appeal, the delegation asked a UN representative to visit the site outside the UN Headquarters in New York where the late activist Lobga Rangzen carried out self-immolation on July 2, 2026. The Tibetan activist later died from his injuries.
The delegation also called on the UN to acknowledge and honour the thousands of Tibetan men and women who, according to the delegation, have sacrificed their lives for the Tibetan cause over the years.
Rigzin said the six demands were ultimately aimed at pressing the UN to move beyond expressions of concern and take more tangible steps on the Tibet issue, including enforcing earlier resolutions, facilitating an independent investigation into conditions in Tibet, challenging policies viewed as threatening Tibetan identity, and giving greater recognition to the rights and grievances of the Tibetan people. (ANI)
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