Dear Peace Activist,

Change often occurs when it is sparked by an unexpected, unrelated event. For China, that event may be the 2008 Olympic summer games.

Last week at a ceremony that the New York Times called “carefully scripted” the Olympic torch began its 130-day journey around the globe to the Opening Ceremony in Beijing.

Activists in London, Paris and San Francisco have all pledged to disrupt the relay to bring attention to China’s human rights record, but the most controversial stop on the torch’s journey will certainly be in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet.

The week of March 10th hundreds of monks and residents of Lhasa took to the streets in what is believed to be the largest Tibetan protests against Chinese rule in two decades. In the days that followed, violence and unrest erupted in the region.

China says approximately 20 people were killed and that the riots were orchestrated by the Dalai Lama. Tibetans say that the government killed more than 140 people. Military blockades and Chinese efforts to prevent journalists from traveling in those areas and control of the internet have made it impossible to know the details.

Members of the international community have responded to the Olympic torch’s ironically named “Journey of Harmony” in a number of ways. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she will not attend the opening ceremony in protest. French President Nicolas Sarkozy has left open the possibility that he may do the same. While President Bush has not said that he will boycott the ceremony, he has suggested that the Olympics provide an opportunity to “shine a bright light on a variety of issues.”

International athletes have also taken the opportunity to take a stand against human rights abuses. Two planned torch bearers, one in India and one in Thailand have both refused to participate.

In your five minutes for peace this week, please help Amnesty International to bring international attention to the plight of political prisoners in Tibet by signing this petition. (Be advised that by signing this petition you are joining Amnesty International’s Action Network and can expect to get future emails from them.)

As always, thanks for all you do.

In Peace,

Cheryl Wertz
Executive Director, Peace Action Fund of New York State
info@panys.org

PS – Last week I went to Washington DC to ask the Department of Energy to stop building new nuclear weapons. Please click here or at right to submit your own comments. The deadline is April 10th, so act today!