Beijing: A Tibetan’s Protest - Aug. 10, 2008

A Tibetan woman from Germany and a Canadian man protested with Tibetan flags near Tiananmen Square at 3:12pm, August 10, 2008.

At the same time, three other supporters from the United States and Canada were detained as they attempted to unfurl a large banner reading “Tibetans are Dying for Freedom.”

Read Students for a Free Tibet’s press release about both incidents.

Download Full-Resolution Photos set: ATibetansProtestBeijing081008.zip
or view on Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/sfthq/sets/72157606641834386/

Padma-Dolma Fielitz (seen above holding onto a Tibetan flag being violently ) made this statement [LISTEN] as she was being detained:

“I’m here at the Beijing Olympics, at Tiananmen Square
People are seeing this is what’s going on, and they know exactly what’s going on.
They’ve kidnapped Tibet, They’ve kidnapped (inaudible)
They’ve kidnapped the Beijing Olympics to demonstrate their power in front of everyone.
They claim they don’t want to politicize it, but they do.
And they’re trying to keep it locked up, keep it all under control (inaudible)
All we have… is the flag that I was trying to hold
This is my flag, this is the flag of my people
And my people… and they’re not (inaudible)
And they’re not Chinese!”

Download the audio as an MPEG-4 file.

Beijing: A Tibetan’s Protest 08.10.08 from Students for a Free Tibet on Vimeo.

Click here to download MPEG-4 Video of arrest and protest.

Biographies and Pictures

Padma-Dolma Fielitz, 21, from Germany, has a Tibetan father and a German mother. She was born and raised in Germany and currently lives in London where she studies Economics and Development Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies.

“I feel that there are so many things in life that I want to do. I love music, I love going out with my friends, I love books, I love traveling and meeting people with different backgrounds. However, not everyone enjoys this freedom. Tibetans inside Tibet are not free.

Growing up in Germany and being half Tibetan, I know that I want to contribute as much as I can towards the freedom of my people. I had a “Tibet Moment” when I was 16. I realized that I can use the freedom that I have in order to work for a free Tibet. I do want to use the rights that I have to speak up for those Tibetans who cannot do that.”

Arrested along with Padma:

Adam Zenko, 35, was born in Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA. He is a paralegal and currently lives in San Francisco, CA, USA. He became involved with Students for a Free Tibet in Kathmandu, Nepal in 1993-1994, where he studied Tibetan language and Buddhism and visited central Tibet, as well as Tibetan exile communities throughout South Asia.

Maude Côté, 28 was born in Rimouski, Quebec, Canada and currently lives in Montreal, Quebec, where she practices law. She attended law school at Université du Québec à Montréal. Maude has been involved with Students for a Free Tibet for more than 10 years. She joined the SFT chapter at Université de Sherbrooke in 1998 and currently serves on the SFT Canada board, of which she is a founding member.

Steve Anderson, 28, was born in Grande Prairie, Alberta. Steve has been a Tibet supporter since he traveled in India and Nepal in 2003-2004, spending several weeks in Nepal’s Everest region. He currently lives in Edmonton where he works as a computer technician.

John Hocevar, 40, was born in Hartford, Connecticut. He attended the University of Connecticut, earning a B.Sc. in biology, and then Nova Southeastern University in Florida, where he earned an M.Sc. in marine biology. In 1994, he co-founded Students for a Free Tibet with future wife Heidi Melz. After several years at SFT, he left for a year of campaigns training and a trip to Tibet, and returned to SFT as Executive Director in 1998. One of the priority campaigns under John’s leadership was an attempt to block Beijing’s bid to host the Olympics, or, failing that, to ensure that human rights issues were a central part of the debate. John was in Moscow when the IOC awarded Beijing the Olympics in 2001, and was detained several times for his efforts to warn delegates that the Chinese government was more likely to use the Olympics to justify their regime than to allow the Olympics to prompt any reforms. In 2003, John left SFT and moved to Austin, TX. He now works as the director of Greenpeace USA’s oceans campaign. He is grateful for the opportunity to continue to support Tibetans’ efforts to regain their independence as a volunteer, and is using vacation time to travel to Beijing in the lead up to the 2008 Olympics. Read a report from Beijing by John on the SFT blog and read an interview with John on the Wall Street Journal blog.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

ALSO ON SUNDAY AUGUST 10, 2008: FIVE CANADIAN TIBET SUPPORTERS DETAINED AT HOTEL

At 11:40 am Beijing time, five Canadian Tibet activists confirmed by phone that they were being detained at their hotel in the Chao-Yang District and questioned in the basement. The activists were later deported to Hong Kong and will be returning to Canada on August 11th. For more details on their arrival, please contact +1 647-637-1810.

William Nelson, 32, was born in Prince Ruport, British Columbia, Canada, and is a member of the Tsimpsian First Nation. He is a student in Environmental Science and lives in Vancouver, British Columbia. Listen to an audio recording of William just before he and the others were detained. Download the audio recording as an MPEG-4 file.

Jasmine Freed, 28, was born in British Columbia, Canada. She lives in Vancouver where she is a midwifery student at the University of British Columbia. She has a BA in international relations from UBC. She became involved with Students for a Free Tibet after traveling for a year in China, Hong Kong, and Tibet during 1998 and 1999.

Paul Baker, 29, lives in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. He was born in Middleton, Nova Scotia and grew up in Bridgetown, Nova Scotia. He as lived in Alberta for the past four years.

Denise Ogonoski, 26, was born in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada. She has a BA in political science and lives in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. She has participated in demonstrations to support Provincial Bill 46 and has been involved in campaigns to protect Alberta from drilling in the tar sands.

Mike Hudema, 32, was born in Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada and currently lives in Edmonton, Alberta. He has been a longtime activist and currently works for Greenpeace Canada, focusing on the Alberta tar sands. He has a BEd in drama and a law degree in labour and environmental law.