NEW DELHI — At 7:32 am local time, four activists from Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) unfurled two banners reading “Xi Jinping = Genocide” and “Tibet is Facing Ecocide: Free Tibet” alongside a Tibetan National Flag near Bharat Mandapam ahead of Chinese Dictator Xi Jinping’s arrival for the BRICS Summit.
The three climbers, alongside two other SFT activists and a Tibetan journalist, were detained by local authorities. The three climbers are currently held in preventive detention at Tihar Jail through 14 September, while the other two are being held at Connaught Place Police Station. Formal charges have not yet been announced.
Under Xi Jinping’s regime, China has intensified efforts to eradicate Tibetan identity, exploit Tibet’s climate-critical ecosystem, and commit continuous aggression along the India-Tibet border. SFT activists emphasized that BRICS leaders must take a firm, united stand against Beijing’s expansionism to safeguard regional security and environmental stability.
Karma Dolma, Detained SFT-India Activist said: “China unilaterally builds destructive mega-dams on Tibet’s rivers — the source of Asia’s major rivers — with no consultation or transparency whatsoever. That means for India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and the downstream region, Tibet’s water is an urgent national security issue. The recent Tibet-Nepal flash floods are just the latest warning. Now, China is building a 60,000-megawatt Super Dam on the Yarlung Tsangpo, located right near the India border. This is a ticking time bomb threatening Northeast India and downstream Bangladesh.”
Tenzin Tsephel, Detained SFT-India Activist said: “China’s incursions from Ladakh to Arunachal Pradesh aren’t local border squabbles. They are the execution of a deliberate, long-term expansionist agenda. Beijing views Tibet as the palm and the Himalayas as its fingers. India cannot secure its borders through passive defense. True stability requires standing firm against Beijing, recognizing Tibet’s historic independence, and anchoring diplomacy in the legal foundation of the 1914 Simla Convention.”
Students for a Free Tibet- India (SFT-India)
Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) works in solidarity with the Tibetan people in their struggle for freedom and independence. We are a chapter-based network of young people and activists around the world.
https://studentsforafreetibet.org/
CONTACT: indiagrassroots@studentsforafreetibet.org