Tibetan Refugee Situation - Time is Running Out

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Dear hans, I recently wrote to you about the situation our Tibetan friends are facing this year. Many of you have already responded and I am thankful for your kindness. The situation in Tibet continues to change dramatically. Our work is more important than ever, and so is the support of special friends and allies like you. Your partnership is critical as we redouble our efforts to save Tibet and help the Tibetan people in this time of need. With just a few days left this year, I hope we can count on your help because so many are counting on us. When I was last in Dharamsala, India, I had the privilege to meet with many recent refugees from Tibet. I spent long hours listening to their stories, each unique and heartbreaking in its own way. Several of the new refugees I met had been in hiding, injured and half-starved, from the Chinese authorities for months in the mountains of Tibet because they had participated in the spring 2008 demonstrations. Had they been captured, they would have faced certain detention and probable torture. I asked one young monk in the group of new refugees how he felt now that they had reached Dharamsala, and he said: "We were given an audience with His Holiness, and that meeting brought us great joy. But we have no happiness about arriving safely in India because we can imagine how many brothers and sisters are still suffering under the Chinese in Tibet." This monk had fled Tibet for committing the "crime" of daring to speak out to foreign journalists on a brief visit to the Labrang Monastery. Like thousands of others, these Tibetans have been forced to choose between certain oppression in their homeland and an uncertain future in exile. Arriving Safely Is Not Enough ICT has been asked by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government-in-Exile to do whatever we can to assist Tibetan refugees in transit, and in their lives as refugees. This work is essential, but it also places a heavy burden on our shoulders. Simply put, we need the help of all our supporters at this time of year. Please respond today with a generous year end contribution to make sure we'll have the resources to continue to battle the forces that endanger Tibetan refugees and secure humanitarian assistance for their immediate needs. Any donation, no matter the amount, will help our Tibetan friends this winter. In thanks for your generosity and with best wishes for the New Year, Mary Beth Markey VP, International Advocacy P.S. I am especially grateful for your support now when I know all of our budgets are tight. Even if you can only give $5, $10 or $25, your gift will be a lifeline to Tibetan refugees. Thank you.

International Campaign for Tibet 1825 Jefferson Place NW | Washington, DC 20036 info@savetibet.org | 202-785-1515 http://www.savetibet.org/