FROM DHARAMSALA TO NEW YORK, LAUNCHING THE TIBETAN VERSION

 

On November 15th, International Day of the Imprisoned Writer, took place the presentation of the Tibetan Version of the ‘PEN International. An Illustrated History’ for the Tibetan communities in exile. The first event of the day was organized by PEN Tibet Abroad in Dharamsala, where lives His Hollyness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan institutions in exile, and it's as well the main office of PEN TIbet. In the picture we see members of its board holding an updated report on Tibetan writers in Prison and the PEN Centenary book. Translator Golok Chakmo, at the right and holding the book in this picture, translated texts into Tibetan and supervised the edition.

The banner of the event included the five main cases of the day for PEN International together with five cases of Tibetan writers in prison:

The book includes PEN Tibet among the PEN centres in exile who have shaped PEN International, in the tradition initiated by German PEN in Exile in 1934. Height centres in exile were sheltered in London in 1943 and received the support of English PEN's Refugee Fund.

The Tibetan chapter starts in the library of the ancient manuscripts in Dharamsala and underlines the continuity of Tibetan literature in Tibet and the diaspora after more than sixty years of Chinese occupation:

Tibetan writers and scholars participated actively in the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights in Barcelona. The UDLR got the immediate support of HH the Dalai Lama. PEN Tibet Abroad was founded in 2000 and has actively participated in PEN International's assemblies of delegates.

Tibetan PEN smuggles books out of Tibet and publishes them in India, campaigns in support of Tibetan imprisoned writers and promotes Tibetan literature i all fields. In the picture, poet and singer Lhoudup Palsang, here wearing dark glasses, past president of PEN Tibetan Writers Abroad. On his left is Nyima Tso, sociologist and general secretary of the Centre. First on the right is Lokdun, vice-president and school director, and on his left, Buddha Kyab, fulltime children’s book writer for the network of Tibetan schools in exile. They all crossed the Himalayas, escaping from Tibet as teenagers.

This report by the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy analyses the systematic replacement of Tibetan language by Mandarin Chinese in the schools of Tibet:

On November 15th, the day ended with the presentation of the Tibetan version of the PEN Centenary Book at Tibet House New York, with the participation Jennifer Clement, PEN president 2015-2021, reputed scholar Bob Thurman, translator Golok Chakmo and PEN Centenary director Carles Torner

The belly band of the book reads "100 years protecting the freedom of expression" in Tibetan —during 62 of those 100 years Tibet has been under severe repression of its freedom of expression and linguistic rights by the Chinese government.