TIBET AND THE PRIME MINISTER'S VISIT TO CHINA

EDM number 1551 in 2002-03, proposed by Harry Cohen on 08/07/2003.

That this House notes that recently, on the eve of the 'United Nations Day for Victims of Torture,' now free Tibetan political prisoner Ngawang Sangdrol visited this country to share with members of the Government, Parliament and the British people her first-hand experience of life in occupied Tibet in Chinese prisons since the age of 13; further notes that those who heard her were inspired by her bravery and dignity in the face of the torture she suffered and made aware that Tibetan political prisoners still continue to suffer at the hands of the Chinese authorities in Tibet; is aware that the Tibetans in exile and in the outside world have voiced grave concern about one-sided trials of Tibetan freedom fighters, including of three who were arrested in Tibet's capital Lhasa on 16th June; further notes that the Prime Minister Tony Blair will be visiting China later this month; and urges him directly to discuss the important issues of human rights and Chinese population transfer in Tibet and to make an earnest effort to seek honest commitment from the Chinese leadership that they will enter into meaningful negotiations with the Dalai Lama, who in 1989 was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for leading the non-violent Tibetan struggle for freedom.

This motion has been signed by a total of 73 MPs.