Ngawang Sangdrol Petition

**********************************************
E-mail petitions don’t work. To learn why see:

http://urbanlegends.about.com/science/urbanlegends/library/weekly/aa082800b.htm

**********************************************

Please take a few moments to read this e-mail.

Ngawang Sangdrol is a Buddhist nun who believes that
Tibet should be independent from China. At the age of
10 she was arrested for the first time by Chinese
authorities. Her only crime was to participate in a
peaceful demonstration for the independence of Tibet
from China. When she was 13 she took again part in a
peaceful demonstration. She was too young to be
brought to trial under Chinese law, nevertheless
Chinese authorities held her for 9 months. In June
1992, at the age of 15, she was once more arrested by
Chinese authorities for trying to stage a peaceful
demonstration with fellow nuns. Subsequently she was
accused for “subversive and separatistic activities”
and sentenced to 3 years imprisonment in the notorious
Drapchi prison. Her sentence was extended for another
6 years in October 1993. The reason for this was the
fact that she had sung and recorded independence songs
in the prison together with 13 other nuns. The tape
with those songs was smuggled out of jail and
distributed throughout Tibet.

In 1996 Ngawang Sangdrol’s sentence was again
prolonged for another 8 years as she shouted “free
Tibet” while standing in the rain in the prison’s
yard. The third extension of Ngawang’s sentence was
announced in October 1998 when she refused to
acknowledge the Panchen Lama, whom the Chinese
authorities had chosen ( The Panchen Lama is the
second most important political and religious
dignitary of Tibet. He died in 1998 and ever since
there has been a dispute between Chinese authorities
and the Dalai Lama about who was the reincarnation of
the Panchan Lama). Including this last extension of 4
years her total sentence amounts to 21 years. Together
with other prison inmates in the Drapchi prison
Ngawang Sangdrol suffers under inhuman treatment
including beating and solitary confinement with
reduced food rations. Today she has problems with her
kidneys as a result of torture. This inhuman treatment
of Ngawang Sangdrol and prisoners throughout China is
a clear violation of Article 5 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights which prohibits torture at
all times and under any circumstance.

“Alas this sad song in my mind
I send to those who help prisoners
These feelings in this dark season
[line indistinct]
I’ll never forget the horrible tortures.
May this present misery in prison
Never be inflicted on any sentient being”

I ask you to help Ngawang Sangdrol by signing this
petition and sending a copy to all your friends.
The list will be printed out and sent to:

Premier of the People’s Republic of China
ZHU Rongji Zongli Guowuyuan
9 Xihuangchenggenbeijie
Beijingsh1 100032
People’s Rebuplic of China

By signing this, we demand that Ngawang Sangdrol is to
be released unconditionally and immediately.
Furthermore we demand that the Chinese authorities
respect Article 5 of the UDHR by treating Ngawang
Sangdrol and other prisoners in China with dignity,
and by bringing to an end any form of torture and
inhuman treatment. We demand the Chinese authorities
to disclose all information about the health of
prisoners throughout China by allowing an independent
organization to inspect prisons in China.

NAME CITY COUNTRY
1) Matthias Noester, Vienna, Austria
2) Angelika Gerstacker, Vienna, Austria
3) Nicole Kriegbaum, Vienna, Austria
4) Birthe Getzner, Vienna, Austria
5) Michael Getzner, Vienna, Austria
6) Walter Huettler, Vienna, Austria
7) Manfred Binder, Berlin, Germany Claudia Koll, Berlin, Germany
9) Michael, Wedell, Germany
10) Andreas Kampmann-Gr¸newald, M¸nster, Germany
11) Gaby Hagmans, M¸nster, Germany
12) Michael Volz, Halle, Germany
13) Axel Weiss, Mainz, Germany
14) Dr. Susanne Schmid, Germany
15) Oliver Biehlmaier, Germany
16) Bj-rn Siemers, Germany
17) Pascal Hitzler, Cork, Ireland
18) Frithjof Lutscher, Tuebingen, Germany
19) Christina Kuttler, Rottenburg, Germany
20) Martin D. Zimmermann, Tuebingen, Germany
21) Michael Konrad, Rottenburg, Germany
22) Barbel Sambeth, Rottenburg, Germany
23) Alison White, Adelaide, Australia
24) Brendan Lo, Darwin/Adelaide, Australia
25) Natasha Sargeant, Adelaide, Australia
26) David Murchland, Adelaide, Australia
27) Ange Maddocks, Adelaide, Australia
28) Steph Rice, Adelaide, Australia
29) Geoff Pinnock, London, U.K.
30) Emma Rhys, Adelaide, Australia
31) Cheyne Rule, Adelaide, Australia
32) Carole Armstrong, Adelaide, Australia
33) muriel chen, Tasmania Australia
34) bob beech, Minnesota, US
35) Sheila Michaels, New York, NY, USA
36) Carol Anshien, New York, NY, USA
37) Roy Wood, Roberts Creek, B.C., Canada
38) Naomi Oren, Jerusalem, Israel
39) Yoram Getzler, Israel
40) Ruth Mason, Jerusalem, Israel
41) Yonah Kathy Kahn Hurwit, Jerusalem, Israel
42) Mark Hurwit, Jerusalem, Israel
43) Daniel Mark, Jerusalem, Israel
44) Reena Lazar, Vancouver, BC, Canada
45) Fanny Obadia, Montreal,PQ,Canada
46) Birgit Gehrt, Berkeley, CA,USA
47) Joan E Howard, Oakland, CA, USA
48) Patrice Pike, Austin, TX, USA
49)Traci L. Williams, Oakland, CA, USA
50)Mireya Alejo, San Francisco, CA
51)Anne Little, Oakland, CA, USA
52)Judith Morgan, Aptos, CA. USA
53)Renee Alexander, Nevada City, CA USA