Dear Friends of Tibet,
We would like to take this opportunity to tell you about an important project, one that will greatly increase the Tibetan Government in Exile's communications, which is in need of your support: the Gangkyi Wide Web expedition, part of the TibetNet project.
A vast nation isolated for many centuries by its location on the Himalayan plateau, Tibet has always suffered from poor communications. Indeed, the lack of contact with other nations allowed the Chinese army to invade Tibet in 1950 - the rest of the world was unaware of the onslaught until it was too late. Tibet's ancient and fantastic civilization and ecosystem are now faced with extinction due to 47 years of mismanagement and abuse under its colonial rulers.
It would be very difficult to oust the Chinese by armed force, and it would go against the Tibetan Buddhist belief that violence provides at best only a short-term effect, not long-term results. Instead, His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan nation have tried to make their case known to the world, hoping that Communist China will be condemned and pressured to effect the removal of its occupation forces, both civilian and military, from Tibet.
It is our belief that anyone who hears of what has happened in Tibet will support its cause, but the Tibetans must be heard. The Committee of 100 for Tibet and Tibet Online have planned an expedition to Dharamsala, India, home of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetans in exile, to install an Intranet email and Web network that will allow the Tibetans to communicate much more effectively with each other and the outside world. A dedicated volunteer team of Internet development experts is preparing to go late this spring, but we need your help.
The projected cost of the expedition's hardware is US $15,000. In addition, the estimated cost of TibetNet's maintenance staff in Delhi and Dharamsala for the coming year is $20,000. We would like to ask each of you to send what you can, be it $10 or $1000, to help the Tibetans prove that non-violence is a solution that works. In a world where terrorism gets so much attention, it is important to support those who are willing to brave the path of peace.
Thank you for your help!
Please send your tax-deductible donation to:
The Committee of 100 for Tibet
PO Box 60612
Palo Alto, CA
94306-0612
IMPORTANT: you must write "TibetNet" on your check.
