In light of the disgraceful conduct of the South African government in refusing entry, under pressure from the government of the People’s Republic of China, to H.H. Dalai Lama to attend the Johannesburg Peace Conference, the South African Friends of Tibet:
1. Calls on the Peace Conference organizers to postpone indefinitely the Johannesburg Peace Conference until H.H. Dalai Lama is able to attend. In this regard, the call is addressed particularly to the Organising Committee of the 2010 World Cup.
2. Calls on the Nobel Committee not to endorse or attend the Peace Conference.
3. Calls on the South African Nobel Peace Prize laureates to support the postponement of the conference,and not to attend if the conference takes place without H.H. Dalai Lama.
4. Calls on Mr Morgan Freeman and Ms Charlize Theron to support the postponement of the conference and not to attend if the conference takes place without H.H. Dalai Lama.
5. Calls on all conference invitees to boycott the conference in sympathy with H.H. Dalai Lama.
6. Calls on the South African and Norwegian soccer teams to cancel the Mandela Cup match scheduled for Saturday 28th March, in sympathy with H.H. Dalai Lama.
7. As is clear to all, the debarring of H.H. Dalai Lama from the Johannesburg Peace Conference makes a sham of its intentions.
The Committee and Members of the South African Friends of Tibet.
ANNEX. 1
PRESS RELEASE
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21 MARCH 2009; SOUTH AFRICAN FRIENDS OF TIBET: STATEMENT ON THE WITHHOLDING OF TRAVEL DOCUMENTS TO H.H. DALAI LAMA BY THE SOUTH AFRICAN HIGH COMMISSIONER IN NEW DELHI.
1. The South African Friends of Tibet (SAFT) expresses its dismay at the withholding of travel documents to H.H. Dalai Lama by the South African High Commissioner in New Delhi, effectively debarring H.H. Dalai Lama from participating in the Peace Conference to be held in Johannesburg on March 27th 2009.
2. His Holiness was to have attended Africa’s premier Peace Conference on special invitation from his three fellow South African Nobel Peace Prize Laureates, ex-President Nelson Mandela, Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, and ex-President F.W. de Klerk.
3. In the meantime the South African High Commissioner in New Delhi has contacted the Office of H.H. Dalai Lama, requesting that His Holiness ‘postpone’ his visit to South Africa. This request is viewed by us as being tantamount to a refusal by the South African government to allow His Holiness to attend the Peace Conference.
4. We believe that the barring of His Holiness from the Peace Conference makes a mockery of the intentions of this conference, and we therefore appeal to the conference organizers, the 2010 World Cup Local Organising Committee either to postpone the proceedings until His Holiness has been issued with travel documents to South Africa and is able to attend, or to cancel the conference outright.
5. We further appeal to the above addressees and all concerned parties to protest this action and take whatever effective steps are in their power to ensure His Holiness is allowed to attend the conference.
6. We note the duplicity in the manoeuvre to ‘postpone’ His Holiness’ visit and will not regard a late issue of travel documents to His Holiness, such as will prevent his attendance at the conference, as a rectification of the matter.
7. Furthermore, we take the position that any refusal of travel documents to His Holiness by the South African government is in direct contravention to our constitutional right to freedom of religion, as His Holiness is the de facto leader of most Buddhist practioners worldwide.
8. We express our distaste at this response to His Holiness by our government (despite assurances from government structures including the Office of the President that there is no problem with granting the visa) whose own history of struggle against oppression is so strongly mirrored in the situation of the suffering Tibetan people today.
9. We observe that this distaste is felt by over 25 million citizens, the majority of South Africans, who have lodged statements* expressing solidarity in writing through their Faith and NGO organizations with His Holiness Dalai Lama, the Tibetan people and the ‘Middle-Way’ Approach.
10. We call for the true spirit of Ubuntu to prevail in the run up to elections and as South Africa begins to take global centre-stage in the build up to 2010. Ubuntu is the key to the Peace Conference, as conference themes will focus on anti-racism and xenophobia, and whether soccer can be used as a political tool to generate peace and harmony in Africa. In the words of the Icon of Peace His Holiness Dalai Lama: “Ubuntu is a rich and wonderful concept. Respecting nature, accepting ourselves as part of nature, ubuntu therefore is very relevant to modern society.”
11. Finally, we call on the South African government to give reasons for this action, especially reassuring us that the refusal of travel documents to H.H. Dalai Lama has in no way been dictated by its relations with the government of the People’s Republic of China.
The Committee and Members of the South African Friends of Tibet.
Annex 2 His Holiness' letter to the three SA Nobel Laureates:
We are sorry to inform you His Holiness will not be able to attend the South African Peace Conference scheduled for 27th March because the SA High Commissioner in New Delhi has asked for postponement of His Holiness visit to the country.
Below is the content of His Holiness' letter of 16th March addressed to the three SA Nobel Laureates:
" I was looking forward to meeting Your Excellencies during the forthcoming Peace conference in Johannesburg later this month and share some thoughts on issues of mutual interest and concern."
"However, recently, the South African High Commissioner in New Delhi has asked my Representative if I would postpone my forthcoming visit to your county. When my Representative apprised him of the fact that you had invited me to the Peace Conference, the High Commissioner assured my Representative that he would get back soon. But so far there has been no word from the High Commission."
-HH Dalai Lama
Annex 3: Statement from Bishop Paul Verryn
*Other statements of support: http://www.saft.org.za/index.php?pg=6
It is with a deep sense of anxiety that we note recent developments around the admission of the Dalai Lama to South Africa. Of particular concern is that this icon of the peace be denied access to the Peace Conference scheduled for 27 March 2009 in South Africa. Apart from agreeing with the recommendations by the South African Friends of Tibet Committee concerning the postponement or cancellation of the conference, we would also want to note the public slight of the invitation of our three Nobel Peace Laureates with dismay.
The confrontation of our human rights with regard to the freedom of religion is alarming. If no compromise is found in this regard all religious bodies would need to prepare themselves for a time of public alienation as they find themselves at odds with the ideologies of the State. It is critical to note that the Dalai Lama has never indicated any animosity towards our present government and has never indicated anything that could be interpreted as contrary to the essence of an emerging new South Africa.
It is concerning that there are allegations relating to a deepening relationship with mainland China and the present ruling party of South Africa and that this alliance could be the main reason for the rejection of the Dalai Lama’s application at this stage. If our economic and political relationships are exerting such prohibitive influence on our freedom of expression, the public must be alerted to the impact of this new relationship with China and the ramifications of a new form of economic colonialism.
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