Friday, June 25, 2010

Help stop discrimination against Dorje Shugden devotees seeking asylum

Discrimination toward a devotee of Dorje Shugden
at the Indian Embassy in Nepal


Please write to Indian Authorities using the information below,
in a language that is simple, clear, and well mannered, avoiding harsh language against the Dalai Lama or Tibetan Government in Exile that would offend the authorities, who, in India, if addressed with proper protocol and manners,
are very helpful.

Thank you.

(Please note, we have added some sample letters below in the comments section, written and sent by followers of this blog. Please feel free to put your letter here too to help others compose theirs. Thank you.)

The following incident took place in Kathmandu, Nepal. On June 3, this year 2010, 14 newcomers from Tibet went to the Indian Embassy to obtain Entry Permits, which allows them to seek asylum in India. All but one of those newcomers received a permit. The asylum seeker whose Entry Permit was refused is Jampa Gyaltsen, 18 years old.

Jampa is a devotee of Dorje Shugden. He came to Nepal to join Serpom monastery and to study Buddhism in India.

Tibetan refugees go to Tibetan Reception Centre, and through this centre they apply for an Entry Permit. In view of the consistent discrimination and abuses faced by devotees, there is a strong misgiving that the Tibetan Refugee Reception Center was behind the rejection. They might have provided a note which triggered the rejection of the permit for Jampa.

This obviously indicates that the Tibetan Government in Exile tries to stop Shugden devotees coming to India. They wish the Shugden monasteries to dry up and vanish. And the Tibetan Government in Exile have attempted several times to stop Shugden devotees coming to India from Tibet.

We have a growing concern about Tibetan refugees (who are associated with the Deity Dorje Shugden) who might face the same fate in future, unless the rejection is revoked and he is issued the permit.

It would be very helpful if each of you wrote to the following authorities with a request and a prayer to ensure that no Shugden devotee has to experience discrimination because of their religious faith, as well as to provide an entry permit to Jampa Gyaltsen.

1) External Affairs Minister
S.M. Krishna
Fax : 0091 11 23013254 / 23011463
Email : eam@mea.gov.in
http://meaindia.nic.in/
2) Foreign Secretary
Smt. Nirupama Rao
Fax : 0091 11 23016781
Email : dirfs@mea.gov.in; psfs@mea.gov.in
3) THE MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS
P.CHIDAMBARAM
HOME MINISTER
Email : hm@nic.in
http://mha.nic.in
Fax : 0091 11 23092462
4) HOME SECRETARY
Gopal K. Pillai
Fax : 0091 11 23093003
Nepal Indian embassy
5) Sh. Rakesh Sood
Ambassador
http://www.indianembassy.org.np/embassy.php
Email : amb@eoiktm.org
Fax: 00977 1 4420130
6) UNHCR IN NEPAL
Stephane Jaquemet
Representative
Anil Kuti, Maharajgunj,
Kathmandu, P.O.Box 2374 ,
Nepal.
Fax : 977-1 4412853
Email : nepka@unhcr.org
Website : http://www.unhcr.org

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Subject: Concerns about religious discrimination among those seeking asylum in India

Message:
To whom it may concern,

I have recently received word that the Indian government has blocked admission into India of a Tibetan man, Jampa Gyaltsen, seeking asylum at the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu, Nepal. Of the 14 Tibetans who requested asylum, only Jampa Gyaltsen is a practitioner of the Buddhist Deity, Dorje Shugden. Of the 14 Tibetans who requested asylum, only Jampa Gyaltsen's request was denied.

As you may know, the Tibetan Government in Exile has been applying steady pressure to eradicate the practice of the Buddhist Deity Dorje Shugden since 1996, and before. The motivation behind doing this is to consolidate religious and political authority in the Tibetan community, and to eradicate any opposition to the Dalai Lama's efforts to merge all the schools of Tibetan Buddhism into one single school under his control. This behavior violates UN Declaration of Human Rights, the Indian constitution, and the constitution of the Tibetan Government in Exile.

There is indication that the Indian consulate in Kathmandu was influenced in their decision to ban Jampa Gyaltsen from entry into India by the Tibetan Reception Centre. Allowing such restrictions on religious grounds is highly inappropriate, and is against the inclusive spirit of the Indian government.

I ask you to allow Mr. Gyaltsen equal status among other Tibetan refugees, to allow him to enter India, and to ask all of the Indian Embassies to never discriminate against people on the basis of religion in considering their rights to enter the country.

SIncerely,

Jimmy said...

For the attention of the External Affairs Minister, S.M. Krishna, re. Dorje Shugden practitioner refused asylum on religious grounds

Dear Mr Krishna,

I have been alarmed to hear that asylum was denied to an applicant recently on the grounds that he was a devotee of the Deity Dorje Shugden, and hope that you might be able to help.

In Kathmandu on June 3 this year 2010, 14 Tibetans went to the Indian Embassy to obtain Entry Permits, seeking asylum in India. All but one of them received a permit. The only one refused was Jampa Gyaltsen, 18 years old, who is a devotee of Dorje Shugden. He came to Nepal to engage in peaceful Buddhist studies in India at Serpom Monastery.

As there seems to be no valid reason why Jampa should be denied entry, I have a worried suspicion that the Tibetan Refugee Reception Centre had something to do with this due to the consistent discrimination they have shown Dorje Shugden practitioners in the past. As you may know, the Tibetan Government in Exile under the ruling of the Dalai Lama has banned the practice of this Deity, causing widespread problems and discrimination, and contravening the UN Declaration of Human Rights, the Indian constitution, and the nascent constitution of the Tibetan Government in Exile itself. Perhaps the Tibetan Reception Centre provided a note that triggered the rejection of the permit for Jampa.

This would indicate that the Tibetan Government in Exile is trying to stop Shugden devotees coming to India, hoping perhaps that the Shugden monasteries, Serpom and Shar Gaden, will slowly disappear and stop embarrassing the Dalai Lama and the TGIE, who have expelled all these hundreds of Shugden monks from their original monasteries. The Tibetan Government in Exile has attempted several times to stop Shugden devotees coming to India from Tibet.

Therefore I am deeply concerned that Tibetan refugees who are associated with the Deity Dorje Shugden might face the same unjust and politically motivated fate in the future, unless Jampa’s rejection is revoked and he is issued the permit, enjoying the same status and protection as his brother monks.

Thank you so much for your consideration in the matter. I look forward to a happier outcome.

Yours sincerely,