Olympic objections
Students for a Free Tibet take on China
BY Andrea Chiu
Photography by Steve Payne
On the eve of the one-year countdown to the opening ceremonies for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, six members of Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) headed up the Great Wall of China. Armed with rock-climbing gear and a giant banner, their goal was to remind the world about Tibet’s struggle for independence. One of the activists was Vancouverite Melanie Raoul, who rappelled down the wall to reveal a message of protest: “One World, One Dream, Free Tibet 2008.”
The six were swiftly arrested, making headlines around the world early in August. Two Canadians and their U.S. and U.K. counterparts were detained and questioned for 40 hours before being deported to Hong Kong.
The quick release was no surprise to Raoul, who had expected to get arrested or detained for the stunt. “China is incredibly vulnerable on the world stage. Because they’re in the spotlight, the last thing the Chinese government is going to do is hold six international students,” she says. “That’s why six foreign nationals [protested] and not a Tibetan or a Chinese national. Their consequences are much worse: torture, life imprisonment and even death.”
Now in Vancouver, Raoul, who’s currently a consultant for non-profit social justice and environmental organizations, is continuing to work with SFT. She says her team of coconspirators on the Great Wall has given presentations to students, members of the Tibetan community and human rights organizations across North America.
The past few months have been busy for SFT. With China facing broad criticism for its poor labour practices and environmental and human rights records, the organization feels now is a good time to get its message out, and plans to use the upcoming Olympics to gain coverage for its cause.
“As a non-violent organization,” explains Raoul, “SFT has to take advantage of key moments to creatively and non-violently remind the Chinese government that its occupation of Tibet is a stain on its global image and acceptance as a world leader.”
For Raoul, the opportunity to take part in the Great Wall action was too great to pass up. “The August 8 one-year countdown was an amazing opportunity to shine the Olympic spotlight on Tibet, and as a person of conscience I felt it was important to be involved in this action for Tibetan freedom.”
Raoul was inspired to join the free Tibet cause when she went to Nepal as a high school student in 1998 and worked with Tibetan refugees living there in exile. Returning home, Raoul researched the contentious territory, which led her to SFT.
The organization, which was founded in New York City in 1994, has as its ultimate goal Tibet’s full independence from China, something Tibetans have not had since 1950, when the People’s Liberation Army marched in and took control.
SFT has grown rapidly over the past few years and now has 650 chapters in 35 countries. Its recent actions in China have helped to bolster its numbers, and according to Raoul there are now people from around the world who are prepared to protest within China during the Olympic Games. She says that SFT will be “providing training and support to individuals and groups who want to speak out against China’s use of the Olympics as a political tool to cover up its abysmal human rights record inside Tibet and China.”
She adds that SFT itself will continue to put the pressure on China and will be organizing more “creative” demonstrations during events such as the torch relay, just one of the Olympic celebrations that China will be using to show the world that it’s a free, developed society.
“We’ll challenge that and remind people that it’s been more than 50 years of the occupation of Tibet.”
