By IANS
New Delhi : The morale of the 14 Tibetans who are on a hunger strike in the Indian capital for the past one month to protest “human rights abuses” was uplifted when over 20,000 supporters joined them Wednesday on a token 24-hour fast.
The supporters from all over the world assembled near Jantar Mantar in the heart of the capital and held a peaceful demonstration demanding an end to the “atrocities” committed against the Tibetans.
The protestors will hold a candle light vigil throughout Wednesday night and will continue their fast till 9 a.m. Thursday.
“We are very happy and satisfied with the demonstration today. We got a lot of support from everyone and we will continue the fast till Thursday morning,” said Kalsang Phuntsok Godrukpa, president of the Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC).
“We just want to highlight the human right abuse of Tibetans at the hands of Chinese authorities. We think China does not deserve to host the 2008 Olympics, where there is no equality and opportunities are denied.
“We got a lot of support in the form of politicians like Kiren Rijiju, Rani Pratibha Singh, Vashisht Narayan Singh and Nirmala Deshpande. Former Indian defence minister George Fernandes and Rajya Sabha MP Najma Heptullah are likely to join us tomorrow,” he said.
While the demonstration was by and large peaceful, a youth from Karnataka tried to immolate himself. He was rushed to the nearby Ram Manohar Hospital and was said to be out of danger.