11/11/2009 5:28 AM
ET
(RTTNews) -
International Campaign for Tibet (ICT), a Washington-based advocacy group working for the rights of Tibetans, has asked U.S. President Barack Obama to pursue action on Tibet when he meets with the Chinese leadership in Beijing next week.
Noted Hollywood actor and chairman of the ICT board, Richard Gere, in a letter to the U.S. president said the Tibetan movement, its sincere supporters and the human rights community were "alarmed and disappointed by your decision not to meet with His Holiness the Dalai Lama during his October visit to Washington, D.C."
"If, by not meeting with His Holiness (the Dalai Lama) last month, you intended to signal to General Secretary and President Hu Jintao that you expect an equally significant action from the Chinese government, there are a number of specific objectives that should be pursued," it said.
The letter said it acknowledged the Dalai Lama's 'gracious and understanding' toward Obama's decision not to meet with him last month and the magnanimous approach that the Tibetan monk took to the President's proposal that they meet only after the U.S.-China Summit.
But, Gere said, Obama's failure to meet with the Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader of China's 6 million Tibetans and who China labels a separatist, could be seen as a 'minor compromise' that would potentially lead to a 'tremendous set-back' for both the Tibetan cause and human rights.
Founded in 1988, ICT is the world's largest Tibet-related private non-profit group that strives to promote democratic freedoms for Tibetans, ensure their human rights and protect the Tibetan culture and environment.
Separately, international rights groups Wednesday urged President Obama to press the Chinese leadership to improve that country's human rights record during his first visit to the world's most populous country.
In an an open letter to President Obama, the Chinese Human Rights Defenders, another human rights organization, urged him to demonstrate the U.S. commitment to promoting human rights in China, and nudge the Chinese government to take concrete steps to promote these fundamental human values.
New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) also urged Obama to 'make the protection and promotion of human rights in China a central purpose' during his talks with the Communist leaders.
Noting that in the nine months since Obama took office, human rights violations in China has increased, HRW said Beijing continued to trample human rights under its feet, and did not honor its commitments to undertake reforms for ensuring a more open society based on the rule of law.
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