(TibetanReview.net, Jun25’22) – A two-day meeting of lawmakers and others from across the democratic world supportive of the Tibetan people’s struggle for freedom and related issues has concluded on Jun 23 in Washington, DC, with the announcement of the revival of an international lawmakers’ network for Tibet and the adoption of a declaration and an action plan, besides the reading of a joint declaration of the participating Latin American Parliamentarians.
Major issues discussed and panel discussions held during the 8th World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet (WPCT), organised by the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile (TPiE), were stated to include “Significance of Asia & Tibet in Global Warming and Climate Change”, “Narratives on Tibet: The Need for Change”, “Sharing Experiences, Collaborations, Networking & Action Plans amongst like-minded countries”, and “Common Ground to Face Common Challenges”.
TPiE’s Deputy Speaker Dolma Tsering Teykhang was stated to have announced the revival of the International Network of Parliamentarians on Tibet (INPaT), which was first set up in 2010 and reportedly had 133 members from 30 Parliaments, and the launch of its website (www.inpat.org).
Following it, a Washington DC Declaration and a Washington Action Plan were stated to have been adopted after presentation by Prof. Michael Van Walt Praag, executive president of Kreddha and Senior Fellow at the Sompong Sucharitkul Center for Advanced International Legal Studies of Golden Gate University Law School in San Francisco, and others.
Also, a joint declaration of Latin American Parliamentarians of El Salvador, Chile, and Mexico was stated to have been read by El Salvador Member of Parliament John Tennant Wright Sol.
More than 100 lawmakers and others from 28 countries were stated to have taken part in the two-day event. Names of those who took leading roles in the discussions were seen to be from India, Canada, El Salvador, Switzerland, Scotland, Lithuania, the UK, Denmark, Germany, Costa Rica, Mexico, Spain, the Czech Republic, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.
The discussions were also seen to have featured overseas activists belonging to East Turkestan (Xinjiang) and China.
The TPiE said the aim of the series of the WPCT, first held in New Delhi in 1994, was “to strengthen and coordinate support by parliamentarians from different countries to resolve the Tibet issue.”