10th Feb., 2006

We have just heard that Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported today (9 February) that a man burnt his wildlife skin chuba publicly on a road in Lhasa on 2 February, and that many Tibetan people supported him. The RFA report also said that Tibetans in Rabkong, Qinghai Province, are planning to publicly burn their wildlife skins on 12 February. The local Chinese authorities have supported this campaign, although an officer has ordered that there be no publicity or large gathering of people. In Karze, a Kham place near Litang, many Tibetans decided not to wear their skin chubas at the recent local festivals, and prices for wildlife skins there have dropped dramatically.

News of the disastrous consequences of the skin trade and His Holiness the Dalai Lama's condemnation of the use of skins appears to be spreading across Tibet. Let us hope that more and more people take a stand.