The struggle for freedom by the Tibetan Buddhists has been a tireless one. Prayers, protests and political initiatives to gain world support for this struggle have been gaining momentum. And so Buddhists in Syracuse have shown support for and have gained inspiration from the granting of an award to an Indian social worker for her contributions to this struggle. Tendar Tsering has reported for Phayul.com "Indian social worker awarded inaugural Pawo Thupten Ngodup Award."
An Indian social worker, who is warmly known as Aunty Aasha Reddy in the exile Tibetan community, has been honoured with the inaugural ‘Pawo Thupten Ngodup Award’ at the 6th Tibetan College Students Conference for her “valuable and selfless contribution towards Tibet’s freedom struggle” this week. The organizers of the conference have said "Named after Pawo Thupten Ngodup, who self immolated in 1998 during a hunger strike in Delhi in 1998 for the cause of a free Tibet, we are giving this inaugural award to Aunty Aasha Reddy in recognition of her timeless help to the Tibetan students in South India and for her dedication towards the Tibetan freedom struggle."
S. Suresh Kumar, the Law Minister for Karnataka state, which hosts the largest number of Tibetans in India, assured the Tibetans of his party's continued support. Kumar said "My party (Bharatiya Janata Party) has been very committed to the Tibetan cause and Tibetans in the state (Karnataka) can always come to me for any help." Youngdung Tenzin, the conference coordinator, commented that the conference has been developed around a theme of the recent wave of self-immolations inside Tibet, which has seen 12 Tibetans since March this year set their bodies on fire demanding the return of the Dalai Lama from exile and protesting China’s continued repressive occupation of Tibet. This support from inside India has been invaluable in helping the Tibetan cause to survive.
