3/28/2008

Ώρα της Γης, Σάββατο, 29 Μαρτίου 2008

Ώρα της Γης, Σάββατο, 29 Μαρτίου 2008





Ώρα της Γης, Σάββατο, 29 Μαρτίου 2008, 8 - 9 το βράδυ
Δες την αλλαγή που μπορείς να κάνεις
Από την Ελένη Σκρέκου

Όλα ξεκίνησαν στο μακρινό Σίδνεϊ της Αυστραλίας, όταν στις 31 Μαρτίου 2007, στις 7:30 το βράδυ, 2,2 εκατομμύρια κάτοικοι έβγαλαν τις συσκευές του σπιτιού τους από την πρίζα και έκλεισαν τα φώτα τους, απολαμβάνοντας μία ώρα ησυχίας στο σκοτάδι. Τα μεγαλύτερα μνημεία της πόλης σκοτείνιασαν και ακόμη και γάμοι έγιναν υπό το φως των κεριών. Αποτέλεσμα ήταν να μειωθεί η κατανάλωση του ηλεκτρικού ρεύματος κατά 10,2%, μέγεθος που ισοδυναμεί με την απομάκρυνση 48.000 αυτοκινήτων από το δρόμο για μία ώρα.
“Και τι μ’ αυτό;” θα αναρωτηθεί εύλογα κάποιος.
Ο σκοπός της εκστρατείας ήταν διπλός· αφενός να κινητοποιήσει τον κόσμο να δείξει την ευαισθητοποίηση του για το καυτό θέμα της υπερθέρμανσης του πλανήτη, και αφετέρου να καλλιεργήσει ανάλογη στάση ζωής στην καθημερινότητα των συμμετεχόντων. Η ατομική δράση, σε μαζική κλίμακα, έχει αποδείξει ότι μπορεί να κάνει τη διαφορά και να φέρει την αλλαγή.
Φέτος, η Ώρα της Γης (Earth Hour) πήρε παγκόσμιες διαστάσεις, καλώντας άτομα και επιχειρήσεις από όλο τον κόσμο να σβήσουν τα φώτα τους για μία ώρα το Σάββατο, 29 Μαρτίου 2008, μεταξύ 8 και 9 το βράδυ.
Την παγκόσμια προώθηση της εκστρατείας έχει αναλάβει η περιβαλλοντική οργάνωση WWF. Στην Ελλάδα λόγω έλλειψης επίσημου οργανωτικού φορέα, το θέμα αφήνεται στα χέρια μας. Στην Αίγινα έχει ήδη δημιουργηθεί ένας μικρός ανεξάρτητος οργανωτικός πυρήνας, ενώ η Αθήνα παραμένει προκλητικά αμέτοχη. Όχι για πολύ…
Για τρόπους που μπορείτε να βοηθήσετε και περισσότερες πληροφορίες γράψτε μας στο earthhour@mail.gr, και επισκεφθείτε τις ιστοσελίδες www.earthhourhellas.wordpress.com και www.earthhour.org
http://earthhourhellas.wordpress.com/

Mark Morrisroe 1959-1989


Απλά... ένας φωτογράφος που θαυμάζω...



Born in Boston in 1959, Mark Morrisroe led a brutally short life. After fleeing his drug-addicted mother at the age of 13, Morrisroe found a new home on Boston's streets, earning extra cash by taking up the world's oldest profession and following his dreams in the only way he knew how: tenaciously.

His dedication to photography earned him a spot at School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston alongside the likes of Nan Goldin, David Armstrong and Philip Lorca diCorcia. Founder of the punk 'zine, Dirt under the name Mark Dirt and known to embody a down on her luck drag-queen named Sweet Raspberry, Morrisroe's credited as Boston's first Punk.

Despite - or, perhaps, in conjunction with - his wells of talent, Morrisroe battled years of drug addiction and paralytic self-abuse. Like so many of his peers, Morrisroe's fast living got the best of him: he contracted HIV and died in 1989 at the tender age of 30. Though many may not have realized it, the world lost a legend and with that legend, the record of a life lived.

To celebrate Morrisroe's oft-ignored work, Andrew Belonsky caught up with another of Morrisroe's school chums and former boyfriend, Jack Pierson. Meeting at Pierson's Chelsea a fews days after Pierson returned from art basel Miami beasch, where he had been promoting his more recent collection, Desire/Despair, they chatted about the boys' first date, Morrisroe's unique culinary skills and what it really takes to make a legend.

Andrew Belonsky: I want to start with your first meeting with Mark Morrisroe. Do you remember exactly where it was?

Jack Pierson: It was this little café called C’est Si Bon on Arlington Street in Boston: a café under a very fancy restaurant also called C’est Si Bon - the café was all run by art students. It was a place where you could hang out and somebody would feed you and the check would disappear. [Mark] was the dishwasher. I guess the second time I went there, my friend who worked there said, “Mark Dirt” – as he was known at the time – “really likes you and wants to meet you.” I was, whatever, eighteen.

AB: Were you attracted to him immediately?

JP: Um, I guess. I think in that way – yeah, I was attracted [to him].

AB: Can you trace the evolution of the friendship?

JP: We met and he asked me out on a date. He was very polite and very – at that time, he wasn’t considering himself Mark Dirt. He was probably 24, but he had been on the Boston punk scene since he was 16. He sort of invented the Boston punk scene with this magazine called Dirt. By this time, he had moved into – his thing when he was meeting me was that he was now not punk. He was going to be successful and he was going to wear a tie. He had this book about dressing for success. He was very sincere about it. He went back to being Mark Morrisroe. He wore Brooks-Brothers clothing from the thrift store and was trying to be “successful”.

AB: That’s something that is written about a lot: he wanted to be a critical success. It seems to me that he didn’t get the attention he deserved when he was alive and even now – I was actually talking to Nick Weist from powerHouse about [Mark] and how it’s a shame that he’s glossed over…

JP: Well, he’s not here to…

AB: Do you think that’s what it is?

JP: Yeah. There’s a finite amount of work that he made and it was radical back when he made it. It was great that Pat Hearn showed it, because it was so of that moment in the eighties. The work he made in the eighties applies to the nineties…

AB: Do you consider his work bleak? It’s described as bleak, but I don’t read it as such.
MMSelf.jpg
JP: I don’t, but I mean I do. You know, in some ways. Like the ones that are supposed to be bleak, look bleak.

AB: I guess there’s that veil of bleakness, but it seems to me that there’s also this confused innocence of youth. It’s more confusion to me, because when I think bleak, I think “dreary” and I don’t find his work to be dreary. I find it quite energetic, actually – a beacon for success.

JP: Yeah, yeah, but I’m thinking [about] the dismal Boston skyline and there’s one of the branch on Coney Island that’s just a dead branch…

AB: Do you find that sort of work tiresome?

JP: [laughs] No! I love that kind the most, because – I don’t know – I find bleakness energizing. I find it humorous and energizing. I like an over the top kind of Chekhov…super-bleak.

AB: There’s this quote that I’m sure you’ve heard: It kills me to look at my old photographs of myself and my friends. We were such beautiful, sexy kids but we always felt bad because we thought we were ugly at the time. It was because we were such outcasts in high school and so unpopular. We believed what other people said. If any one of us could have seen how attractive we really were we might have made something better of our lives. I'm the only guy that I know who wanted to runaway to be a prostitute. Do you have a reaction?

JP: Well, he died when he was 27 – imagine what it would sound like now.

AB: It would sound ridiculous. It does sound ridiculous, in a way. To consider everybody who’s gone on -

JP: Right, but you don’t relate to that quote?

AB: Well, certainly I do. Do you still feel like an outcast now?

JP: Totally - to this very day.

AB: Daily or just occasionally?

JP: Basically daily.
MMJackfascination.jpg
AB: How do you feel looking at old pictures? Are you nostalgic at all?

JP: I mean: these are so…I lived with these for so long in a pile, that it’s hard…

AB: Does it not seem like you?

JP: No. When this picture was taken I almost burst into tears, like, “You can’t show that, please.” I thought he was just torturing me. Now I’m like, “Oh, wow, I was skinny. You can see my clavicle.” But at the time it hurt me to look. So I know this quote. I know what this quote means...

AB: How old were you in this?

JP: Eighteen, Nineteen…

AB: Do you consider your work political?

JP: Yeah. I depend on it being political, but I don’t know that I could defend it as such.

AB: So you depend on the viewer translating it as political?

JP: Maybe. I guess. I’m pretty sure it is, but it’s just something I wouldn’t want to claim for it. Just like I wouldn’t want to claim that it’s spiritual, but I depend on it being [spiritual]… Mark was always obsessed with being famous and success in a way that I didn’t care about as much, honestly. Maybe I didn’t see myself as being able to, but also I really didn’t – like, whatever my constitution is, I would have never been so openly desirous. But he did…I just wanted to do what I do. But the other thing he taught me – the weird thing: as much as he craved this fame and intentional sort of art making, he always taught me how to be interested in things that weren’t necessarily known…commodities. He would make things at the time that would be like – made just so that they would be weird. Like, “What if you found this” – you know what I mean? In that way that now I go to the desert in California and go to an abandoned shack and find things that some speed freak made and think, “Ew, what is this? Why did they do this? Why is it written like this? They must have been crazy.” Stuff like that interests me. There’s a part of me that likes stuff that you couldn’t know about.

AB: New discoveries?

JP: Yeah, which is basic, but one of the things Mark would do that I would think is so weird is follow things through that other people just would glance over. Like in the back of magazines, there used to be classified things. [For example] someone would pay five dollars for pictures of girls smoking cigars. So, [Mark would] go out and do it. Now the internet makes all that stuff seem like, “Oh, yeah, of course…” But in 1977 it just seemed weird, “What’s guy in Texas would want pictures of girls smoking?” It just seemed so bizarre, but [Mark] would connect to it…

AB: So it’s more the idiosyncrasies of people?

JP: Yeah, that’s what I like – I mean, I think it’s cute…It amazes me that my idiosyncrasies seem to have currency these days.

AB: Do you feel like a legend?

JP: No.

AB: I feel like you’ve been described as a legend.

JP: Yeah, but on what grounds? Because I was boyfriends with him and he died and he’s a legend?

AB: No, because of your work in and of itself.

JP: It arrived sort of with this legendary thing that I don’t quite get. I think it annoys people.

AB: What do you mean?

JP: I think there are people that get annoyed that there’s a legend [but] there’s no legend. I went to school, I came to New York, I did everything everybody else did. I didn’t hang around with anybody – [Mark’s] the only one I…a legend seems to imply that I was in Morocco with Paul Bowles.

AB: I think it implies more that you’ve left a noticeable mark.

JP: I did, but where was the legend there? I make stuff that looks like some kook made it. There’s no real kook there, I don’t think - except me. I’m not that much of a kook. I could be kookier. I think that’s part of what I do well - make it look like some kook made it. It looks like it has the texture of a lived life. And I guess I do do that, but there [are] no stories like “Oh, he was so fucked up and he peed…” there’s no stories like that: legend stories. There’s just work that looks like there should be.
MML.jpg
AB: Stories are essential to legend?

JP: A little bit, no?

AB: Yes...

JP: I tend to eschew those kinds of stories. I know how people thrive on those sorts of stories. People would rather their artists have a story than not. [I’m] too self-conscious. Mark would say, “I want to be rich”. I would [think], “Why do you have to be so vulgar?” I don’t like – when I first started with galleries and they [said], “[X] makes this every morning and he writes a list of the things he ate.” You’re like, “Oh, really?” I never want them to be able to say, “[Pierson] only does this when he’s facing the east.” I think that stuff is silly.

AB: Back to Mark for a second. Do you remember the last time you saw him?

JP: Yes. It’s [a] typically him sort of deal: he lived in this apartment in Jersey City, which at the time was ridiculous. It was 1989. He always lived outside of wherever he needed to be. In Boston he lived in Summerville, which is a long train ride into the center of the city. He would gimp over to a subway, looking like he did, but that was where he was from – I guess that’s part of it. The guy was trying to evict him for years. The whole house had been destroyed. There were no walls. There were no walls on the outside – it was just the framing of the house with stairs. Mark’s apartment was the only thing still standing. It just sat in this structure so it was just one little module. [He was] in there dying of AIDS with the one girl that he still convinced that he was a legend. She was a junkie. They were both junkies together. She stood by him. And then finally he died and they probably remodeled the rest of the building.

We had been up there and he was delirious at the end. The only reason we were still in touch at the end was that he was so delirious that he didn’t have the fight left in him because – well, he did… It was just the right thing to do, to be there. It was hard to take. He was a mental case. Certifiable.

AB: Do you remember the first date you guys went on?

JP: Yeah. He invited me to his apartment and was going to cook me dinner. His apartment was in a basement… The whole thing with me – part of what he loved about me – I don’t mean to imply that I’m from a wealthy WASPy community, but I’m from this small town… Not country folk WASP, but go to church on Sunday…nice kids. He liked that. He fetishized that thing. He was [this] inner city, tough little scrappy thing. Me with a somewhat clean attitude: that’s what he wanted. And I guess I was looking for punk rock myself. [His] basement apartment was filthy. You couldn’t even walk; there wasn’t a path on the floor. It was just crap: barbells, porno and pennies. You couldn’t art direct a worse, slobbier thing. But in that way like – did you ever see that movie Hairspray, when she’s making out with the guy and she kicks the rat off her foot and is like “so romantic”. That’s what it was like: “Oh my god, I can’t believe it.” He had a hot plate and that’s what he [used] to make this dinner and make instant coffee. I never had instant coffee in my life. He made this whole dinner and showed me his work and told me he was going to be famous and if I was lucky he’d photograph me.

AB: It was attractive to you?

JP: Not necessarily. I was a little appalled, sort of. I remember that night we had this conversation: “How can you have pornography? This kids are on dope and are forced to do it by the mafia!” And he was just like… “Oh my god. Where did you come from?”
MMembrace.jpg
Images:
"Self-Portrait with Broken Arm", 1985
"Untitled (Self-Portrait)", 1983
"Untitled", Year Unknown
"Facination (Jack Pierson)", 1983
"Embrace", 1983




BLOW BOTH OF US AT PARTICIPANT INC, NEW YORK

Under the direction of Lia Gangitano, whose passionate brilliance has brought much deserved attention to the alternative space, Participant, Inc. has become one of the most happening places in the New York art world. Gangitano facilitates the exhibitions, manages a publishing program and perhaps more importantly, continues to commit to collaborations with artists on public experimentation and "project-based" events.

The current show, "Blow Both of Us," is curated by Shannon Ebner and Adam Putnam (an artist who shows his own work at Taxter & Spengeman). Taking its title from a scrawled caption on a 1980s Polaroid self-portrait of Mark Morrisroe and Gail Thacker, the show brings us to familiar territory of these "Boston School" artists --the moniker was coined by Gangitano herself--as well as Allen Frame and Jimmy DeSana. The exhibit shrewdly, if not exactly seamlessly, opens up the conversation to artists who came later, such as Eve Fowler, Luther Price, Emily Roysdon and Dean Sameshima. These artists have expounded on the traditions of queer diaristic photography in compelling ways, and as AIDS has gradually become an unavoidable key on the cosmic typewriter, a visit to the show is like witnessing a twenty-year crescendo of playful and sexual survival.

Despite the presence of a pair of early Mapplethorpe Polaroids, it is Morrisroe who is the towering figure of the exhibition. The artist has left a legacy of self-portraiture that pulls triggers in our collective unconscious at no matter which point in our journey. The transgressive, though no-longer-shocking, images have gathered poignancy with age. Morrisroe's life as a chameleon is concisely depicted in the show: he can appear as a strung-out nomad in one image and evoke the effortless beauty of Audrey Hepburn in the next. His stint as a hustler dovetails nicely with the enchanting legend that he might possibly have been an illegitimate son of The Boston Strangler, based on the fact that he spent part of his childhood in a house his family rented from the killer.

The opening night crowd at Participant, Inc. included curators Matthew Higgs and Klaus Biesenbach as well as chanteuse Antony (of Antony and the Johnsons,) and wizened writer Gary Indiana. Ramsey McPhillips, an associate of the artists of the Boston School and Morrisroe's last boyfriend, considers his time with Thacker and Morrisroe a "plateau of weird genius." Standing in front of Gail Thacker's less frequently exhibited Polaroids, he tells me that Thacker wore a nurse's outfit throughout college. Drugs were not a major part of the scene. Instead, McPhillips says, "They preferred color and John Waters. And insulting people for humor."

Kindred spirit Jimmy DeSana took his own sense of humor quite seriously. His photographic experiments continue the tradition of Pierre Molinier, and are shown here next to the works by Morrisroe. The iconic pose as "Coffee Table" (1978-79) has earned a place in the queer self-portrait canon. It's worth noting, too, that DeSana was shoving ladies' shoes into his pantyhose and mashing his genitals for public display long before webcams made exhibitionism safe, anonymous, and commonplace.

Allen Frame was in the gallery tonight, and is justifiable proud of his misty images of friends and lovers immortalized in selenium-toned silver prints. Emily Roysdon has created a touching homage to one of her heroes, David Wojnarowicz, "Untitled (David Wojnarowicz series)", 2001. For the series Roysdon wore a Xeroxed mask of Wojnarowicz's face over her own, just as Wojnarowicz did with the visage of poet Arthur Rimbaud. Los Angeles-based modern master Dean Sameshima has contributed a memorable small series of color photographs of empty beds entitled "In Between Days (Without You)", 2004. The individual histories of the wet spots on pillows (sweat? saliva? other?) are mysterious and lovely.

For curators Ebner and Putnam, photography such as the work in the show is about friendship, and more specifically trust. "Blow Both of Us" makes a strong case for photography's essential impulsiveness and secrecy, as well as its ultimate accessibility. For the permanence of other people's ephemeral snapshots. After all, they're not coming back, these moments.

Doug McClemont

Doug McClemont is the former Editor-in-Chief of the gay porn mag, HONCHO. He is currently writing about his adventures as a Mortician.

Blow Both of US
Until 11 February
Participant Inc
95 Rivington Street
New York
T: +1 212 254 4334
www.participantinc.org












BlowAllenFrame.jpg
Allen Frame

BlowSanapantyhose.jpg
Jimmy DeSana

BlowmeandGailThackerMorrisroe.jpg
1908s Polaroid self-portrait of Mark Morrisroe and Gail Thacker

Blowmarkmorrisroe.jpg
Mark Morrisroe

Blowemilyroysdon.jpg







Monday, April 30, 2007

Mark Morrisroe

Mark Morrisroe born 1959 (d. 1989)

Mark Morrisroe was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1959 and was a photographer.

His mother was a drug-addicted prostitute. He left home at the age of 13 and began hustling. One of his disgruntled contacts shot him and he carried a bullet in his chest for the rest of his life.

He won a place at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, but he was disruptive as his lifestyle involved drugs, cross-dressing, and exhibitionism.

Many of his photographs were self-portraits and formed a visual diary of his life. He photographed himself, friends and lovers in dark, grainy, distressed colour, integrating Super 8 stills and black and white Polaroids. His work is 'decadent' and his subject matter inseparable from his life. His work is technically experimental and takes on a sketchbook quality which includes titles and comments scrawled on the edges of his images.

Morrisroe used a 195 Polaroid Land camera and a nearly unlimited supply of film donated by the director of marketing and communications at the Polaroid Corporation.

He assumed various identities including Mark Dirt, fanzine editor, and Sweet Raspberry, a maudlin drag queen down on her luck.

In 1997 an exhibition of Morrisoe's work My Life. Mark Morrisroe: Polaroids 1977-1989 was held at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in Los Angeles. The exhibition included 188 portraits. Captured over a twelve-year period, Morrisroe's naked body in these photographs deteriorates from youthful beauty to near-skeletal wasting as a result of his illness with HIV. The self-conscious innocence of Morrisroe's early work is unforgettable.

Towards the end of his life he spent so much time in hospital he set up a dark room in the ward shower.

When he died 2000 Polaroids were found along with Super-8 films.



Mark Morrisroe









Mark Morrisroe (1959-1989)





Ελευθερο Θιβετ τωρα!!

Eλεύθερο Θιβέτ τώρα


Fallout from Tibet takes glow off Olympics

China's showcase event is clouded by harsh response to uprising

Chung Sung-jun / Getty Images
Activists protest China's suppression of dissent over Tibet during a rally Thursday near Beijing's embassy in Seoul, South Korea
Video
Witness to unrest
March 27: Economist reporter James Miles describes what he saw when riots broke out in Tibet last week.

NBC News Web Extra

By Edward Cody
updated 11:32 p.m. ET March 27, 2008

BEIJING - The riots in Tibet two weeks ago have turned into a major challenge to China's leaders, whose decision to use military force and restrict media access has cast a shadow over hopes for an unblemished Olympics this summer.

The uprising in the remote Himalayan region lasted for barely more than a day. But it generated a worldwide swell of concern. Now, the Games -- intended to be a festive coming-out party for modern China -- could become a dramatic reminder that the Communist Party still relies on Leninist police tactics and Orwellian censorship to enforce its monopoly on power.

"This is exactly what the party leaders didn't want," said Li Datong, a senior magazine editor who was fired in 2006 after an essay in his publication challenged the party's official history. "This has become a real headache for them."


Boycott calls intensify
The fallout from Tibet has not subsided. In Ancient Olympia on Monday, pro-Tibet protesters disrupted a ceremony to light the Olympic torch. On Tuesday, French President Nicolas Sarkozy suggested there might be a boycott of the Games' opening ceremony. And on Thursday, as Chinese authorities led foreign reporters on a tour of region in an effort to demonstrate that it had been tamed, a group of monks confronted the journalists, shouting that they were being denied religious freedom.

Criticisms of China on human rights issues have long been rife among foreign activists and some governments, analysts noted, but the Tibet crisis raised their global prominence just as the Olympic Games provided a ready forum to push the message. The protesters who disrupted the torch ceremony in Greece, for instance, got attention on a level that they could not have dreamed of before the riots in Tibet on March 14.

"The leadership could be riding a real tiger with the Tibet issue, in terms of foreign opinion," said David L. Shambaugh, director of the China policy program at George Washington University and author of a new book on the Chinese Communist Party. "Various and sundry nongovernmental human rights activists smell blood, and they will all be using Tibet to press their causes as well. This will place unprecedented external pressure on the regime, at least in terms of public relations."

High stakes for Chinese leaders
As party chief, President Hu Jintao has the most to lose if the shine comes off the Olympics, along with his protege Zhang Qingli, party secretary for Tibet. But Hu's likely successor, Xi Jinping, also has been thrust into the biggest test of his career. Elevated to the Politburo's elite Standing Committee and dubbed Hu's dauphin in October, Xi was assigned last month to provide overall supervision of the Olympic preparations being run day-to-day by Liu Qi, the Beijing party secretary.

Another newcomer to the Standing Committee, Zhou Yongkang, also has encountered what amounts to a baptism of fire. Formerly the public security minister, in October he became the party's senior official in charge of security. Li Changchun, a veteran Standing Committee member, has played a key role as well, assigned to run the party's propaganda apparatus. Curiously, he left for a visit to Mauritania and other Arab countries as the public relations crisis raged.

Games ‘kidnapped by the Tibet issue’
With Tibet unrest having seized the public's imagination abroad, the Chinese government already has lost its battle to keep politics out of the Olympics, said Li, the editor. He said the government should brace itself for an onslaught of protests over Tibet, Darfur, human rights and other causes before and during the Games, both in China and outside.

"It's over," he said. "The Olympic Games have already been kidnapped by the Tibet issue." The issue has become so huge, it has been mentioned in the race for the White House, he added: "Even Hillary's talking about it."

The party's security apparatus -- the Public Security Bureau, the People's Armed Police and the People's Liberation Army -- have blanketed Tibet and other Tibetan-inhabited parts of China over the last two weeks. Chinese officials have voiced confidence that the vast deployment can smother what remains of Tibetan unrest in the days and weeks to come.

Given experience, there was no reason to doubt their word. But there is little they can do to apply similar pressure against protesters promising to disrupt the Olympic torch relay at its stops abroad.


Συγκέντρωση υπογραφών υπέρ του Θιβέτ

Το βρήκα στην "ΩΡΑ ΕΛΛΑΔΑΣ"...


Συγκέντρωση υπογραφών υπέρ του Θιβέτ

March 28th, 2008

mapchinatibet.gifΕίχα κάνει μία προσπάθεια να ψάξω σχετικά με το θέμα του Θιβέτ και να γράψω κάτι ολοκληρωμένο. (Κλικ πάνω στο χάρτη αν θέλετε να τον δείτε μεγαλύτερο). Η κόπωση αυτό το διάστημα και μία αρκετά πεσμένη διάθεση δεν μου αφήνει κουράγιο να επεξεργαστώ όπως θα ήθελα το υλικό. Ετσι γράφω αυτό το κείμενο κυρίως για να παραπέμψω σε δύο πρωτοβουλίες για συγκέντρωση υπογραφών και παραθέτω σχετικά άτσαλα τα υπόλοιπα στοιχεία.
Η μία αφορά την καταγγελία Ελλήνων Δημοσιογράφων σχετικά με την καταστολή των διαμαρτυριών των Θιβετιανών και Γάλλων δημοσιογράφων κατά την αφή της ολυμπιακής φλόγας και την λογοκρισία της κρατικής ελληνικής τηλεόρασης σχετικά με το θέμα. Ο oneiros έχει αναρτήσει το σχετικό κείμενο το οποίο βρήκε από τη σελίδα του Ροΐδη.
Η άλλη είναι διεθνής πρωτοβουλία της μη κυβερνητικής οργάνωσης avaaz.org και αφορά τη συγκέντρωση υπογραφών υπέρ του Θιβέτ με στόχο να σταλούν στον πρόεδρο της Κίνας.
Το κείμενο υποστήριξης στα αγγλικά:

Petition to Chinese President Hu Jintao:
As citizens around the world, we call on you to show restraint and respect for human rights in your response to the protests in Tibet, and to address the concerns of all Tibetans by opening meaningful dialogue with the Dalai Lama. Only dialogue and reform will bring lasting stability. China’s brightest future, and its most positive relationship with the world, lies in harmonious development, dialogue and respect.

Με λίγα λόγια η ιστορία του Θιβέτ (πηγή: istoria.exnet)
Το Θιβέτ βρίσκεται σε υψόμετρο 5.000 μέτρα μεταξύ Κίνας και Ινδίας. Το όνομα του στα σανσκριτικά σημαίνει “ουρανός” και συχνά αποκαλείται “η πύλη του κόσμου”. Σύμφωνα με τη μυθολογία οι Θιβετιανοί, οι οποίοι είναι στην πλειοψηφία τους βουδιστές, κατάγονται από την ένωση ενός πιθήκου - ενσάρκωση του Βούδα - και μία δράκαινας.
Από τον 7ο έως τον 10ο αιώνα ήταν μία πλούσια αγροτική κοινωνία. Η άσκηση της εξουσίας ήταν θεοκρατική και ασκείτο από τον εκάστοτε Δαλάι Λάμα ο οποίος θεωρείτο απόγονος του Βούδα και πνευματικός ηγέτης των βουδιστών. Τον 13ο αιώνα η χώρα κατακτήθηκε από τους Μογγόλους υπό τον Τζέκινς Χαν, οι οποίοι κυριάρχησαν στο Θιβέτ ως τον 18ο αιώνα με μικρά διαλείμματα, οπότε και εμφανίστηκαν στο προσκήνιο οι Κινέζοι.
Η Κίνα κράτησε τον έλεγχο του Θιβέτ ως το 1904 οπότε και κατέστει βρετανικό προτεκτοράτο, αλλά το 1907 οι Βρετανοί αναγνώρισαν την κυριαρχία της Κίνας στο Θιβέτ. Το 1911 λόγω της εσωτερικών προβλημάτων της Κίνας ο Δαλάι Λάμα βρήκε ευκαιρία και εγκατέστησε την κυριαρχία του, αλλά το 1950 και μετά την επικράτηση των κομμουνιστών ο κινέζικος στρατός μπήκε στη Λάσα και εγκαταστάθηκε μικτή σινοθιβετιανή εξουσία.
Το 1956 όμως επαναστάτησαν οι ανατολικές επαρχίες. Η πηγή από όπου έχω πάρει αυτό το κομμάτι αναφέρει ότι αυτό έγινε με την υποστήριξη της αμερικανικής CIA, αλλά δεν μπόρεσα να το διασταυρώσω. Το 1959 όμως η Κίνα κατέστειλε οποιαδήποτε αντίδραση και ενσωμάτωσε την περιοχή ως αυτόνομη. Από τότε γύρω στο 1 εκατομμύριο Θιβετιανοί έχουν βρει το θάνατο από τις κακές συνθήκες διαβίωσης, αλλά και τις μάχες με τους Κινέζους.

Το θέμα στα ελληνικά μίντια
Στην Καθημερινή μπορείτε να διαβάσετε ένα χρονολόγιο της ιστορίας της κατοχής του Θιβέτ από την Κίνα. Η ιστοσελίδα του ΣΚΑΙ αναφέρεται στα πρόσφατα θύματα της κατοχής της Κίνας στο Θιβέτ.

Οι μοναχοί διαδήλωναν τόσο στο Θιβέτ όσο και σε γειτονικές περιοχές, όπου κατοικούν θιβετιανές μειονότητες, μνημονεύοντας την 49η επέτειο της εξέγερσης της Λάσα, που κατέληξε στην εξορία του Δαλάι Λάμα. Οι φετινές διαδηλώσεις είχαν εξ αρχής πολύ πιο έντονο χαρακτήρα με τους Θιβετιανούς, εντός κι εκτός Κίνας, να καταγγέλλουν την κατάφωρη παραβίαση των ανθρωπίνων δικαιωμάτων τους, προσπαθώντας να τραβήξουν τη διεθνή προσοχή εν όψει των Ολυμπιακών Αγώνων του Πεκίνου.
Πηγή: Ελευθεροτυπία.

Πηγή: Φιλελεύθερος (διατύπωση δική μου): Τις αντιδράσεις της κυβέρνησης των ΗΠΑ στα πρόσφατα γεγονότα θα μπορούσαμε μάλλον να τις χαρακτηρίσουμε λίαν υποκριτικές.
Από τη μία:

Η πρόεδρος της Βουλής των Αντιπροσώπων των ΗΠΑ Νάνσι Πελόσι που συναντήθηκε με τον Δαλάι Λάμα στην Ινδία αμέσως μετά τις βίαιες διαδηλώσεις στο Θιβέτ ζήτησε από τη διεθνή κοινότητα να αποκηρύξει την Κίνα και αποκάλεσε την κρίση στο Θιβέτ «πρόκληση στη συνείδηση του κόσμου».

Και από την άλλη:

Ο πρόεδρος Μπους δηλώνει ότι θα παραβρεθεί στους Ολυμπιακούς Αγώνες του Πεκίνου. Στο Βήμα θα βρείτε πληροφορίες σχετικά με τον Δαλάι Λάμα, τον εξόριστο πολιτικό και πνευματικό ηγέτη του Θιβέτ (η προσωπική του ιστοσελίδα).
Οι ΗΠΑ δηλώνουν επίσημα ότι δεν διακρίνουν κάποια συσχέτιση του Δαλάι Λάμα με τις διαδηλώσεις. Την ίδια στιγμή όμως η αμερικανική κυβέρνηση σημειώνει ότι δεν θα θέσει θέμα μποϊκοτάζ των Ολυμπιακών Αγώνων, αλλά παρακολουθεί στενά τον τρόπο που η κινεζική κυβέρνηση χειρίζεται τις διαδηλώσεις. ( Πηγή: in.gr:) Δηλαδή παρακολουθεί με τι στυλ τους σκοτώνουν;

Ανάμεσα στους υποστηρικτές των αιτημάτων του Θιβέτ περιλαμβάνονται γνωστοί χολιγουντιανοί αστέρες που έχουν ασπαστεί τον Βουδισμό, με προεξάρχοντα τον Ρίτσαρντ Γκιρ.

Στο περιθώριο της συμμετοχής του στην ταινία του Χέινς, ο Ρίτσαρντ Γκιρ δήλωσε ένθερμος υποστηρικτής της αυτονομίας του Θιβέτ, ξεκαθάρισε όμως ότι δεν θα μποϊκοτάρει τους Ολυμπιακούς Αγώνες του Πεκίνου. Υποστήριξε πάντως ότι η Κίνα «πρέπει να παραδεχτεί την αλήθεια για το Θιβέτ, για τους πολιτικούς κρατούμενους, για την κοινωνική καταπίεση και για τα ανθρώπινα δικαιώματα».

Το 1997 επίσης έχει γυριστεί ταινία από τον Μάρτιν Σκορτσέζε αφιερωμένη στη ζωή του 14ου Δαλάι Λάμα (“Kουντούν”).

Σε πρόσφατο δημοσίευμα της Καθημερινής αναφέρεται επίσης ότι Ευρωπαίοι αξιωματούχοι συζητούν μποϋκοτάρισμα των Ολυμπιακών Αγώνων στο Πεκίνο (θα δούμε παρακάτω πόσο μπορεί να το εννοούν…), ενώ ο πρίγκηπας της Ουαλίας και μελλοντικός διάδοχος του βρετανικού θρόνου θα συναντηθεί τον Μάιο με τον Δαλάι Λάμα και δεν έχει δηλώσει ότι δεν θα παραβρεθεί στους Ολυμπιακούς Αγώνες στηρίζοντας στο αίτημα των Θιβετιανών για ανεξαρτησία.
Σημειωτέον ότι αρχικά το Θιβέτ παραχωρήθηκε το 1907 στην Κίνα ως πρώην βρετανικό προτεκτοράτο όπως αναφέρθηκε παραπάνω. Οταν ο 14ος Δαλάι Λάμα - νυν ηγέτης - ανέλαβε τα ηνία, ο προκάτοχός του είχε ήδη ανακηρύξει την ανεξαρτησία του Θιβέτ, κίνηση που όμως αναγνωρίστηκε μόνο από τους Βρετανούς και όχι από τους Κινέζους, οι οποίοι είχαν αποσύρει τα στρατεύματά τους το 1912 εξαιτίας της επανάστασης του 1911 στην Κίνα.

Ο Πάσχος Μανδραβέλης γράφει στην Καθημερινή:

Τι περίεργη που είναι η ελληνική γλώσσα! Ενώ πολλοί έφτασαν να χαρακτηρίζουν τη θηριώδη καταστολή των Ισραηλινών στην Παλαιστίνη με τους πιο ακραίους όρους, όπως είναι «Ολοκαύτωμα», η εξίσου θηριώδης καταστολή των Κινέζων στο Θιβέτ έγινε μια απλή «διένεξη». Ενώ η Παλαιστίνη είναι «κατεχόμενη», το Θιβέτ είναι «προσαρτημένη περιοχή». Ενώ ο πετροπόλεμος των Παλαιστινίων βαφτίστηκε «ηρωική ιντιφάντα», ο πετροπόλεμος των Θιβετιανών είναι «ταραχές». Στην Παλαιστίνη και την Κύπρο έχουμε «παράνομο εποικισμό», στο Θιβέτ «Κινέζους μέτοικους». Είναι τόσο μακριά το Θιβέτ και θολώνει η ματιά των ελληνικών ΜΜΕ ή, απλώς, αυτή τη φορά οι καταπιεστές ενός λαού δεν είναι «τσιράκια των Αμερικανών»;

Ενώ ο Τσάβες, - για δικούς του λόγους φυσικά - υποστηρίζει ότι:

Οι ταραχές στο Θιβέτ είναι δάχτυλος των Αμερικανών εναντίον της Κίνας, αλλά ο Μπους μάλλον διαψεύδει τον Τσάβες…, διότι θα πάει στους Ολυμπιακούς και δεν θα τους μποϋκοτάρει (θα δείτε προς το τέλος του κειμένου για ποιο λόγο), ενώ η Κοντολίζα συστήνει αυτοσυγκράτηση και στις δύο πλευρές…

Οταν ήταν να ανατεθούν οι Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες στην Κίνα ο πρόεδρος της ΔΟΕ Ζακ Ρογκ είχε υποστηρίξει ότι η ανάθεση των αγώνων θα βοηθούσε στην βελτίωση των ανθρωπίνων δικαιωμάτων στην Κίνα.
Υπολόγιζε άραγε στη συνεχή διεθνή πίεση κατά τη διάρκεια των αγώνων ή…; Το κομμάτι αυτό είναι από το Oikologos.gr όπου αναφέρονται και οι οικολογικές καταστροφές που συντελούνται από την Κίνα στην περιοχή του Θιβέτ.

Τα δάση του Θιβέτ καταλαμβάνουν την τρίτη θέση σε έκταση, μεταξύ των δασών της Κίνας. Οι κυβερνητικές υλοτομικές επιχειρήσεις μειώνουν αυτή την έκταση με πρωτοφανείς ρυθμούς. Οι αναδασώσεις έχουν παραμεληθεί και είναι αναποτελεσματικές, αφήνοντας τεράστιες επικλινείς εκτάσεις ευάλωτες στη διάβρωση. Οι κίνδυνοι πλημμυρών αυξάνονται επίσης, απειλώντας τη ζωή εκατομμυρίων ανθρώπων που ζουν στα κατάντι των μεγάλων ποταμών της Ν.Α. Ασίας που πηγάζουν από εδώ. Ένα μόνο περιστατικό πλημμύρας το 2001 θεωρείται πως προκάλεσε το θάνατο 4.000 ανθρώπων στο Θιβέτ. Η αποδάσωση, επίσης, απειλεί τα ενδιαιτήματα του γιγαντιαίου πάντα, του χρυσού πιθήκου και χιλιάδων φυτικών ειδών.
Το βόρειο τμήμα του θιβετιανού υψιπέδου φιλοξενεί το πρώτο εργοστάσιο έρευνας και ανάπτυξης πυρηνικών όπλων της Κίνας. Πυρηνικά όπλα αποθηκεύτηκαν πρώτα σ’ αυτή την περιοχή το 1972. Σήμερα υπάρχουν τουλάχιστον 3 ή 4 σημεία εκτόξευσης πυρηνικών πυραύλων στο Θιβέτ, με άγνωστο αριθμό πυρηνικών κεφαλών. Εκφράζονται φόβοι ότι τα πυρηνικά απόβλητα του εργοστασίου απορρίπτονται σε γειτονικές πεδιάδες, όπου έχουν αναφερθεί “περίεργα” συμπτώματα στους ντόπιους νομαδικούς πληθυσμούς, παρόμοια με εκείνα από την επίδραση της ραδιενέργειας.

Διαβάστε στην Καθημερινή τι αναφέρει ο ξένος τύπος για τις διαμαρτυρίες υπέρ του Θιβέτ, επίσης διαβάστε τις απαντήσεις σε 4 ερωτήματα για το Θιβέτ και πάλι από την Καθημερινή. Ο Δαλάι Λάμα κάνει λόγο για πολιτιστική γενοκτονία κατά τη διάρκεια των πρόσφατων ταραχών. Σημειωτέον ότι έχουν καταστραφεί από ό,τι λέγεται αρκετοί βουδιστικοί ναοί καθ’ όλη τη διάρκεια της κατοχής του Θιβέτ από την Κίνα. Στο in.gr αναφέρεται τι γράφεται στον ελεγχόμενο από την κατοχικές αρχές τύπο:

Η εφημερίδα Ημερησία του Θιβέτ αναφέρει ότι τα γεγονότα της Παρασκευής «δείχνουν μια ενορχήστρωση των αυτονομιστικών και αντιδραστικών δυνάμεων από το εσωτερικό και το εξωτερικό. Στόχος τους είναι η ανεξαρτησία».

dalai-lama.jpgΩστόσο ο πνευματικός και πολιτικός ηγέτης του Θιβέτ που δηλώνει πρόθυμος να παραιτηθεί από αρχηγός της εξόριστης κυβέρνησης και να παραμείνει μόνο στον πνευματικό του ρόλο, αν με αυτή την πράξη του σταματήσουν οι διαδηλώσεις στο Θιβέτ, υπογραμμίζει ότι επιθυμεί την αυτονομία και όχι την ανεξαρτησία του Θιβέτ. Πηγή και πάλι in.gr με αναφορά στο Associated Press.
Ποιο είναι τελικά το αίτημα ανεξαρτησία ή αυτονομία; Είναι διπλωματικός ελιγμός αυτές οι δηλώσεις του Δαλάι Λάμα ή υπάρχουν διαφορετικές απόψεις στους κόλπους της εξόριστης κυβέρνησης ως προς τον τελικό στόχο; Οι πληροφορίες φαίνεται να είναι αντιφατικές, ενώ αρκετοί Ελληνες blogger με αφορμή τον εορτασμό της 25ης Μαρτίου και της ελληνικής επανάστασης του 1821 ένιωσαν συναισθηματική αλληλεγγύη στο αίτημα του Θιβετιανού λαού. Πάντως οι Θιβετιανοί που διαμαρτύρονταν κατά τη διάρκεια της τελετής της αφής της Ολυμπιακής Φλόγας φώναζαν “Free Tibet”!

Αμερικανικές και ευρωπαϊκές εταιρείες στην Κίνα
Υπάρχουν αρκετές μεγάλες εταιρείες που συνεργάζονται με την Κίνα για τη λογοκρισία του Ιντερνέτ. Ενώ στην Καθημερινή στις 4/1/2008 δημοσίευμα των New York Times αναφέρει τις επενδύσεις της Κίνας σε αμερικανικούς επενδυτικούς ομίλους και την ευκαιρία που βλέπουν οι πολυεθνικές με αφορμή τους Ολυμπιακούς Αγώνες για διείσδυση στην κινέζικη αγορά.

Καθημερινή Ιανουάριος 2008: Τον Μάιο η Κίνα επένδυσε 3 δισ. δολάρια αγοράζοντας το 9,4% του αμερικανικού επενδυτικού ομίλου Blackstone. Τον Δεκέμβριο επένδυσε πάνω από 5 δισ. δολάρια αγοράζοντας ποσοστό της δεύτερης μεγαλύτερης αμερικανικής τράπεζας, της Morgan Stanley, ύστερα από τη διαγραφή ζημιών ύψους 9,4 δισ. δολαρίων λόγω subprime.

ενώ: στο επόμενο διάστημα οι αρμόδιες αρχές της Κίνας θα υπογράψουν σχετική απόφαση που θα επιτρέπει ξένες επιχειρήσεις και τράπεζες να συμμετέχουν στη δημιουργία κοινών επιχειρήσεων (venture capital) ακόμα και στον χρηματοπιστωτικό τομέα με κινεζικές εταιρείες. Στο νέο σχήμα οι ξένες επιχειρήσεις θα μπορούν να συμμετέχουν μέχρι και 33% του μετοχικού κεφαλαίου.

Πηγή Μακεδονία, Νοέμβριος του 2007: Ηδη η General Motors έχει υπογράψει συμφωνία για αποκλειστική χορηγία αθλημάτων, ενώ σημαντικό μερίδιο στην πίτα των εσόδων θα έχουν η Coca-Cola, η Kodak και η Mastercard. Μία έκθεση του αμερικανικού περιοδικού “Business Weekly” ανέφερε πως οι κυριότεροι χορηγοί των Ολυμπιακών Αγώνων είχαν υποστηρίξει θερμά την υποψηφιότητα του Πεκίνου, κάτι που οι ίδιες εταιρείες διέψευσαν, χωρίς να είναι και πολύ πειστικές.

Αλλη μία ακόμα περιοχή που κάποιοι σφαγιάζονται χωρίς να γνωρίζουν γιατί: Νταρφούρ, Σουδάν. Αλλη μία κόντρα (;) Κίνας ΗΠΑ για τον έλεγχο του πετρελαίου. Κόντρες επιπλέον και για τα όπλα, παραθέτω ένα απόσπασμα, αλλά διαβάστε τις γενικότερες ισορροπίες σε αυτή την αγορά, πηγή Ημερησία.

Η Κίνα εκτιμάται ότι μέσα στα επόμενα πέντε χρόνια θα είναι σε θέση να ανταγωνιστεί τις ΗΠΑ και τη Ρωσία στην παραγωγή και πώληση αεροσκαφών τέταρτης γενιάς, με όπλο κυρίως το χαμηλό κόστος παραγωγής. Ήδη, βρίσκεται σε στάδιο συμπαραγωγής ενός τέτοιου μοντέλου με το Πακιστάν, ενώ διεκδικεί επιθετικά τις αγορές της Μαλαισίας, της Ινδονησίας και της Μυανμάρ.

Και τα συμφέροντα της Ευρωπαϊκής Ενωσης στην Κίνα.

Πηγή Ελευθεροτυπία Αύγουστος 2007: Για την Ε.Ε. σήμερα, η Κίνα είναι ο δεύτερος μεγαλύτερος εμπορικός της εταίρος μετά τις ΗΠΑ. Ενώ για την Κίνα η Ε.Ε. είναι ο μεγαλύτερος εμπορικός της εταίρος. Τα τελευταία χρόνια οι ευρωπαϊκές εταιρείες έχουν επενδύσει μεγάλα χρηματικά ποσά στην Κίνα, τα οποία υπολογίζονται κατά μέσο όρο σε 4 δισ. δολάρια το χρόνο (την τελευταία πενταετία).
και: η Ε.Ε. και οι ΗΠΑ ελπίζουν μεσοπρόθεσμα να διεισδύσουν στην τεράστια κινεζική αγορά, όταν το μέσο εισόδημα των Κινέζων θα έχει αυξηθεί ακόμα περισσότερο

Βήμα, Αύγουστος 2007:
Στην Κίνα έχουν μεταφέρει την παραγωγική τους δραστηριότητα πολλές αμερικανικές και ευρωπαϊκές εταιρείες, επωφελούμενες από το χαμηλό κόστος παραγωγής. Το τελευταίο διάστημα δεν είναι λίγες οι περιπτώσεις πολυεθνικών επιχειρήσεων με παραγωγική δραστηριότητα στη Κίνα, των οποίων τα προϊόντα παρουσιάζουν προβλήματα. Η περίπτωση του αμερικανικού πολυεθνικού ομίλου Mattel, κορυφαίου στη διεθνή αγορά παιδικών παιχνιδιών, είναι χαρακτηριστική.
Επίσης στην πηγή crm2day.gr θα βρείτε σχετικά με τη συνεργασία Κίνας, Βραζιλίας και Ευρώπης για ανάπτυξη ανοιχτού λογισμικού.

Ολες αυτές τις εσωτερικές αντιφάσεις της οικονομίας της αγοράς μπορούν να χρησιμοποιήσουν οι Θιβετιανοί μπας και καταφέρουν να αποκτήσουν ανεξαρτησία, αλλά χλωμό το βλέπω ακόμα, διότι τα συμφέροντα προς το παρόν είναι τεράστια.
Οταν θα συμφέρει, όπως συνέφερε τις τρεις μεγάλες ευρωπαϊκές δυνάμεις - παρά τις αντιθέσεις τους - η κατάρρευση της Οθωμανικής Αυτοκρατορίας και με τη Ναυμαχία του Ναυαρίνου δικαιώθηκε επιτέλους η ελληνική επανάσταση του 1821 και το αίμα που χύθηκε, ίσως δικαιωθεί και το Θιβέτ. Διότι τώρα σιγά μη χαλάσουν τις συμφωνίες τους με την Κίνα…, εκτός και εάν έχουν λόγους και βρουν οικονομικά πατήματα να την στριμώξουν. Αλλά θα θέλουν να τις χαλάσουν χατήρι οι πολυεθνικές; Χμ!

Τέλος έχουν γράψει σχετικά τα blog (τους συνδέσμους αντέγραψα από το blog του oneirou) που παραθέτω και σε αρκετά από αυτά θα βρείτε και βίντεο από τη διαμαρτυρία των Θιβετιανών στην Αρχαία Ολυμπία, κάτι που δεν έδειξε η κρατική τηλεόραση: magica (1, 2, 3, 4, 5), Nylon, metablogging.gr, Marion Barfs, Argos, Crazymonkey, jim_hellas, e-rooster, ANemos, arxedia MEDIA, πιτσιρίκος, SocioThoughts, philos, κάτι τρέχει, vrypan, εν αθήναις και ακόμα περισσότερα ποστ στο sync με λέξη αναζήτησης: Θιβέτ. Επίσης εδώ μία αγγλόφωνη ιστοσελίδα διαμαρτυρίας υπέρ του Θιβέτ. Ενώ εδώ ο Ελληνικός Σύλλογος Φίλοι του Θιβέτ.

Συγκλονιστικές Φωτογραφίες απο τη Κίνα των Ολυμπιακών Αγώνων

Επειδή οι φωτογραφίες αξίζουν χίλιες λέξεις........

Αυτή είναι η Κίνα Σήμερα.......



Witness to Torture (Selected Photos)


Page 1 of 1
12 Photos/Page



Published on 11/2/1999 Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Xiang Jinying, from Haiyan of Zhejiang Province, went to Beijing to appeal in October 1999. She was arrested and tortured and suffered a fracture in her upper arm due to prolonged handcuffing behind the back.
Published on 11/2/1999 Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Xiang Jinying, from Haiyan of Zhejiang Province, went to Beijing to appeal in October 1999. She was arrested and tortured and suffered a fracture in her upper arm due to prolonged handcuffing behind the back.
Published on 2000 Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Zhao Xin before and after police beating that left her with three fractured vertebrae.  She later died.
Published on 2000 Torn and Bloodstained T-shirts serve as evidence of brutality against Falun Gong practitioners.
Published on 10/27/2000 This photo was taken five days after being abused by the Tiananmen Police. The practitioner went to Tiananmen Square on October 17, 2000 to appeal for Falun Gong. She was arrested and tortured.
Published on 11/13/2000 Heilongjiang Practitioner Wang Bin was tortured to death on Septempber 24, 2000 by Daqing Men’s Labor Campa. Hosptial examination showed: a lymph artery was broken; over a dozen of his bones, including his collar bone, sternum and ribs were broken; one of Wang’s testicles was also split; the backs of Wang’s hands were found to have been repeatedly burned; Wang’s nostrils were burned and injured by the lit cigarettes that were inserted into them; and many parts of Wang’s body were black and dark purple..
Published on 2000 Photographs of various injuries to the bodies of Falun Gong practitioners caused by torture.
Published on 12/5/2000 Ms. Zhao Shujing, a 51-year-old Falun Gong practitioner went to Tiananmen Square on November 18, 2000, to clarify the truth about Falun Gong. A bunch of plainclothes policemen caught her and took turns beating and kicking her, causing her to lose consciousness in Tiananmen Square.
Published on 12/16/2000 Zhao Xin, instructor at the Business and Economics College at the Beijing Industry and Commerce University died six months after police beating which resulted en 3 fractured neck vertebra.
Published on 1/7/2001 The Police Sub-station of Xitiange Village in Miyun County has employed local thugs who carry out inhuman "transformation" on local Falun Gong practitioners, causing them tremendous physical and mental torment. Some female practitioners were even sexually abused.
Published on 3/2/2001 A plainclothes policeman stopped a female Falun Gong practitioner who was clarifying the truth, beat her on the street for more than one hour, and then dragged her under a bridge and raped her.
Published on 3/30/2001 This Falun Dafa practitioner went to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong in December, 2000. She was arrested and severely tortured by police in Beijing and then Tianjin. Her left eye was consequently blinded from police beating.
Published on 4/30/2001 This Falun Dafa practitioner was arrested to Xuanweu District detention Center where he suffered torture and inhuman treatment. All his toes turned black from frostbite and had to be amputated.
Published on 5/29/2001 Tiananmen police spit on Falun Dafa practitioners, kicked their heads and stomachs, and poured boiling water on them. The arms of practitioners were badly burned and covered with huge blisters, and some practitioners even had muscle exposed from the burning...(photo)
Published on 7/30/2001 Falun Gong practitioner Tan Yongjie was a factory worker in Baoan, Guangdong Province. On June 2nd, three labor camp guards  beat him, tied him to a pillar, and burned him 13 times with a red hot iron rod to force him to give up his belief.
Published on 8/20/2001 On the morning of June 4, 2001, thirteen Falun Dafa practitioners were forcefully abducted from Majia Village, Sunjiaji Township, Shouguang City. Two practitioners were brutally killed while in police custody and several other practitioners were severely wounded. The photo shows scars on practitioner Liu Aiqin’s leg due police brutality.
Published on 10/11/2001 Scars left in a practitioner’s body due to torture suffered in Wanjia Labor Camp in  Harbin.
Published on 1/22/2002 Falun Dafa practitioner Chi Chunxia, her husband, and their 2-year-old child were abducted and interrogated on January 3, 2002, Chi Chunxia was forced to jump out of the fourth floor. She was left unconscious on the balcony for a whole night. She suffered frostbite in her feet and hands and her cranial blood vessels ruptured. Her trachea had to be cut to supply oxygen and the police forced her family members to bear all the medical expenses.
Published on 7/29/2002 Dafa Practitioner Ms. Wu Lingxia suffered severe edema after torture at the Shuangyashan Detention Center, and died later as a result.
Published on 7/29/2002 Dafa Practitioner Ms. Wu Lingxia suffered severe edema after torture at the Shuangyashan Detention Center, and died later as a result.
Published on 1/3/2003 Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Song Xu, was arrested and detained at the Jinshui Police Substation in Zhengzhou City, where he was severely tortured for seven days before being sent to the First Detention Center in Zhengzou City, where he endured force-feeding and ruthless torture.
Published on 2/21/2003 Daqing Falun Dafa practitioner Wang Kemin was tortued nearly to death on two occasions in 2002. The photo of his leg was taken in January, 2003, shortly after he managed to escape from detention.
Published on 8/20/2003 A six month pregnant Falun Gong practitioner was viciously beaten by policemen in 2003. A policeman pushed her to the ground, and beat her back and stomach with a wooden rod while grabbing her hair and punching her face...
Published on 8/21/2003 For practicing Falun Gong in a labor camp, this practitioner was crushed by a 220-pound Basket of stones. Days later, a guard and several criminals used a toothbrush to spread drugs, alcohol, and vinegar into his wounds.
Published on 9/8/2003 Falun Dafa practitioner Ms. Chen Xingtao died one year after being tortured to the point where her lower body became paralyzed.
Published on 9/8/2003 Dafa practitioner Ms. Chen Xingtao was sent to the Bamalong Female Labor Camp where she was subjected to various tortures and as a result, her lower body became paralyzed. On May 27, 2002, she passed away.
Published on 9/10/2003 Mr. Zhang Xiaohong, 29, was illegally detained at the Mianyang Xinhua Forced Labor Camp and suffered endless torture. His weight dropped from over 60 kg to approximately 32 kg. He died at 7:00 p.m. on August 4.
Published on 9/10/2003 Mr. Zhang Xiaohong,29, was illegally detained at the Mianyang Xinhua Forced Labor Camp and suffered endless torture. Because of the tortures, his weight dropped from over 60 kg to approximately 32 kg. He died at 7:00 p.m. on August 4, 2003.
Published on 9/19/2003 Ms. Zhao Chunying, 56 years old, was detained in the Jixi City No. 2 Detention Center on April 17, 2003. On May 10, 2003, her family was notified that she had died. Her body was found to be covered with injuries.
Published on 9/19/2003 Falun Dafa practitioner Ms. Zhao Chunying, 56, was detained in the Jixi City No. 2 Detention Center on April 17, 2003. On May 10, 2003, her family was notified that she had died. Her body was found to be covered with injuries.
Published on 10/23/2003 Mr. Zhou Jingsen, 69, was a Falun Dafa practitioner from Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province. He was tortured to death by Changlizi labor camp, after he was reduced to skin and bones.
Published on 10/24/2003 Tian Li, 41, is a practitioner in Shangdong. She was very healthy and had a happy family before the persecution, but she was severely tortured by Weihai City "610 Office" which resulted in Paralysis of her entire body.
Published on 10/24/2003 Tian Li, 41, is a practitioner in Shangdong. She was very healthy and had a happy family before the persecution, but she was severely tortured by Weihai City "610 Office" which resulted in paralysis of her entire body.
Published on 1/7/2004 Mr. Ma Xuejun, 49 years old, was tortured to nearly death.
Published on 1/7/2004 Mr. Ma Xuejun, 49, was severely tortured after the persecution started in 1999.  He became unable to move or speak, and he looked like a skeleton due to prolonged torture.
Published on 2/10/2004 Injuries sustained by Lu Dawei’s after being hit with electric batons and burned by policemen at the Xidayingzi Forced Labor Camp in Chaoyang City, Liaoning Province.
Published on 3/5/2004 Photo one week after Li Zhongmin was tortured by police from the Development District Public Security Office in May 2001. He was later tortured to death in Dabei Prison on March 4, 2003.
Published on 3/14/2004 Falun Dafa practitioner Xin Minduo was sent to the Panjin City Labor Camp, where he was threatened, physically beaten, abused, and tortured. After half a year of undergoing a painful hunger strike to protest the forced labor and being held for a total of eleven months, he was on the verge of death.
Published on 4/25/2004 Twenty six months of torture in the Second Forced Labor Camp in Gansu Province left both of Ms Zhai Fengci’s knees severely injured and swollen, and both hands deformed as well. She is unable to look after herself any more.
Published on 6/13/2004 Falun Dafa practitioner Ms. Cui Xinxiang was sent to the Zhangjiakou City Brainwashing Center, where attendants added unknown drugs to her food, which caused her to have physiological abnormalities. Swollen from head to foot, she was unable to care for herself. She was tortured nearly to death.
Published on 6/24/2004 Heilongjiang practitioner Wang Xinchun, 29, lost his tow legs due to inhuman treatment by thugs from police station and local "610 office."
Published on 7/7/2004 The guards at the Longshan Labor Camp in Shenyang City shocked 36-year-old Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Gao Rongrong’s face and other parts of her body for nearly seven hours with electric batons, which severely disfigured her face. She passed away after continued harassment and abuse.
Published on 7/7/2004 Dafa Practitioner Ms. Gao Rongrong’s Face Is Severely Disfigured by Seven Hours of Electric Baton Torture in the Longshan Labor Camp. On May 7, 2004, Gao Rongrong’s face is covered with burns from electric baton shocks. The picture was taken ten days after the torture.
Published on 8/13/2004 Thirty-year-old Falun Gong practitioner Wang Xia from Bayannaoermeng, Linhe City, Inner Mongolia was tortured in Hohhot City Prison until she was left in a coma as little more than skin and bones. During detention in Huhehaote Women Prison, she was injected with unknow drugs.
Published on 9/4/2004 On July 19, 2000, a Beijing practitioner was abducted by police from a Police Station. She was suspended in the air and severely beaten, leaving visible signs of the mistreatment.
Published on 9/10/2004 Falun Dafa practitioner Wang Haiyan was severely beaten by gansters of Dongshan District Police Bureau and became blinded in the right eye. This photo was taken before persecution.
Published on 9/10/2004 Practitioner Wang Haiyan was severely beaten by gansters of Dongshan District Police Bureau and became blind in her right eye. This photo was taken after she recovered from the torture.
Published on 9/13/2004 Thirty-year-old Falun Gong practitioner Wang Xia from Bayannaoermeng, Linhe City, Inner Mongolia was tortured in Hohhot City Prison until she was left in a coma as little more than skin and bones.
Published on 9/13/2004 On Sept. 4, 2004, police in Anqiu, Shandong Province stopped this practitioner on the road, pulled out a handful of his hair and kicked him until he fell down on the ground.
Published on 9/25/2004 Falun Gong practitioner Zou Yanjie, from the Railroad Workers Community at the Halahai Township in Nong’an County of Jilin Province was brutally persecuted and suffered frostbite in both feet, which then had to be cut off. Currently, he has been forced to leave home to avoid further persecution.
Published on 10/18/2004 Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Zhen Shi, 54, went on a hungar strike while she was detained in Masanjia labor camp. Guards and criminals used steel spoons to pry her mouth open, breaking her teeth.
Published on 11/17/2004 Falun Dafa practitioner Mr. Chen Huagui went to see Hu Dongxiang, Head of the Shengzhen Township’s "610 Office" on October 5, 2004 to appeal for Falun Gong and ask for his identification card to be returned. Instead, he received a severe beating in which three of his front teeth were knocked out and his eyes were bruised.
Published on 11/18/2004 Falun Dafa practitioner in Anshan was shot twice by police.
Published on 11/18/2004 Deep wounds and heavy bruises clearly visible on the head, arms, and legs of this Falun Gong practitioner.
Published on 11/19/2004 Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Fuli, 41, is from Shuangcheng City, Heilongjiang Province. In 2000, her hands were disabled and her body was covered in sores as a result of torture at the Wanjia Forced Labor Camp in Harbin City.

Witness to Torture (Selected Photos)


Page 1 of 1
12 Photos/Page
Published on 10/6/1999 In 1999, Falun Gong practitioner professor Zhu Han was abducted to Yaojia Detention Center of Dalian city, where she was brutally tortured; resulting in bruises all over her body as well as mental disorder.
Published on 11/2/1999 Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Xiang Jinying, from Haiyan of Zhejiang Province, went to Beijing to appeal in October 1999. She was arrested and tortured and suffered a fracture in her upper arm due to prolonged handcuffing behind the back.
Published on 11/2/1999 Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Xiang Jinying, from Haiyan of Zhejiang Province, went to Beijing to appeal in October 1999. She was arrested and tortured and suffered a fracture in her upper arm due to prolonged handcuffing behind the back.
Published on 2000 Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Zhao Xin before and after police beating that left her with three fractured vertebrae.  She later died.
Published on 2000 Torn and Bloodstained T-shirts serve as evidence of brutality against Falun Gong practitioners.
Published on 10/27/2000 This photo was taken five days after being abused by the Tiananmen Police. The practitioner went to Tiananmen Square on October 17, 2000 to appeal for Falun Gong. She was arrested and tortured.
Published on 11/13/2000 Heilongjiang Practitioner Wang Bin was tortured to death on Septempber 24, 2000 by Daqing Men’s Labor Campa. Hosptial examination showed: a lymph artery was broken; over a dozen of his bones, including his collar bone, sternum and ribs were broken; one of Wang’s testicles was also split; the backs of Wang’s hands were found to have been repeatedly burned; Wang’s nostrils were burned and injured by the lit cigarettes that were inserted into them; and many parts of Wang’s body were black and dark purple..
Published on 2000 Photographs of various injuries to the bodies of Falun Gong practitioners caused by torture.
Published on 12/5/2000 Ms. Zhao Shujing, a 51-year-old Falun Gong practitioner went to Tiananmen Square on November 18, 2000, to clarify the truth about Falun Gong. A bunch of plainclothes policemen caught her and took turns beating and kicking her, causing her to lose consciousness in Tiananmen Square.
Published on 12/16/2000 Zhao Xin, instructor at the Business and Economics College at the Beijing Industry and Commerce University died six months after police beating which resulted en 3 fractured neck vertebra.
Published on 1/7/2001 The Police Sub-station of Xitiange Village in Miyun County has employed local thugs who carry out inhuman "transformation" on local Falun Gong practitioners, causing them tremendous physical and mental torment. Some female practitioners were even sexually abused.
Published on 3/2/2001 A plainclothes policeman stopped a female Falun Gong practitioner who was clarifying the truth, beat her on the street for more than one hour, and then dragged her under a bridge and raped her.
Published on 3/30/2001 This Falun Dafa practitioner went to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong in December, 2000. She was arrested and severely tortured by police in Beijing and then Tianjin. Her left eye was consequently blinded from police beating.
Published on 4/30/2001 This Falun Dafa practitioner was arrested to Xuanweu District detention Center where he suffered torture and inhuman treatment. All his toes turned black from frostbite and had to be amputated.
Published on 5/29/2001 Tiananmen police spit on Falun Dafa practitioners, kicked their heads and stomachs, and poured boiling water on them. The arms of practitioners were badly burned and covered with huge blisters, and some practitioners even had muscle exposed from the burning...(photo)
Published on 7/30/2001 Falun Gong practitioner Tan Yongjie was a factory worker in Baoan, Guangdong Province. On June 2nd, three labor camp guards  beat him, tied him to a pillar, and burned him 13 times with a red hot iron rod to force him to give up his belief.
Published on 8/20/2001 On the morning of June 4, 2001, thirteen Falun Dafa practitioners were forcefully abducted from Majia Village, Sunjiaji Township, Shouguang City. Two practitioners were brutally killed while in police custody and several other practitioners were severely wounded. The photo shows scars on practitioner Liu Aiqin’s leg due police brutality.
Published on 10/11/2001 Scars left in a practitioner’s body due to torture suffered in Wanjia Labor Camp in  Harbin.
Published on 1/22/2002 Falun Dafa practitioner Chi Chunxia, her husband, and their 2-year-old child were abducted and interrogated on January 3, 2002, Chi Chunxia was forced to jump out of the fourth floor. She was left unconscious on the balcony for a whole night. She suffered frostbite in her feet and hands and her cranial blood vessels ruptured. Her trachea had to be cut to supply oxygen and the police forced her family members to bear all the medical expenses.
Published on 7/29/2002 Dafa Practitioner Ms. Wu Lingxia suffered severe edema after torture at the Shuangyashan Detention Center, and died later as a result.
Published on 7/29/2002 Dafa Practitioner Ms. Wu Lingxia suffered severe edema after torture at the Shuangyashan Detention Center, and died later as a result.
Published on 1/3/2003 Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Song Xu, was arrested and detained at the Jinshui Police Substation in Zhengzhou City, where he was severely tortured for seven days before being sent to the First Detention Center in Zhengzou City, where he endured force-feeding and ruthless torture.
Published on 2/21/2003 Daqing Falun Dafa practitioner Wang Kemin was tortued nearly to death on two occasions in 2002. The photo of his leg was taken in January, 2003, shortly after he managed to escape from detention.
Published on 8/20/2003 A six month pregnant Falun Gong practitioner was viciously beaten by policemen in 2003. A policeman pushed her to the ground, and beat her back and stomach with a wooden rod while grabbing her hair and punching her face...
Published on 8/21/2003 For practicing Falun Gong in a labor camp, this practitioner was crushed by a 220-pound Basket of stones. Days later, a guard and several criminals used a toothbrush to spread drugs, alcohol, and vinegar into his wounds.
Published on 9/8/2003 Falun Dafa practitioner Ms. Chen Xingtao died one year after being tortured to the point where her lower body became paralyzed.
Published on 9/8/2003 Dafa practitioner Ms. Chen Xingtao was sent to the Bamalong Female Labor Camp where she was subjected to various tortures and as a result, her lower body became paralyzed. On May 27, 2002, she passed away.
Published on 9/10/2003 Mr. Zhang Xiaohong, 29, was illegally detained at the Mianyang Xinhua Forced Labor Camp and suffered endless torture. His weight dropped from over 60 kg to approximately 32 kg. He died at 7:00 p.m. on August 4.
Published on 9/10/2003 Mr. Zhang Xiaohong,29, was illegally detained at the Mianyang Xinhua Forced Labor Camp and suffered endless torture. Because of the tortures, his weight dropped from over 60 kg to approximately 32 kg. He died at 7:00 p.m. on August 4, 2003.
Published on 9/19/2003 Ms. Zhao Chunying, 56 years old, was detained in the Jixi City No. 2 Detention Center on April 17, 2003. On May 10, 2003, her family was notified that she had died. Her body was found to be covered with injuries.
Published on 9/19/2003 Falun Dafa practitioner Ms. Zhao Chunying, 56, was detained in the Jixi City No. 2 Detention Center on April 17, 2003. On May 10, 2003, her family was notified that she had died. Her body was found to be covered with injuries.
Published on 10/23/2003 Mr. Zhou Jingsen, 69, was a Falun Dafa practitioner from Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province. He was tortured to death by Changlizi labor camp, after he was reduced to skin and bones.
Published on 10/24/2003 Tian Li, 41, is a practitioner in Shangdong. She was very healthy and had a happy family before the persecution, but she was severely tortured by Weihai City "610 Office" which resulted in Paralysis of her entire body.
Published on 10/24/2003 Tian Li, 41, is a practitioner in Shangdong. She was very healthy and had a happy family before the persecution, but she was severely tortured by Weihai City "610 Office" which resulted in paralysis of her entire body.
Published on 1/7/2004 Mr. Ma Xuejun, 49 years old, was tortured to nearly death.
Published on 1/7/2004 Mr. Ma Xuejun, 49, was severely tortured after the persecution started in 1999.  He became unable to move or speak, and he looked like a skeleton due to prolonged torture.
Published on 2/10/2004 Injuries sustained by Lu Dawei’s after being hit with electric batons and burned by policemen at the Xidayingzi Forced Labor Camp in Chaoyang City, Liaoning Province.
Published on 3/5/2004 Photo one week after Li Zhongmin was tortured by police from the Development District Public Security Office in May 2001. He was later tortured to death in Dabei Prison on March 4, 2003.
Published on 3/14/2004 Falun Dafa practitioner Xin Minduo was sent to the Panjin City Labor Camp, where he was threatened, physically beaten, abused, and tortured. After half a year of undergoing a painful hunger strike to protest the forced labor and being held for a total of eleven months, he was on the verge of death.
Published on 4/25/2004 Twenty six months of torture in the Second Forced Labor Camp in Gansu Province left both of Ms Zhai Fengci’s knees severely injured and swollen, and both hands deformed as well. She is unable to look after herself any more.
Published on 6/13/2004 Falun Dafa practitioner Ms. Cui Xinxiang was sent to the Zhangjiakou City Brainwashing Center, where attendants added unknown drugs to her food, which caused her to have physiological abnormalities. Swollen from head to foot, she was unable to care for herself. She was tortured nearly to death.
Published on 6/24/2004 Heilongjiang practitioner Wang Xinchun, 29, lost his tow legs due to inhuman treatment by thugs from police station and local "610 office."
Published on 7/7/2004 The guards at the Longshan Labor Camp in Shenyang City shocked 36-year-old Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Gao Rongrong’s face and other parts of her body for nearly seven hours with electric batons, which severely disfigured her face. She passed away after continued harassment and abuse.
Published on 7/7/2004 Dafa Practitioner Ms. Gao Rongrong’s Face Is Severely Disfigured by Seven Hours of Electric Baton Torture in the Longshan Labor Camp. On May 7, 2004, Gao Rongrong’s face is covered with burns from electric baton shocks. The picture was taken ten days after the torture.
Published on 8/13/2004 Thirty-year-old Falun Gong practitioner Wang Xia from Bayannaoermeng, Linhe City, Inner Mongolia was tortured in Hohhot City Prison until she was left in a coma as little more than skin and bones. During detention in Huhehaote Women Prison, she was injected with unknow drugs.
Published on 9/4/2004 On July 19, 2000, a Beijing practitioner was abducted by police from a Police Station. She was suspended in the air and severely beaten, leaving visible signs of the mistreatment.
Published on 9/10/2004 Falun Dafa practitioner Wang Haiyan was severely beaten by gansters of Dongshan District Police Bureau and became blinded in the right eye. This photo was taken before persecution.
Published on 9/10/2004 Practitioner Wang Haiyan was severely beaten by gansters of Dongshan District Police Bureau and became blind in her right eye. This photo was taken after she recovered from the torture.
Published on 9/13/2004 Thirty-year-old Falun Gong practitioner Wang Xia from Bayannaoermeng, Linhe City, Inner Mongolia was tortured in Hohhot City Prison until she was left in a coma as little more than skin and bones.
Published on 9/13/2004 On Sept. 4, 2004, police in Anqiu, Shandong Province stopped this practitioner on the road, pulled out a handful of his hair and kicked him until he fell down on the ground.
Published on 9/25/2004 Falun Gong practitioner Zou Yanjie, from the Railroad Workers Community at the Halahai Township in Nong’an County of Jilin Province was brutally persecuted and suffered frostbite in both feet, which then had to be cut off. Currently, he has been forced to leave home to avoid further persecution.
Published on 10/18/2004 Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Zhen Shi, 54, went on a hungar strike while she was detained in Masanjia labor camp. Guards and criminals used steel spoons to pry her mouth open, breaking her teeth.
Published on 11/17/2004 Falun Dafa practitioner Mr. Chen Huagui went to see Hu Dongxiang, Head of the Shengzhen Township’s "610 Office" on October 5, 2004 to appeal for Falun Gong and ask for his identification card to be returned. Instead, he received a severe beating in which three of his front teeth were knocked out and his eyes were bruised.
Published on 11/18/2004 Falun Dafa practitioner in Anshan was shot twice by police.
Published on 11/18/2004 Deep wounds and heavy bruises clearly visible on the head, arms, and legs of this Falun Gong practitioner.
Published on 11/19/2004 Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Fuli, 41, is from Shuangcheng City, Heilongjiang Province. In 2000, her hands were disabled and her body was covered in sores as a result of torture at the Wanjia Forced Labor Camp in Harbin City.