The Forum 2000 Foundation is organizing a reception on the occasion of the Prague visit of members of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, which will take place on Wednesday, June 4, 2014 at the Old Town Hall in Prague. The Tibetan parliamentarians will be led by their Deputy Speaker, Khenpo Lopon Sonam Tenphel. The meeting in Prague forms part of a major visit of Tibetan parliamentarians to Europe.
The reception seeks to provide a meeting point and platform for dialogue between Czech and Tibetan representatives and express solidarity with the struggle for a true Tibetan autonomy within China and respect for human rights in the region. Among the invited guests are representatives of the Czech Parliament, NGOs, and other supporters of Tibet.
The reception will be preceded by a public discussion with the representatives of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, which will be held at 17.30 in the Communication Space Školská 28, Prague 1. The debate is organized by associations Lungta, Potala and Václav Havel Library. More information can be found here.
The Forum 2000 Foundation has focused on Tibet since its establishment in 1996. We regularly invite Tibetan spiritual leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama to the Czech Republic and in 2012, we also had the honor to host the Tibetan Prime Minister in exile, Lobsang Sangay. The Forum 2000 Foundation has long been raising concerns over human rights violations in Tibet, notably through the statements of the Shared Concern Initiative members in 2008 and 2012.
On May 5, 2014, the Forum 2000 Foundation, along with other Czech NGOs, participated in a public gathering to support Tibet in reaction to remarks and steps taken by leading Czech representatives. Following the foreign policy principles set and represented by Václav Havel, the Forum 2000 Foundation supports true autonomy of Tibet in line with Chinese obligations and adherence to human rights in practice.