Dalai Lama's U.S. tour arouses protest in Michigan
MICHIGAN, the United States, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of Chinese Americans and Chinese nationals working or studying in the United States gathered in the northeastern state of Michigan Sunday to protest against the crime and violence wire-pulled by the Dalai clique and voiced support for the upcoming Beijing Olympics.
The protest, organized by the Chinese students studying at the University of Michigan and the State University of Michigan, was held outside the Ann Arbor stadium where the Dalai Lama was delivering a speech.
The protesters, from teenagers to the grey-haired, all chanted "One World, One Dream" and "Olympics go," while wielding such slogans as "Politics off Olympics, we want sport" and "We seek peace."
"We overseas Chinese students were infuriated by the violence in Tibet on March 14 and the interruption on the Olympic torch relay wire-pulled by the Dalai clique, so we decided to stage this protest to make our voice heard," said Chen Jinhui, a student at the University of Michigan and one of the organizers.
Some 10,000 U.S. dollars have been donated online or through checks within one week in support of the protest, according to Chen and other fundraising volunteers.
On the self-designed and self-made paperboards, the protestors displayed pictures, diagrams and historical records, which were collected from the Internet, foreign media reports and books written by Chinese and Western scholars, on the facts of Tibet's history and development, as well as the violence and crime in China's Lhasa on March 14 and the interruption of Olympics torch relay in Paris and London committed by Tibet separatists.
They also offered detailed introductions and explanations regarding China's policy on Tibet and contributions to the improvement of the living standard of the Tibetan people. Some talked with local residents and media to address the latter's questions.
Some Americans asked for sources and links where they could find more information and facts about Tibet, said a Chinese volunteer.
Demonstrations against Tibet separatists' attempt to sabotage China's sovereignty and the forthcoming Beijing Olympics have been held in a series of U.S. cities as the Dalai Lama was paying a tour in this North American country.
