The International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) is a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

advocacy group Advocacy groups, also known as lobby groups, interest groups, special interest groups, pressure groups, or public associations, use various forms of advocacy or lobbying to influence public opinion and ultimately public policy. They play an impor ...

working to promote democratic freedoms for

Tibetans Tibetans () are an East Asian ethnic group native to Tibet. Their current population is estimated to be around 7.7 million. In addition to the majority living in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, significant numbers of Tibetans live in t ...

, ensure their

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

, and protect Tibetan

culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

and the environment. Founded in 1988, ICT is the world's largest Tibet-related NGO, with several thousand members and strong bases of support in North America and Europe. On March 15, 2018, the ICT completed 30 years of service to the Tibetan community and received a video message from the Dalai Lama. ICT also released its new logo. An event was also held in the United States Congress on March 6, 2018 to mark the event with Congressional leaders

Nancy Pelosi Nancy Patricia Pelosi ( ; ; born March 26, 1940) is an American politician who was the List of Speakers of the United States House of Representatives, 52nd speaker of the United States House of Representatives, serving from 2007 to 2011 an ...

, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Jim McGovern, ICT Chairman

Richard Gere Richard Tiffany Gere ( ; born August 31, 1949) is an American actor. He began appearing in films in the 1970s, playing a supporting role in ''Looking for Mr. Goodbar (film), Looking for Mr. Goodbar'' (1977) and a starring role in ''Days of Hea ...

, Representative Ngodup Tsering and ICT Board Member Tempa Tsering making remarks. ICT maintains offices in

Washington D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

and

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. ICT's work focuses on three main areas: reporting on the situation inside Tibet, advocating for Tibet with governments, and reaching out to Chinese individuals, organizations, and media entities.

Profile

The International Campaign for Tibet works to promote

self-determination Self-determination refers to a people's right to form its own political entity, and internal self-determination is the right to representative government with full suffrage. Self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international la ...

, human rights, and democratic freedoms for the Tibetan people, and negotiations between the

14th Dalai Lama The 14th Dalai Lama (born 6 July 1935; full spiritual name: Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, shortened as Tenzin Gyatso; ) is the incumbent Dalai Lama, the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism. He served a ...

and the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. The three main departments of ICT are devoted to reporting and communications, advocacy, and Chinese outreach. Monitoring and reporting on human rights, environmental and socio-economic conditions in Tibet makes up a significant portion of ICT's activities, with information coming directly from inside Tibet and also from a network of Tibetan researchers based in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

. ICT advocacy efforts are focused on securing humanitarian and development assistance for Tibetans, and working with governments to develop policies and programs to help Tibetans. ICT asks its members to petition governments on behalf of Tibet, and organizes activities like the annual Tibet Lobby Day which gives constituents a chance to directly ask their representatives to help Tibet. Additional advocacy efforts are focused on achieving the release of Tibetans imprisoned for their political or religious beliefs. Through Chinese Outreach, ICT engages Chinese thinkers and the broader Chinese public with the goal of increasing mutual understanding between Chinese and Tibetans. ICT is a member of

International Federation for Human Rights The International Federation for Human Rights (; FIDH) is a non-governmental federation for human rights organizations. Founded in 1922, FIDH is the third oldest international human rights organization worldwide after Anti-Slavery International ...

Publications

ICT publishes several major reports each year, such as "A policy alienating Tibetans" – the denial of passports to Tibetans as China intensifies control; Dangers of China's counter-terrorism law for Tibetans and Uyghurs; Dangerous Crossing, report on Tibetan refugees seeking to escape repression in Tibet under Chinese rule; Storm in the Grasslands: Self-immolations in Tibet and Chinese policy; and Nomads in 'no man's land': China's nomination for UNESCO World heritage risks imperilling Tibetans and wildlife. Other reports include one focused on the 2008 Tibetan Uprising and the ensuing Chinese crackdown in Tibet, and a 2012 report entitled "60 Years of Chinese Misrule" which concludes that Chinese policies in Tibet have created elements of

cultural genocide Cultural genocide or culturicide is a concept first described by Polish lawyer Raphael Lemkin in 1944, in the same book that coined the term ''genocide''. The destruction of culture was a central component in Lemkin's formulation of genocide ...

. Periodical publications include the quarterly Tibet Press Watch.

Key people

*Richard Gere, Chair of the ICT Board. *Bhuchung Tsering, Interim President. *Vincent Metten, EU Policy Director. *Tsering Jampa, Executive Director of ICT Europe in Amsterdam. *Kai Muller, Executive Director of ICT Germany in Berlin. *Tencho Gyatso, Interim Vice President

Rowell Fund

Following the August 2002 deaths of ICT Co-chair

Galen Rowell Galen Avery Rowell (August 23, 1940 – August 11, 2002) was an American wilderness photographer, adventure photojournalist and mountaineer. Born in Oakland, California, he became a full-time photographer in 1972. Early life and education Rowe ...

and his wife, Barbara Rowell, the ICT Board of Directors established the Rowell Fund. The Fund gives small grants to Tibetans whose projects deal with the environment/conservation, photography, humanitarian projects, journalism/literature, and women's projects. In recent years the amount dispensed by the Rowell Fund has ranged from $35,000 to more than $40,000.

Light of Truth Award

ICT presents the ''

Light of Truth Award The Light of Truth Award is a human rights award which is presented nearly annually by the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT), an NGO aiming for the promotion of democracy and human rights for the Tibetan people. The award is presented since ...

'', a

award An award, sometimes called a distinction, is given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An award may be d ...

to individuals and institutions who have made significant contributions to the public understanding of

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ), or Greater Tibet, is a region in the western part of East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are other ethnic groups s ...

and the fight for

and democratic freedoms of the

Tibetan people Tibetans () are an East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group Indigenous peoples, native to Tibet. Their current population is estimated to be around 7.7 million. In addition to the majority living in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, sig ...

. The award itself is a simple Tibetan

butter lamp Butter lamps or butterlamps (; ) are a common feature of Tibetan Buddhist temples and monasteries throughout the Himalayas. The lamps traditionally burn clarified butter, clarified yak butter, but now often use vegetable oil or Vanaspati#Hyd ...

, symbolizing the extraordinary light that each recipient has drawn to the Tibet issue. On one occasion, in 2001, the award was presented to all the people of India, with president

R. Venkataraman Ramaswamy Venkataraman (, 4 December 191027 January 2009), also known as R. Venkataraman, was an Indian lawyer, independence activist and politician who served as a union minister and as the president of India. Venkataraman was born in Rajam ...

accepting delivery of the prize. The majority of the awards have been presented since 1995 by the fourteenth

Dalai Lama The Dalai Lama (, ; ) is the head of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. The term is part of the full title "Holiness Knowing Everything Vajradhara Dalai Lama" (圣识一切瓦齐尔达喇达赖喇嘛) given by Altan Khan, the first Shu ...

Tenzin Gyatso The 14th Dalai Lama (born 6 July 1935; full spiritual name: Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, shortened as Tenzin Gyatso; ) is the incumbent Dalai Lama, the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism. He served a ...

, to the recipients personally. The recipients are: * 1995: A. M. Rosenthal * 1996:

, Lavinia Currier, and Michael Currier * 1997:

Charlie Rose Charles Peete Rose Jr. (born January 5, 1942) is an American journalist and talk show host. From 1991 to 2017, he was the host and executive producer of the talk show ''Charlie Rose (talk show), Charlie Rose'' on PBS and Bloomberg L.P., Bloombe ...

, and

Claiborne Pell Claiborne de Borda Pell (November 22, 1918 – January 1, 2009) was an American politician and writer who served as a U.S. Senator from Rhode Island for six terms from 1961 to 1997. He was the sponsor of the 1972 bill that reformed the Basic ...

* 1998:

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November17, 1942) is an American filmmaker. One of the major figures of the New Hollywood era, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Martin Scorsese, many accolades, including an Academ ...

, and Melissa Mathison * 1999: Hugh Edward Richardson, and Danielle Mitterrand * 2000: Richard C. Blum * 2001: The people of

, taken delivery of by

* 2002:

Heinrich Harrer Heinrich Harrer (; 6 July 1912 – 7 January 2006) was an Austrian mountaineer, explorer, writer, sportsman, geographer, and briefly SS sergeant. He was a member of the four-man climbing team that made the first ascent of the North Face of the ...

, and

Petra Kelly Petra Karin Kelly (29 November 1947 – 1 October 1992) was a German Green politician and ecofeminist activist. She was a founding member of the German Green Party, the first Green party to rise to prominence both nationally in Germany and w ...

* 2003: Benjamin A. Gilman, Michele Bohana, and

Robert Thurman Robert Alexander Farrar Thurman (born August 3, 1941) is an American Buddhist author and academic who has written, edited, and translated several books on Tibetan Buddhism. He was the Je Tsongkhapa Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies at ...

* 2004:

Otto Graf Lambsdorff Otto Friedrich Wilhelm Freiherr von der Wenge Graf Lambsdorff, known as Otto Graf Lambsdorff (20 December 1926 – 5 December 2009), was a German politician of the Free Democratic Party (FDP). He was the German Federal Minister of Econom ...

, Irmtraut Wäger, and

Václav Havel Václav Havel (; 5 October 193618 December 2011) was a Czech statesman, author, poet, playwright, and dissident. Havel served as the last List of presidents of Czechoslovakia, president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 until 1992, prior to the dissol ...

* 2005:

Elie Wiesel Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel (September 30, 1928 – July 2, 2016) was a Romanian-born American writer, professor, political activist, List of Nobel Peace Prize laureates#1980, Nobel laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He authored Elie Wiesel bibliogra ...

, Carl Gershman, and Lowell Thomas Jr. * 2006:

Hergé Foundation The Hergé Foundation is the official organisation that looks after the world and works of Hergé and his creation ''The Adventures of Tintin'', along with his other comics like '' Quick & Flupke'' and '' Jo, Zette and Jocko''. Created from Stud ...

, and

Desmond Tutu Desmond Mpilo Tutu (7 October 193126 December 2021) was a South African Anglican bishop and theologian, known for his work as an anti-apartheid and human rights activist. He was Bishop of Johannesburg from 1985 to 1986 and then Archbishop ...

* 2009: Julia Taft, and Wang Lixiong * 2011: George Patterson * 2013: Professor Dr. Christian Schwarz-Schilling, The International Commission of Jurists, Ms. Sigrid Joss-Arnd, Professor Theo van Boven and Robert Ford * 2018: Grace Spring

Financials

ICT derives the vast majority of its funding (81%) from membership contributions, according to the 2010 financial statement. Smaller sources of funding include donations from foundations (3%) and grants (1%).

Notes

External links

Official websiteICT Germany websiteICT French websiteICT Dutch websiteICT Chinese websiteICT Tibet Policy Resources siteICT Blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:International Campaign For Tibet Human rights organizations based in the United States International organizations based in the United States Tibetan independence movement Organizations established in 1988 International Federation for Human Rights member organizations

Profile

Publications

Key people

Rowell Fund

Light of Truth Award

Financials

See also

Notes

External links