Date Posted: Thursday, March 13, 2008

Nilanjana Bhowmick - AHN News Writer

Dehra, India (AHN) March 13, 2008 - Tibetan exiles embarked on a hunger strike in India on Thursday in protest against the Olympic Games being hosted by China. The protesters were marching toward Tibet when they were arrested by the police for disrupting the stability of the region.

They were joined by nine foreign nationals, who were part of the march but were not arrested. Those nine people were from the U.S., Scotland, Germany, Poland and Australia.

The marchers were arrested from Dehra Bridge, 19 miles from Dharamsala town, where the spiritual leader of the Tibetans, the Dalai Lama runs the Tibetan government in exile.

The slogan, "free Tibet" echoed through the air as the protesters were being picked up by the police but there was no violence. The protesters have vowed to continue with their march.

Tenzin Palkyi, a march coordinator said that they will find a way to continue with their protest. He told the Associated Press, "Our legal team will deal with the police."

The march began on Monday as part of a worldwide pro-independence protest against China. There were demonstrations in various places all over the world. About 300 Buddhist monks had also protested in the Tibetan capital, Lhasa.

The detainees will have a court hearing by Friday.

Tenzin Choeying, one of the march leaders told BBC News, "While these extreme measures taken by the Indian authorities are unfortunate, this is but a momentary set-back in our plan and we are determined to continue our march home to Tibet."

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