19 June 2010 (Chinland Guardian): People across the world today joined the 65th birthday celebration of Aung San Suu Kyi in their residing countries, protesting against the ‘unfair’ detention of Burma’s pro-democracy leader by the ruling military regime.

(Picture: Aung san Suu Kyi photo. Pic courtesy: Guardian.co.uk)

In London, about 200 people gathered in front of Burmese Embassy in a demonstration organised by NLD-LA UK in association with UK-based organisations and individuals, calling for the immediate release of Aung San Suu Kyi along with other political prisoners in Burma.

In his statement, President Barack Obama said: “I wish to convey my best wishes to Aung San Suu Kyi, the world’s only imprisoned Nobel Peace Laureate, on the occasion of her 65th birthday on June 19.”

“Her determination, courage, and personal sacrifice in working for human rights and democratic change in Burma inspire all of us who stand for freedom and justice,” he continued as he called on the Burmese government to release Aung San Suu Kyi and all political prisoners immediately and unconditionally.

More than 22 cities around the world held demonstrations, concerts, performances, conferences, seminars, protests and numerous other events to mark the celebration of Aung San Suu Kyi’s 65th birthday, according to Burma Campaign UK.

Email groups and social websites such as Facebook have also been mushroomed with birthday wishes and postcards as well as presents for Aung San Suu Kyi, who spent her 65th birthday under house arrest in Burma.

Still being detained by Burma’s military regime, Aung Sun Suu Kyi has spent almost 15 of the last 21 years in detention.

Desmond Tutu and Aung San Suu Kyi agree, Myanmar elections “shameful”, a “farce”

The South African archbishop is in favour of sanctions against the military junta, compares Burma’s opposition leader to Nelson Mandela. One day, he said, she will be “freely elected” to lead her country. The Burmese Nobel Peace Prize winner appeals to the people to stand up to the unjust law.

“We are more likely to find snow in hell than free democratic elections in Burma under the present dispensation,” said Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu in an interview with The Irrawaddy, a dissident Burmese newspaper. He told the paper that the election was a “farce”, reiterating earlier criticism made by Aung San Suu Kyi, who had labeled the military junta’s election law as “shameful”. The Anglican religious leader, Nobel Peace Prize laureate for his struggle against apartheid in South Africa, said he hoped that one day he might travel to Yangon to meet the opposition leader.

“My dear Sister Nobel Laureate, my dear sisters and brothers in Burma, we admire your courage and determination,” he said. “One day we will come to Rangoon to join you in your celebrations when you, my sister, are inaugurated as the true, freely elected leader of Burma just as Nelson Mandela came out of jail and became our leader.”

Desmond Tutu backs international sanctions against Myanmar and calls the elections, which are scheduled for later this year, a “farce.”

“How can you claim to hold a free democratic election when the leader of the main opposition which won a landslide victory in the last truly democratic and free election is excluded and where the election commissioners will be handpicked by the junta?” the prelate said.

National League for Democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi also slammed the election law, calling it “shameful”, her lawyer and party spokesman Nyan Win said. He explained that the piece of legislation excludes people who have been convicted, including political prisoners, or are waiting their final sentence. It is thus a law designed to exclude one woman, and one woman alone, from the electoral process.

“The laws include certain facts that show it was obviously meant for one individual and that makes it very shameful. It cheapens the legislation,” Win quoted Aung San Suu Kyi as saying. For this reason, she made an appeal to the Burmese people to stand up to the unjust law.

Meanwhile the US government said it would not recognise the outcome of the polls. “There’s no hope that this election will be credible,” US State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said, adding the laws make the election a “mockery of the democratic process.”

www.SperoNews-World/Global: Asia News  March 12, 2010

Burma’s suffering is also ours!

In the week when Amnesty International awarded Burma’s opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi its highest accolade, Ambassador of Conscience, a fellow Nobel laureate pays tribute.

I think of my sister Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi every day. Her picture hangs on the wall of my office, reminding me that, thousands of miles away in Asia, a nation is oppressed. Every day I ask myself: have I done everything I can try to end the atrocities being committed in Burma? And I pray that world leaders will ask themselves the same question. For if they did, the answer would be “no”, and perhaps their conscience will finally force them to act.

Humankind has the ability to live in freedom and in peace. We have seen that goodness has triumphed over evil; we have witnessed political transitions in South Africa, and elsewhere, evidencing that we live in a moral universe. Our world is sometimes lacking wise and good leadership or, as in the case of Burma, the leadership is forbidden to lead.

Aung San Suu Kyi has now been detained for more than 13 years.  She recently passed her 5,000th day in detention. Every one of those days is a tragedy and a lost opportunity. The whole world, not just the people of Burma, suffers from this loss.   Click here to read more

2009 was a landmark year for Frame of Mind Films. An EMMY® and 7 TELLY Awards, two shoots in Dharamsala, India. Interviews with the Dalai Lama, the 17th Karmapa, Angeles Arrien, and Matthew Fox.   21 Prayers for Peace gains momentum and Miriam Telles moves on to pastures new as Aram Fischer returns to FOMF.

Many will remember Aram Fischer working with FOMF in the early days of our Women of Tibet film series.  When Gyalyum Chemo-The Great Mother was complete Aram set off to seek his fortune in Australia.  We are delighted and fortunate to welcome him home and back to work with us again on our new and exciting projects.

As Aram returns, Miriam Telles moves on.  We thank Miriam for her work on The Great Mother and A Quiet Revolution and wish her good fortune in whatever lies ahead for her.

In January Holly Hine joined Frame of Mind Films as our junior post-production assistant.  Holly rapidly distinguished herself during the coming months, first becoming Rosemary’s Executive Assistant and now our junior Associate Producer/Post Production manager.

March and April saw interviews with Angeles Arrien and Matthew Fox for the final episode of the Women of Tibet trilogy, The Buddha’s Wife quickly followed by a trip to Dharamsala, India for interviews with His Holiness the Dalai Lama, His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, and two female state oracles: Lhamo Yudonma and Lhamo Tseringma.  Back in the US we interviewed Lama Tsultrim Allione.

Exciting news of our nomination for an EMMY® arrived during our visit to India in April, followed by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences awards ceremony in May.  And yes, our nomination was transformed into a WIN!

Summer was rounded out with Linda Milks presenting us a project that she is impassioned by: Nature Speaks. Linda worked as one of our researchers on our Women of Tibet series.  Today, Linda is working with us again but this time as story consultant on “Nature Speaks,”  a remarkable new documentary film about the immediacy and gravity of global environmental conditions.

Fall began with Rosemary and Holly journeying to San Juan Island to see Her Eminence Sakya Jetsun Chimey Luding Rinpoche to take direct teachings on the 21 Taras for our book 21 Prayers for Peace. As always Jetsunma’s kindness and generosity, patience and encouragement were boundless.  For more about Jetsun Kusho la please see our Weaving Wisdom, Weaving Life page.

Then onto Vancouver BC for the Dalai Lama Center’s Peace Summit attended by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and several other Nobel Peace laureates. This exciting few days provided inspiration and much information for our project The Empty Chair, a documentary film on the history of peace and non-violence.  The visit to Vancouver also spawned another trip to Dharamsala, this time to interview Nobel laureates Shirin Ebadi, Jody Williams, and Mairead Maguire who were visiting His Holiness to commemorate the 50th year of exile for the Tibetan leader. Unfortunately, Rosemary suffered an arm injury and was unable to work  making much of the purpose for the trip a loss.

As the year drew to a close, there was good news and not so good news.  In December Rosemary learned that Dr. Marion Woodman was in the midst of another serious health crisis.  If you have seen Women of Tibet: The Great Mother you will remember Marion as being one of three Western women to talk about the Great Mother archetype in the film.  The good news is that Marion’s indomitable spirit prevailed and with it her agreement to work with Rosemary on a film biography of her life.

Since The Great Mother and A Quiet Revolution were completed, Frame of Mind Films has worked to have both films translated into the Tibetan language.  The majority of Tibetans raised under the Communist Chinese regime and escaping Tibet do not speak English and do not have any real knowledge of their own recent history and cultural legacy.  Once Tibetan versions of the films are finished, they will be used  for teaching purposes within the Tibetan settlements in India and for screening to Tibetan speaking audiences around the world.  This work continues as and when additional funding becomes available and the current status is that both films are two thirds complete.

Take a look… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F–YVo7KdTE

Please join us in sending Long Life prayers and Happy Birthday greetings to him.

With love and gratitude,

Rosemary and everyone at Frame of Mind Films

AVATAR IN THE AMAZON

If there were ever a place that came close to the magical world of Pandora in James Cameron’s new film Avatar, it would probably be the Amazon. There may not be butterflies that look like flying squid, but in the Amazon you can eat giant worms and lemon flavored ants for dinner in a forest that is home to both the jaguar and the pink dolphin. Reporter Melaina Spitzer joined a group of indigenous leaders from the Amazon in Ecuador’s capital Quito, to see Avatar on the big screen in 3D.

Click here to read more

WOMEN OF TIBET: A QUIET REVOLUTION

is awarded a 2009 EMMY®
for
Historic/Cultural – Program/Special
at the 38th ANNUAL 2008-2009 Northern California Area EMMY® Awards

It was a blessing to share such an auspicious evening with many dear friends and supporters,
and for those who couldn’t share our experience…

Welcome to Our Night at the EMMYs®
San Francisco’s downtown Palace Hotel, the Gold Ballroom, sparkling conversation and cocktails
enliven the reception as precious friends and supporters arrive ready to celebrate our nomination.
Everyone looks elegant in black tie and evening dress. Even I clean up pretty good!
It is comforting to see familiar faces radiant with joy and good will.
The excitement is palpable. Background chamber music provides a calming effect.
Almost before we ‘arrive’ it is time to take our seats for the dinner and awards ceremony.

As we move into the Grand ballroom, elsewhere, EMMY® waits patiently …
Behind the scenes, around a table of EMMY®s, organizers flutter and fuss as “Presenters in Waiting” hover
before making their entrance to announce the next category’s winner.

Lights dim as anticipation rises…
Master of Ceremonies: Political comic Will Durst outlines the shape of things to come
The atmosphere is electric, honorees and revelers alike can hardly contain their enthusiasm.
With each course of food, the tension mounts, suspense builds and who cares about the food anyway, right?

And The Winner is…
I hear our category called – Historic/Cultural – Program/Special

then the name of our film Women of Tibet: A Quiet Revolution – Frame of Mind Films followed by the other three contenders: Assignment Africa – CBS 5, Milk, The Man, The Movie – CBS 5, Betrayal: The Life and Art of Rudolf Bauer – KRON 4 I hear the presenters talking about opening the envelope, “And the EMMY® goes to Women of… in my head, everything goes into slow motion, I hear a huge roar then nothing more until I am aware of someone nudging me, saying, “go on, you’ve got to go up…”

Shock does strange things and even though I might look as if I know what happened, it is all a surreal experience. I have no recollection of how I got on or off the stage or what happened between those two points. I am giddy with joy, and I am speechless. I find myself thinking that the real winners are the Tibetans yet I can’t get my brain to connect with what is coming out of my mouth. I hear myself thinking that winning this award is true recognition that in their 50th year in exile, Tibetans in Tibet are not forgotten and one-day all Tibetans will be free to be Tibetans in Tibet. I see ABC 7’s news anchor Cheryl Jennings beaming her congratulations up at me from the table directly in front of the podium, and I thank her for the story she did on our film at a time when I was trying to keep the project alive. And somehow I am now in front of a camera holding …

The Golden Girl captivates everyone. Bottom left in clockwise order:
Holly Hine, Bob Foley and Sunny Shine, Sondra Alexander, Will Parrinello (also a winner tonight) and Rosemary,
Tenzin Tethong, Sondra Alexander, Peter McCandless.

It is truly an honor to have been awarded the EMMY® and I am excited for what the future holds for all of us, especially for the Tibetans. But Ooops, in all the excitement we missed capturing photos of all our special guests:
from the Dalai Lama Foundation, Marsha Clark, Karen Schembs, and Jim Schuyler, and Armando Telles, Miriam’s father.
Next time!

Photo Credit: June Zandona, Tsering Dorjee Bawa, and Pierre Schwob

Footnote: Since this spectacular evening, I’ve given several interviews – two to Radio Free Asia, the first of which has already broadcast and been heard all over India, in Central Tibet, and in Kham in Eastern Tibet.
(look for this image and click it to play the interview in Tibetan)

To listen to another interview click here to reach Sky’s blog at the Dalai Lama Foundation.

The response from the Tibetan Community has been phenomenal.
You can read some of the messages that began to arrive once news of the EMMY® was announced.

My profound gratitude to Peter, Miriam and everyone involved in the making of Women of Tibet: A Quiet Revolution.

And thank YOU for all your good wishes, support, and encouragement over the past 10 years.

Women of Tibet: A Quiet Revolution

Much of humanity lives in greater freedom today because of the non-violent movements of the past century.  From Apartheid to the Soviet Union, Jim Crow to the British Raj, oppressive rule has proven no match for peaceful resistance.  Yet, the falsehood that non-violence does not work in the “real world” persists despite its repeated and resounding successes.  There is an exalted mythology surrounding most nonviolent movements that depict leaders such as Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. as prophets and events such as  the Velvet Revolution and the fall of the Berlin Wall, as miracles. However the impact of non-violence is real and enduring; we have the opportunity to do the same thing in our everyday lives. Ultimately non-violence matters because it works.

The Empty Chair will be the first documentary to explore non-violence, past and present, and the spirit and philosophy that drive the movement’s core. The film follows the story of Burmese leader and Nobel Peace Laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi as it embodies the course of the non-violent struggle: personal sacrifice, charisma, eloquence, profound commitment to principle and an uncanny ability to unite a people. Despite having spent 15 of the last 21 years under house arrest, she remains an enduring voice of non-violence in the face of an unrelenting, brutal oppression.

Women of Tibet: The Buddha’s Wife explores the radical changes women and men experience on the quest to become fully realized human beings.  Forced by the demands of modern living we delve into what it means to follow a spiritual path while reexamining traditional roles.  This film seeks to shed light on what happens when two primal forces begin to work together to create a more harmonious and peaceful world for all in the face of 21st century challenges.

With environmental catastrophe projected in humanity’s near future, leaders around the world are searching for actionable solutions to the challenges they face.

This EMMY® Award winning film begins on March 12, 1959 when 15,000 unarmed Tibetan women took to the streets of Lhasa to oppose the violent occupation of their country by the Communist Chinese army.

recounts the compelling life story of Dekyi Tsering, the mother of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. The Tibetan people call her “Gyalyum Chemo” or “Great Mother.” During the course of her long and extraordinary life, she gave birth to sixteen children, seven who survived, three of whom were recognized as incarnate lamas, and one who has been recognized by millions around the globe as one of the world’s leading ambassadors for peace.