Five day long Tibetan Youth Leadership Training concludes with the participants taking an oath in front of the portrait of His Holiness the 14 th Dalai Lama, making a pledge of commitment to oneself and lighting a lamp of devotion in the closing ceremony. The ceremony was graced by Venerable Beri Jigme Wangyal, Tibetan Historian and an ATPD member as the Chief Guest and Acharya Lhakpa Tsering, Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies as guest of honor. All participants placed their lamps on the map of Tibet, prostrated in front of His Holiness the Dalai Lama's portrait and pledged to work for the cause of Tibet.
During the training program attended by 70 students from India and Nepal, the sessions used various methods like group discussions for interaction, panel discussion to introduce the debating methods, and delivered lectures on various topics. The training enlightened the participating students with various inputs and it help build a strong network of grassroots student leaders. The presence of a large number of female participants and their active participation indicated the growth in females taking a leadership role in our society.
Valuable feedbacks for further constructive improvements for future Tibetan Youth Leadership Trainings were obtained from the evaluation session. Many requested that such trainings should be held more often and at different venues like Nepal and the northeast regions of India.
"Tibetans should concentrate on lobbying Asian governments and build strategy which works with the United Nations Treaty Bodies and Special Mechanism Procedures," said Mr. Ravi Nair, Executive Director of Human Rights Documentation Centre. Speaking on the topic, "UN/ Human Rights/ Refugee law and activist law" he commented on how bilateral programs of resettlement of refugees can be encouraged and how to create interest of political understanding and receptivity from other nations to support Tibet.
Chinese Studies expert Dr. Srikanth Kondapalli, an associate professor of Jawaharlal Nehru University spoke on the topic, "China today in world politics: opportunities and challenges." Outlining rising China, he said that China's strength is its rising economy but its weakness also results from the rise which has integrated the Chinese economy thus making it more interdependent and vulnerable. The challenges China faces are that it will follow a minimalist policy to protect its sovereignty and territorial position thus affecting the relations with its neighboring countries and rest of the world.
Acharya Lhakpa Tsering's presentation on the topic "Importance of Tibetan language and easy methods of learning" stressed the need for Cultural Independence in order to preserve and promote Tibetan language and culture. Prof. Brahma Chellaney briefed on the challenges of Asia for which the Tibet issue is central for instance Tibet's environmental and border issues.
The topics covered in this training are: Sino-Tibet Delegation Diplomacy, Media, Tibet's Environment and its impact on South Asia and India, Tibetan Independence Movement: The role of Tibetan People and challenges ahead, Organizational Transformation of LTTE and Maoist Movement, Career Guidance, Olympic campaigns and strategies, Political History of Tibet, India's Tibet Policy, Democratization in Tibetan Exile Community, Panel Discussion on Tibetan Parliament in exile: Representation based on regional population, 37 years in service and dedication: TYC and its charter, China Today in World Politics: opportunities and challenges, Aids and Drugs, Panel Discussion on Tibetan People's Mass Movement, Introduction to the Judicial System of the exile Tibetan Government, UN/ Human Rights/ Refugee and activist law and Importance of Tibetan Language and easy methods of learning.