Dear John,

For more than 600 years, since the beginning of the lineage of the Dalai Lamas,
Tibetan Buddhists have named the successor to the Dalai Lama according to the
guidelines of our faith. Now China is planning to upend this tradition by
installing the next Dalai Lama as someone of their choosing.

A Chinese government-approved Dalai Lama won’t be accepted by the Tibetan
people. The right to selection and appointment of religious leaders should
remain with the Tibetan Buddhist community and not the Chinese Communist Party.
This is how China wants to destroy our sacred religion—from the inside.

ICT urgently needs your support to help halt China’s political takeover of
Tibetan Buddhism. Your gift today will be matched through the Flame of Hope Matching Gift
Challenge by Richard Gere and friends—going 2x as far in helping to safeguard
religious freedom.
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Imagine if the US President declared the right to select the next Pope. Or sent
police into houses of worship and private homes to monitor religious practices.

This would be a clear violation of the basic human right to practice one’s
religion without government interference. Yet Tibetan Buddhists endure this
intrusion every day.

While China’s top leaders scheme to interfere in the sacred Tibetan Buddhist
practices of selecting their religious leaders including a future Dalai Lama,
their foot soldiers storm into family homes and imprison Tibetans simply for
displaying an image of His Holiness.

With your help, ICT has been working towards passage of the Tibetan Policy and
Support Act (TPSA), which happened earlier this week! This law makes it official
US policy that only Tibetan Buddhists have the right to determine how the next Dalai Lama
will be selected. If China
tries to select a Dalai Lama or interfere in religious practices, they’ll face
serious sanctions. Your gift today will be DOUBLED to help advocate for the full implementation of
the TPSA.
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The US Congress spoke with a clear voice when they passed the TPSA with an
overwhelming bipartisan majority earlier this week. Add your voice by making a gift today
and help protect Tibetan Buddhism for
generations to come.
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With Gratitude,

Tencho Gyatso
Director of Outreach

P.S. There’s still time to help stop China’s takeover of Tibetan Buddhism. Please make a gift today that will be doubled
through the match challenge to
protect the future of our sacred religion.
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International Campaign for Tibet [[link removed]]
1825 Jefferson Place NW | Washington, DC 20036 | United States of America
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Phone: (202) 785-1515 | Fax: (202) 785-4343 | [email protected] [[email protected]]



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