Once again, Tibetan Shugden practitioners and members of the International Shugden Community (ISC), gathered in force for a peaceful demonstration in Rome, Italy, on the occasion of the 14th World Smmit of Nobel Peace Laureates.
The Dalai Lama is attending the three-day event and more than 300 Shugden Buddhists from all around the world congregated in Rome for the protests from 12th to 14th December 2014, to take a stance against the unjust discrimination towards Dorje Shugden practitioners, and to request the Dalai Lama to give religious freedom and lift the ban on the practice of this enlightened protector.
DorjeShugden.com has been closely following the protests organised by our fellow Shugdenpas to bring our readers this compilation of news, pictures and videos. Please do visit this post over the next few days as we continue to update this article with new photos and videos. If you have more pictures or information to share, please email us at [email protected]
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News Coverage
ADN KRONOS
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STATO POTENZA
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Source: http://www.statopotenza.eu/17390/luci-ed-ombre-sul-dalai-lama-il-caso-del-culto-shugden
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FQTV
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Photos of the Rome Demonstrations
Preparations and journey to the protest site
Protest in Rome
Day 1: 13th December 2014
DorjeShugden.com team had the great pleasure and honor to have humbly sponsored some light snacks and drinks for the protestors who are our heroes.
They dare to speak up against something that is wrong facing huge obstacles and never giving up. Yet the protestors were happy, light and were at peace. The joyous and spiritual mood of the protests clearly indicates the good motivation behind the protests. We mean no ill-will towards the Dalai Lama but we wish him to remove the illegal ban against Dorje Shugden’s practice. This problem will not go away, so we need to have dialogue already.
The protestors gain nothing personally for all their efforts. In fact they have to take away from work, use their savings and book inexpensive hotels to be involved in something they believe in strongly. It takes a lot of effort and hard work to be at these protest not to mention expensive. We wish Dalai Lama would take compassion on this situation and rectify it immediately.
Day 2: 14th December 2014
Video Coverage of the Italy Demonstrations
Dalai Lama in Rome: Shugden Buddhists Protests “We are Prosecuted by Him” (FQTV)
From FQTV
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Dorje Shugden Practitioners Protests in Italy! 2014
From DSTF
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Shugden Practitioners Stand United in Rome, Italy
From DSTF
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NOBEL PER LA PACE: PROTESTA A ROMA CONTRO IL DALAI LAMA
From Video Servizi
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Day 2 in Italy: Shugden practitioners protests against the Dalai Lama
From DSTF
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14th December 2014: Shugden Buddhists protest against the Dalai Lama in Italy
From DSTF
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English
Indonesia
Tibetan
Christine Victor
December 15, 2014
Without them, the excile in excile will still be in the dark – seperation of families’ members, monastery divided, basic human rights neglected… With this demonstration. The Excile in own refugees camp could have the rights to gain back their dignity
Joo Won
December 19, 2014
Thank you all Tibetan Shugden practitioners and members of the International Shugden Community (ISC), who gathered in force for a peaceful demonstration in Rome, Italy, on the occasion of the 14th World Smmit of Nobel Peace Laureates.
Thank you for going around the world to tell the world there’s a ban on practicing certain practice – Dorje Shugden, and there are discrimination & violence going on towards those who continue the practice.
Without you the truth would be covered, would not be discovered by many more. Thank you.
Elibuchen
December 20, 2014
What do i see reading this article, well I see courage to do what is necessary and benefitting for the future generation, I see effort and dedication to protest despite difficult conditions, opposition and uncomfortable buses. What I do not see is Chinese money, if the protest was indeed funded by the Chinese I think everyone would travel in style, travelling from England through the channel tunnel and then arriving to Rome is not exactly what people who are funded by the Chinese do.
The Chinese do not give away anything freely, so no one in their right mind would want to take money from the Chinese. The Chinese will eventually collect and it will be many times the initial capital.
Suritta
December 24, 2014
All those who made effort, either as a front liner or in the background are working towards creating the merits for the ban of Dorje Shugden to come down. They may be small in numbers in the front line, but they do represent thousands and millions of DS practitioners who are suffering in silent. It really is not the best option to seem to be creating conflict but what choice are we left with if the CTA and HHDL do not want to be upfront with this issue. May the ban quickly quickly come down !
Chris Denham
December 28, 2014
Heartfelt thank you to these heroes! Their courage and dedication to Dorje Shugden practice is inspiring. Though faced with huge obstacles,they never give up .Their peaceful protest is to be involved in something they strongly believe in. Dalai Lama please have compassion and lift the ban.
Rinchen
February 16, 2015
It is just great to see the fellow Shugdenpas to be doing something that is so meaningful!
Dalai Lama, please listen to us. Please listen to our voice. You said that there is no ban, but there is so much unfairness. Why is it not possible for your holiness to be sitting down with Shugden representatives to communicate this issue. We would love to solve this problem as well. When we keep quiet, the issue gets worst. When we do kind protest, CTA claims we are violent. We are not violent, we just want our voices to be heard!
I pray that the day the ban is lifted would soon be here.
Dalai Lama should set things right
August 13, 2018
Dear Dalai Lama,
Since you started the cruel ban against the 350 year Dorje Shugden practice, how has it benefit your Tibetan society and Buddhism in the world? Things have become worse and most educated Tibetans can see this. They don’t speak out not because they don’t see your ban as wrong, but you instill fear in them and not respect. It is like fear of a dictator. I am sorry to say so. Everyone is divided. There is no harmony. Before your ban there was more harmony and unity.
By enacting the ban, you split the monasteries, split so many families, split regions in Tibet apart, split your disciples from you, split your own gurus from you, split Tibetan Buddhism apart. You have created so much disharmony.
It is not democratic what you have done to ban a religion within your community. You always talk of tolerance and acceptance and democracy and yet you do not accept and tolerate something different from your beliefs. When people practice Dorje Shugden you ostracize them, ban them from seeing you, ban them from using Tibetan facilities. You know you have done that. There are videos that capture your speech and prove this point. You even had people expelled from monasteries just because they practice Dorje Shugden. Some of the monks you expelled have been in the monastery for over 40 years. Many older monks shed tears because of this.
Many young educated Tibetans lost confidence in you as they saw the damage the Dorje Shugden ban created and they lose hope. Many have become free thinkers. They reject what you have done. So many people in the west left Buddhism because of the confusion you created with this ban against Dorje Shugden which is immoral.
You could of had millions of people who practice Dorje Shugden to support, love and follow you, but you scared them away. They are hurt and very disappointed. They loved you and respected you deeply before the ban. It has been 60 years and you have failed to get Tibet back. Your biggest failure is not getting Tibet back after 57 years in exile. Now you are begging China to allow you to return to Tibet to the disappointment of thousands of people who fought for a free Tibet believing in you. So many self-immolated for a free Tibet and now you want Tibet to be a part of China with no referendum from Tibetans. Just like a dictator, you decide on your own. It was your government and you that lost Tibet in the first place. Your policies and style of doing things do not benefit Tibet and Buddhism. You have been the sole ruler of Tibet your whole life and you still have not gotten our country of Tibet back for us. Our families and us are separated. Yet you create more pain by creating a ban to further divide people. Please have compassion.
No other Buddhist leader has banned or condemned any religion except for you. It looks very bad. You are a Nobel laureate and this is not fitting of a laureate. You should unite people and not separate them by religious differences.
You said Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi did not do right to the Rohingya people in Myanmar due to religious differences, but you are doing the same thing to the Shugden Buddhists within your own society. There is a parallel in this. You separate the Shugden Buddhists from the others in Tibetan society.
You have lost so many people who would have loved and supported you. You have lost so much support around the world. The Shugden Buddhists who love you number in the millions. When you are fast losing support from governments and private people, it will not do you well to lose more.
After you are passed away in the future, the rift you created between the Dorje Shugden and non-Dorje Shugden people will remain for a while and that will be your legacy. Disharmony. You will be remembered for this. Not as a hero but a disharmony creator.
Dorje Shugden will spread and further grow, but you will be no more as you are a human. No one wishes you bad and in fact we hope you have a long and healthy life, but we have lost so much hope and have so much despair because of you. All the hundreds of Dorje Shugden lamas, tulkus and geshes are maturing and there are hundreds of Dorje Shugden monasteries in Tibet who will not give up Dorje Shugden. You have made a mistake. These hundreds of teachers and teachers to be will spread Dorje Shugden further in the future.
The gurus that gave us Dorje Shugden as a spiritual practice and you have called these holy gurus wrong and they are mistaken in giving us Dorje Shugden. How can you insult our gurus whom we respect so much? If they can be wrong, then you can be wrong. Then all gurus can be wrong. So no one needs to listen to any guru? You have created this trend. It is not healthy. Your own gurus practiced Dorje Shugden their whole lives. Your own gurus were exemplary and highly learned.
Dalai Lama you have created so much pain with this ban against so many people due to religion. You are ageing fast. Are you going to do anything about it or stay stubborn, hard and un-moving. You show a smile and preach peace and harmony wherever you go. But will you do the same to your own people? Please rectify the wrong you have done. Please before it is too late. You can create harmony again or you can pass away in the future with this legacy of peace. May you live long and think carefully and admit what was a mistake in having this unethical ban against Dorje Shugden religion.