More skins being burned in Tibet as conservation message spreads

Burning skins in Tibet. Credit WTI.

Tibetans getting the message about wildlife
June 2009. Latest pictures of Tibetans burning thousands of dollars worth of wild animal articles have emerged from Tibet reviving memories of a tradition that began about three years ago.

In 2006, Tibetans residing in different parts of Tibet and those in Dharamshala in India had burned wild animal skins in their possession following an appeal by the Dalai Lama asking them to refrain from activities that harmed wild animals.

The Tibetan spiritual leader was approached by Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) and Care for the Wild International (CWI) to speak for wildlife conservation as a large number of Tibetans were involved in illegal wildlife trade in India. That apart, Tibetans were known to use wild animal skins to decorate their traditional dress, the ‘chuba', as well as to decorate their homes. Wildlife articles also found use in traditional Tibetan medicines.

Tibetan Conservation Awareness Campaign
To spread conservation awareness among Tibetans, the Dalai Lama had inaugurated the Tibetan Conservation Awareness Campaign (TCAC) in April 2005, a project conceived and run by Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) and Care for the Wild International (CWI), also supported by the Rowell Fund. The campaign aims were to reduce involvement of Tibetans in illegal wildlife trade, and also to work towards lessening their dependence and use of wildlife articles.

Kalachakra gathering
The campaign began in earnest in January 2006 when TCAC participated in the ‘Kalachakra' held at Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh. Around 200,000 Buddhist devotees including Tibetans from across the world attended the event. Further to his earlier support to the TCAC, His Holiness, the Dalai Lama also spoke on wildlife conservation and stressed as ‘shameful', the involvement of Tibetans in wildlife crimes at the Kalachakra event, which triggered the first incidents of wild animal fur burning in Tibet.

Over the years, TCAC has reached more than 50 Tibetan settlements, about 68 schools and over 100 monasteries across India. TCAC Field Officers travelled to urban as well as remote rural Tibetan settlements, spreading the message of His Holiness, asserting the need to conserve wildlife through various campaign tools - discussions, documentary screenings, distribution of campaign collaterals etc.

Message continues to spread
Ashok Kumar, Vice-chairman, WTI, said, "The year 2008-09 was the last phase of TCAC. There is perhaps no better way that this campaign could have ended. The recent fur burning incidents have shown that the wildlife conservation message of His Holiness continues to remain alive with the Tibetan people."

The latest photographs reflect an incident that reportedly took place in a village named Tsolho, in the Quinghai Province of the Tibetan Autonomous Region, in February 2009.

"Similar incidents have been reported from other areas too, and that as recent as April 2009." said Tenzin Norsang, Field Officer, TCAC.

Courtesy of Wildlife Trust of India (WTI)