| Type | Non-profit |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1984 |
| Location | Dharamsala |
| Website | http://www.tibetanwomen.org |
The Tibetan Women's Association (TWA) is a women's association based in McLeod Ganj, Dharamsala, India. The group was officially formed on September 10, 1984 in India, by Rinchen Khando Choegyal, a former Tibetan Youth Congress activist, although the group itself claims that a precursor was created in Tibet during the 1959 Tibetan Rebellion.[1] Stephanie Roemer traces the organization back to the Lhasa Patriotic Woman's Association, founded in 1953 by the People's Liberation Army, which introduced the idea of women participating in politics, which was "radical" to Tibet.[2]
During the 1960s and 1970s, organizations of Tibetan women made Tibetan clothing and carpets without pay for the exile Central Tibetan Administration, which sold them for profit. It was only in the 1980s when the exile community in India would allow women to participate in politics, that an association of Tibetan women was officially formed.[2] The goals of the TWA are, in its own words:
"To raise global awareness of the critical situation inside Tibet, and to exert international pressure for the improvement of Human Rights conditions for Tibetans living in occupied Tibet.
Social, political and economic empowerment of women in exile.
Addressing the drastic human rights abuses committed against Tibetan women in Tibet including rape, physical violence, and the denial of fundamental reproductive, religious and political freedoms.
To ensure Tibetan women have access to adequate educational information about health care, childcare and family planning.
Preservation and promotion of Tibetan culture, language, tradition and the arts through community education, literacy and publications.
Assisting the needy in the community through sponsorship programs that help to support economically disadvantaged families, single parents, children, nuns, the handicapped, the sick and the elderly.
To join hands with the women of the world to promote peace and justice for all." [3] [4].
In India, the TWA has created the Tibetan Nuns Project to educate nuns and sponsors various cultural events like folk dances. In 1995, the TWA attempted to join the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, but the organization was denied accreditation on technical grounds, a situation which received widespread disapproving press coverage in America and Europe.[5]
Today, the group has 37 branches worldwide[5] and 11,000 members.[2]