‘Beltane Friends’…….Mr. Mac On Tour!.......From ‘Free Tibet’…..
by Bernie Bell - 09:06 on 01 May 2025
Beltane Friends…….
Through the brightly coloured silken fronds, swirling
and plaiting around the old ship’s mast,
flashes a vision: Fresh-faced young sailor,
dancing the hornpipe.
*
Now, with grey beard and boots strapped tightly, to hold
aching ankles, your legs again take flight,
sending you skipping, with pigtail flying,
around the maypole.
*
My smile meets yours, as we duck and weave, ribbons
of laughter flicker through the dusk,
squeezed accordion notes impel our feet
on to the end.
*
Beltane fires send out sparks, like shooting stars, and
light up glowing faces, raised in prayer,
ignite hope in our hearts, for we leap, hands clasped,
over the embers.
*
When we leave, the ritual ended, you are lighter
of step, although tired, we are wreathed in serene smiles,
a dark shadow has lifted, dancing strangers become friends,
in the magic of
this night.
Wendy Alford 11th May 2011
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Mr. Mac On Tour!.......
“Hello—on Wed evening I’ll be at Ely Cathedral for the first event in a reading/speaking tour for Is A River Alive? Then around & about through May. Dates & places below in case you might make it. On the lives, loves, deaths & rights of rivers… Ely tickets here!
www.toppingbooks.co.uk/events/ely/r... “
https://bsky.app/profile/robgmacfarlane.bsky.social/post/3lnxvotgjxs2t
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From ‘Free Tibet’……
“A groundbreaking new report from Tibet Watch and Turquoise Roof is leading the way in highlighting the real effects of China’s international surveillance of Tibetans.
Chinese state-owned digital forensics firm Meiya Pico (now known as SDIC Intelligence Xiamen Information Co Ltd.) has secured a contract to provide offensive cyber operations training and a digital forensics lab to Chinese authorities in Lhasa.
But what does this mean for Tibetans?
Where Chinese police in Tibet have previously outsourced digital surveillance and hacking, this contract will provide them with the skills to do these tasks in-house, and, as such, at a far greater rate than seen before.
For Tibetans in Tibet, this will mean an increase in surveillance of mobile phones, with authorities now having the skills to circumvent phone lock screens, as well as more pervasive online surveillance through account hacking.
Outside of Tibet, though, Tibetans are also fearful.
‘A Long Shadow: The expansion and export of China’s digital repression model in Tibet’ looks beyond Tibet’s borders, to the Tibetan diaspora around the world, and the surveillance that they are facing at the hands of the Chinese government.
With Chinese authorities having the skills and resources to hack online Tibetan accounts and devices around the world, outspoken Tibetans are finding that they are the targets of stalking and harassment by the Chinese Communist Party.
""Interviews reveal that Tibetans are acutely aware that their phones, social media, and online conversations are likely monitored. Some develop a constant fear that their devices are compromised]
by spyware, leading to persistent anxiety and the
feeling of being perpetually watched."
- Excerpt from A Long Shadow
There is a clear and documented psychological impact on Tibetans around the world, with this pervasive digital surveillance producing extreme anxiety and PTSD-like symptoms in some.
Tibetan communities in exile are facing fragmentation, as Chinese hacking, stalking, and surveillance is eroding trust and creating self-censorship that holds back cultural preservation and collective action.
The report comes as the world is still reeling from the highly suspicious death and subsequent cremation of Tulku Hungkar Dorje, a highly respected Tibetan Buddhist Abbot, in Vietnam.
We want to thank the over 1,500 supporters who have reached out to the Vietnamese government, calling for an independent investigation into the beloved Abbot’s death.
Free Tibet is continuing to work alongside other groups behind the scenes to seek justice for Tulku Hungkar Rinpoche. In the meantime, we must keep up the pressure on the Vietnamese government, and show them that this won't just go away.
Justice for Tulku Hungkar Dorje
If you haven’t already, use our online tool to send emails to Vietnamese government officials and demand that they properly investigate Tulku Hungkar Rinpoche’s death.
Cameron Clark
Digital Lead | Free Tibet
P.S. You can read the joint statement on Tulku Hungkar Rinpoche's death signed by Free Tibet and a coalition of Tibet support groups on our website.
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