Dear friends,

The Dalai Lama's Olympic handshake is circling the world, headed for Beijing. Click below to see more and join the call for dialogue!

As the Beijing Olympics begin, the world looks on with mixed emotions.
It's a moment which should bring us closer together, and Chinese
citizens deserve their excitement -- but the Chinese government still hasn't
opened meaningful dialogue with the Dalai Lama, or changed its stance
on Burma, Darfur and other pressing issues.

Even worse, extremists in China are promoting the view that Olympic
activism like ours is anti-Chinese. We can't stay silent, but we also
can't let our efforts be abused to divide people. So what can we do? The
answer comes from the Dalai Lama himself, in an unambiguous gesture of
Olympic spirit and friendship: a handshake.

It began in London, passed hand to hand by thousands of us -- now the
handshake has gone online, and is criss-crossing the globe on its way to
Beijing. All of us can join, Chinese and non-Chinese, and it comes
with a promise: to hold ALL our governments accountable where they fall
short, in Tibet, Iraq, Burma or beyond. We'll deliver our message in a
bold media campaign in Hong Kong and around the world: Click below to see
how the Olympic handshake started, sign up to join in, and watch it
circle the globe --

The worldwide outcry has produced a little progress, but much
resistance from Chinese officials so far. If we are to see advances not setbacks
after the Games, we need to show both that our voices will never fall
silent, and that our challenge is a positive one.

We have one last chance to reclaim the spirit of the Olympics, with the
message of friendship and dialogue we share with the Dalai Lama. The
more people join the global handshake, the more powerful our message
will be when it hits the Chinese and international media. So let's forward
this email on, encouraging everyone to join in. "One World, One Dream"
is an ideal that's bigger than the Olympics -- it's time for citizens
around the world to take it back.

With hope and respect,

Paul, Ricken, Ben, Milena, Graziela, Iain, Pascal, Veronique and the
whole Avaaz team

PS For a report on Avaaz's campaigning so far, see:

In a representative survey of us from all over the world, 92% of
respondents recommended we pursue this handshake instead of the
often-suggested boycott -- there's a strong consensus that this is the way to get
our message across right now.

For more about the Dalai Lama's support for the Olympics and positions
on Tibet and China, see:

and:

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ABOUT AVAAZ
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Published in Woman's Magazine Russian Woman Journal  www.russianwomanjournal.com -  9  August  2008