The Tibetan Women's Association (TWA) is a women's

association Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

based in

McLeodGanj McLeod Ganj, also spelt McLeodganj, (pronounced ''Mc-loud-gunj'') is a suburb of Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh, Dharamshala in the Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh, India. It is known as "Little Lhasa" or "Dhasa" (a short form of Dharamshala us ...

, Dharamshala,

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. The group was officially formed on 10 September 1984 in India, by Rinchen Khando Choegyal, a former

Tibetan Youth Congress The Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC) is an international non-governmental organization that advocates the independence of Tibet from China. With around 30,000 members in the Tibetan diaspora, it is the largest of the pro-independence organizations of ...

activist, although the group itself claims that a precursor was created in Tibet during the

1959 Tibetan Rebellion The 1959 Tibetan uprising (also known by other names) began on 10 March 1959, when a revolt erupted in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, which had been under the effective control of the People's Republic of China since the Seventeen Point Agreemen ...

. Stephanie Roemer traces the organization back to the Lhasa Patriotic Woman's Association, founded in 1953 by the

People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the principal military force of the People's Republic of China and the armed wing of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The PLA consists of five service branches: the Ground Force, Navy, Air Force, ...

, which introduced the idea of women participating in politics, which was "

radical Radical may refer to: Politics and ideology Politics *Radical politics, the political intent of fundamental societal change *Radicalism (historical), the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and ...

" to

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...

. During the 1960s and 1970s, organizations of Tibetan women made Tibetan

clothing Clothing (also known as clothes, apparel, and attire) are items worn on the body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin sheets of materials and natural ...

and

carpet A carpet is a textile floor covering typically consisting of an upper layer of pile attached to a backing. The pile was traditionally made from wool, but since the 20th century synthetic fibers such as polypropylene, nylon, or polyester hav ...

s 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. The goals of the TWA are twofold: to promote the perpetuation of Tibetans and

Tibetan culture Tibet developed a distinct culture due to its geographic and climatic conditions. While influenced by neighboring cultures from China, India, and Nepal, the Himalayan region's remoteness and inaccessibility have preserved distinct local i ...

in exile In Exile may refer to: Film and television * ''In Exile'' (film) or ''Time Runner'', a 1993 science fiction film * ''In Exile'' (TV series), a 1998 UK sitcom Literature * "In Exile" (short story), an 1892 short story by Anton Chekhov *''In Exile'' ...

, including by promoting endogamy among Tibetans, and to bring to international fora alleged

human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...

abuses of Tibetan women in Tibet. In India, the TWA has created the

Tibetan Nuns Project The Tibetan Nuns Project is a non-profit organization whose purpose is to support Buddhist female monastics in India from a variety of Tibetan Buddhist lineages. It helps nuns who want to study and advance their ordination. History Gompas ( Budd ...

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 } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, but the organization was denied accreditation on technical grounds, a situation which received widespread disapproving press coverage in America and Europe. Today, the group has 58 branches worldwide and 17,000 members. In 2012, it was revealed that the president of the TWA, who is also a member of the Parliament of the Central Tibetan Administration, had

embezzled Embezzlement is a crime that consists of withholding assets for the purpose of conversion of such assets, by one or more persons to whom the assets were entrusted, either to be held or to be used for specific purposes. Embezzlement is a type ...

$3,800 from the organization from 2000 to 2003. Since May 2015 Dolma Yangchen has been president of the TWA.

References

External links

Official site
{{Feminism Dharamshala Organisations based in Himachal Pradesh Human rights organisations based in India Tibetan feminists Tibetan diaspora in India Organizations established in 1984 1984 establishments in Himachal Pradesh Buddhist charities

See also

References

External links