(10 Mar 2008)
1. The Dalai Lama, Tibet's spiritual leader, arriving for official function to mark anniversary of Tibetan uprising
2. Wide of Dalai Lama on stage
3. Wide of monks waving Tibetan flags
4. SOUNDBITE: (Tibetan) The Dalai Lama, Tibetan spiritual leader
++Translation provided by Central Tibetan Administration++
"I have, from the very beginning, supported the idea that China should be granted the opportunity to host the Olympic games. Since such international sporting events, and especially the Olympics, uphold the principles of freedom of speech, freedom of expression, equality and friendship, China should prove herself a good host by providing these freedoms. Therefore, besides sending their athletes, the international community should remind the Chinese government of these issues."
5. Monks waving flags
6. Pan from one painted face to another
7. Italian Member of Parliament, Sergio D'Elia, flagging off the march UPSOUND: (English) "The march officially begins."
8. View of protesters feet marching
9. Pan from Tibetans cheering to the marchers passing through street
10. Marcher holding picture of the Dali Lama
11. Marchers running
STORYLINE:
Hundreds of Tibetan exiles began a six-month march from India to Tibet on Monday to protest Beijing's hold on the Himalayan region and China's hosting of the Olympic games.
Tibetan exile groups said the march will be one of several protests around the world before the August 8-24 Beijing games.
Beijing's preparations for the Olympics come at a time when China is attempting to stamp out Tibetan Buddhist culture and increase the government's presence in Tibet, the groups say.
Monday marks the anniversary of a failed uprising against Chinese rule in Tibet that forced the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader, into exile in 1959.
Protesters marked the day with demonstrations in New Delhi and Kathmandu, Nepal, where 10 activists were detained after hundreds clashed with police.
In the northern Indian city of Dharmsala on Monday, the Dalai Lama denounced Chinese rule and said that for nearly six decades Tibetans "have had to live in a state of constant fear, intimidation and suspicion under Chinese repression".
However, he added that he had always supported the idea that China should be granted the opportunity to host the Olympic games.
"Since such international sporting events, and especially the Olympics, uphold the principles of freedom of speech, freedom of expression, equality and friendship, (and) China should prove herself a good host by providing these freedoms," he said.
"Therefore, besides sending their athletes, the international community should remind the Chinese government of these issues," he added.
Beijing maintains that Tibet is historically part of China, but many Tibetans argue the Himalayan region was virtually independent for centuries.
In Kathmandu, the capital of neighbouring Nepal, officials said police fired tear gas and beat up hundreds of Tibetans who threw bricks and stones at the police.
At least 10 of the protesters were detained, a police official who asked not to be named said, as he was not authorised to speak to the media.
Every year, some 3,000 Tibetans cross into Nepal, mainly through four passes across the Himalayas on their way to Dharmsala, where the Dalai Llama lives in exile in India.
Tibetan activists also held a torch-lighting ceremony in Ancient Olympia in Greece on Monday as part of a wider campaign to protest China's rule over Tibet.
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