About the Khawa Karpo-Tibet Culture Centre

KHAWA KARPO-TIBET CULTURE CENTRE (KTC) CHARITABLE TRUST, Dharamsala is a nonprofit organization founded in 2003 by a group of Tibetans. The primary aim of KTC is to join and intensify the ongoing struggle of Tibetans in exile. KTC is registered under the district magistrate of Kangra, Himachal, government of India (Regd. No. 157, Regd. Year. 2005, Book No. 1).

KTC’s vision is to enable Tibetans to practice and protect their cultural values and help them overcome external and internal constraints. This vision is guided by the principles of nonviolence and compassion.

To fulfill the primary objective of joining and intensifying the ongoing democratic process in exile, KTC seeks to promote Tibetan culture and the Tibetan cause through newspapers, electronic media, journals and other related publications. The founding members of KTC are scholars who have undergone intensive religious and secular studies under highly realised Tibetan teachers.

On the 10th of March, 1959, thousands of Tibetans rose up against the Chinese occupation of Tibet. The events that followed changed the history and face of the Tibetan plateau and its people. The invasion and occupation of Tibet has not only forced thousands of Tibetans, including its benevolent leader, His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama, into exile, but has also resulted in great difficulty in maintaining Tibetan culture. Under China’s Tibet policy, Tibetans are losing a significant part of their traditional way of life, their cultural identity facing near extinction.

Tibetans in exile, with the help of friends abroad, have been struggling to keep their traditions alive despite great difficulty. Under the leadership of His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama, Tibetans have been working tirelessly to create various institutions for genuine democratic governance that uphold the Tibetan identity while addressing the challenges of the modern world. The experiences of the past four decades, during which Tibetans have had close interactions with the outside world, have shown that Tibetan culture has much to contribute to global world peace and harmony.

The members of KTC belong to a younger generation brought up under the leadership of His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama. They are fully prepared to shoulder the responsibilities of carrying on the struggle and to inform others about the situation in Tibet. Tibetans within Tibet have great hope that Tibetans in exile will continue to uphold Tibetan cultural traditions, which those within Tibet cannot practice freely under China's governance. Through the activities of KTC, its members want to build a strong Tibetan society and gain both internal (from within Tibet) and international support for its cause.