Defunding US radio stations creating Tibet ‘void’: Sikyong

Sikyong Penpa Tsering, head of the Tibetan government-in-exile, said the Trump administration’s move to defund Radio Free Asia and Voice of America is creating an information “void” in Chinese-occupied Tibet. Speaking at Washington’s National Press Club, Tsering said the two U.S.-funded broadcasters have long been vital in conveying uncensored news and democratic values to Tibetans. “People are feeling the void already,” he said. Sikyong welcomed the restoration of $6.8 million in U.S. aid for Tibetans but urged renewed funding for RFA and VOA, calling them “essential tools for information dissemination.”