Melody in Prison: Ngawang Choephel
	UPDATE 15 June 1998

During the Third Tibetan Freedom Concert, held in Washington, DC., June 13-14, 1998, Chaksam-pa, The Tibetan Dance and Opera Company based in San Francisco and a performer at the concert, seized the opportunity to circulate a petition asking President Clinton to seek the immediate and unconditional release of Fulbright Scholar Ngawang Choephel. The petition was signed by Beastie Boys, Sean Lenon, R.E.M., A Tribe Called Quest, Radiohead and many other artists participating in the Freedom Concert. Kathy Hargitt, manager of Chaksam-pa, reports that with the assistance of International Campaign for Tibet, the petition was delivered to President Clinton shortly before his departure to China.

Also on this date, which is the National Day of Action for Tibet, Hargitt reports that after a Capitol Hill rally, members of Chaksam-pa met with the legislative assistants of Senators Barbara Boxer and Diane Feinstein of California and Member of Congress Lynn Woolsey to discuss the plight of Ngawang Choephel and the Panchen Lama, and other pressing issues.