Peace mission monks delayed

Apr 13 2007 By Alison Dayani, Birmingham Mail

A MISSION by Tibetan monks to create peace and artwork in Birmingham has been put on hold after they were held up from entering the UK.

Monks Venerable Tsultrim Juno and his nephew Thubten Gyendun should have arrived in the city on Tuesday to made a unique exhibition at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery with millions of grains of sand.

But museum bosses have been forced to delay the hotly-awaited display because of problems in the monks' "travel arrangements" from Tibet.

A Birmingham City Council spokesman said: "The visit has been temporarily postponed and it is a real shame, but it is due to circumstances beyond our control.

"The organisers of the exhibition are looking to reschedule the exhibition and anticipate the sand construction to begin sooner rather than later."

It is unclear whether the monks had not arranged correct visas or whether there was a hold-up over them obtaining the necessary documents.

A note to visitors to the museum reads: "The monks who are travelling from Tibet will now be arriving later than originally advertised due to unexpected difficulty with the formal requirements for entering the UK."