Hu Jintao should not snub the Dalai Lama

Underscoring these issues was a high-profile ceremony honoring the Dalai Lama by the U.S. Congress, which accorded the spiritual leader of Tibet with its highest honor — the Gold Medal. U.S. President George W. Bush and first lady Laura Bush attended the ceremony, held Oct. 16 on Capitol Hill, despite strong protests from Beijing which views the Dalai Lama as a separatist.

The Dalai Lama denies the accusation, saying he is seeking nothing more than “meaningful autonomy” for Tibet under the PRC flag. The Buddhist monk, who has been in exile since 1959, said he regarded himself as “Chinese” (and “a refugee” as well), and that he has long abandoned his pursuit of Tibet’s independence. He told Chinese reporters in Washington that his homeland would be “weak and poor” on its own, without help and support from China.

This is a clear and unequivocal statement of his position, a position that can hardly qualify him as a separatist or “splittist.” He once was, to be sure, but he renounced the effort in 1987, in favor of what he calls “meaningful autonomy.” It is unclear what that means, because Tibet has already been one of the autonomous regions in the People’s Republic of China. What is known is that negotiations on that issue have been going on and off for quite a long period of time, with the last attempt, the sixth, breaking off in July.

What caused the breakdown of the July talks, held in Shanghai and Nanjing, is unknown to the outside world, except the Dalai Lama’s revelation that Beijing “suddenly got tough.” Why the change in attitude? It is difficult to gauge, judging from the secrecy surrounding the talks. Whatever the reason, it is in the interest of mainland China to re-open dialogue with the Dalai Lama to resolve the issue once and for all. Hu Jintao appears to be the best person to take charge of the issue, because he worked for a long time in Tibet as party commissar — the man wielding the highest power in Tibet.

1|2|Next Page>>

SharePrintEmail

Write a Comment

Terms

Enter your comments - 3000 characters max

Type in image code

Submit

 Receive China Post promos
 Respond to this email