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Updated Friday, September 4, 2009 9:25 am TWN, The China Post news staff

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Godspeed, Dalai Lama, to Dharamsala

President Ma's government and Kuomintang are not pleased with the Dalai lama's political sally. It caused many “inconveniences.” For one thing, China is offended by Ma's decision to let the Dalai come. Beijing has yet to announce any retaliation but is ready to make sure that the Ma decision would “have an adverse effect” on burgeoning detente between Taiwan and China. Should the Dalai Lama utter anything in a press conference that smacks of what China calls Tibetan or Taiwan separatism, Beijing would defer the negotiation and conclusion of an economic cooperation framework agreement and memorandums of understanding on banking and investment, both essential to Taiwan's economic survival in an emerging free trade zone in Asia with the People's Republic at its center.

On the other hand, the initiative Chen Chu took in asking the Dalai Lama to come wasn't enthusiastically supported by her party as a whole. Many other party leaders have gone on the record saying the Dalai lama's visit isn't “timely” and is “too political.” Yang Chiu-hsing, magistrate of Kaohsiung, isn't pleased, for he believes Chen is trying to force him out of next year's election for the new mayor of an enlarged special municipality in southern Taiwan. His county will be merged with the existing special municipality of Kaohsiung that she now rules. She may run for mayor again — she can't if the county isn't annexed — and Chen, who wants to head the new special municipality, thinks he is being preempted.

While he is in Taiwan, the Dalai has had to face the reality that his visit isn't appreciated much. He had to cancel or was forced to cancel the scheduled press meeting, was compelled not to talk about Tibetan autonomy, and uttered platitudes that were aimed solely at not offending Beijing. “Tibet isn't pursuing independence,” he told reporters. Nor is he advocating independence for Taiwan, he added. “In any case,” he pointed out, “Taiwan should have very close and unique links with mainland China, but at the same time Taiwan also should enjoy democracy and prosperity. Taiwan can choose its own relationship with China.”

The Dalai didn't have to come all the way from India to say all these platitudes. If he is just as wise as he is believed to be — he being a reincarnation of Avalokite or the Goddess of Mercy who his tantric followers believe sired the Buddha — the Dalai should have stayed with his government in exile at Dharamsala instead of causing himself and almost all of us so many “inconveniences.”

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