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Bush meets with the Dalai Lama

US President George W. Bush met on Wednesday with the Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader of Tibet, a meeting opposed by China that came just 10 days before the US leader visits Beijing for a summit.

Bush, whose previous two meetings with the Dalai Lama drew angry complaints from China, is scheduled to visit Beijing on Nov. 19 for talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) and is expected to raise the Tibet issue with him.

The US president made a terse reference to the meeting at an award ceremony at the White House but offered no further information about it.

The meeting came as the Bush administration and Congress stepped up pressure on China over alleged human rights abuses.

The US president, known for his religious convictions, strongly supports the idea of a dialogue between China and Tibet.

Aides to the Dalai Lama had told reporters earlier that he would appeal to Bush to prod Chinese leader Hu to give "genuine autonomy" to the Himalayan territory at their summit later this month.

On Tuesday, the Dalai Lama, on a 10-day high-profile visit to Washington, slammed China for imposing "very, very repressive" policies in the Tibetan Autonomous Region.

Bush's previous meetings in 2001 and 2003 with the Dalai Lama drew angry complaints from China.

As in previous meetings, Bush held his talks with the Dalai Lama at the White House residence rather than the offices, apparently to avoid the full wrath of China.

Bush, his wife Laura and several top US officials were in the meeting that took place in a private room at the residence, an aide to the Dalai Lama said.

Also at the meeting were Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice; Paula Dobriansky, under secretary of state for Democracy and Global Affairs; Steve Hadley, national security advisor; and Mike Green, a senior Bush aide for Asian Affairs, the aide said.

The Dalai Lama was accompanied by his special envoy, Lodi Gyaltsen Gyari, and two officials.

"They discussed issues, including global issues," Gyari said. "The president was keen to hear from the Dalai Lama, who has an opportunity to share his optimism as well as some of his concerns about the situation in Tibet."

The envoy said that "his holiness the Dalai Lama was extremely pleased with the meeting and deeply appreciated the warm reception he received from the president and first lady, whom he considers as friends."

The White House later released an official photograph of Bush and the Dalai Lama meeting at the White House. The president was wearing a white scarf presented to him by the Nobel Peace Prize winner. The color is linked to the birth of Buddha.

In separate news, a bipartisan congressional report accused China of "systematically" violating human rights and freedom, citing treatment of Tibetan Buddhists.

House of Representatives Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said she and the report's other authors will pressure Bush to make human rights a "top priority" at the Beijing summit.

"The United States government should press for the release of the Panchen Lama," the successor to the Dalai Lama who was kidnapped by the Chinese government more than a decade ago, she said.

The congressional report came a day after the State Department said that China was among the nations considered violators of religious freedoms.

Immediately after the White House meeting, the Dalai Lama held talks with Rice at the State Department.

Asked by reporters for comment as he emerged from the meeting, the smiling Tibetan leader said only: "Very good meeting. I am very happy. That's all. Thank you."

"The US president is known to strongly support the dialogue process with China," said Kate Saunders, a spokeswoman for the International Campaign for Tibet. "It is expected that this issue will be raised with Hu Jintao."

The group is spearheading a campaign for human rights and democratic freedoms for the people of Tibet.

The Dalai Lama has lived in India since he fled Chinese troops in 1959, basing his government-in-exile in the northern Indian hilltop town of Dharamsala.
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