The Dalai Lama said on Sunday that Tibet cannot make any more concessions to China and renewed his calls for the government to cease suppression in his homeland and withdraw troops.
The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader denied Chinese claims that he has called for Tibet to be split from China and that he is behind recent turmoil, saying instead that he is committed to pursuing Tibet’s right to autonomy.
“The whole world knows that the Dalai Lama is not seeking independence, nor separation,” he said at a news conference.
PHOTO: AP
“Our struggle is with a few in the leadership of the People’s Republic of China and not with the Chinese people,” the Dalai Lama said in a statement released after the news conference. “If the present situation in Tibet continues, I am very much concerned that the Chinese government will unleash more force and increase the suppression of Tibetan people.”
He said that if China stops such suppression and withdraw armed police and troops, he would advise all Tibetans to stop their protests.
The Dalai Lama, visiting Seattle for the five-day Seeds of Compassion conference, told journalists on Sunday that there have been some talks between representatives of his government-in-exile and China.
The talks date back to 2002 and some progress was made, but by last July the discussions had deteriorated, he said.
He said Chinese President Hu Jintao’s (胡錦濤) push for a “harmonious society” showed the Chinese Communist Party was “in a state of transformation.”
He reiterated his support for the Beijing Olympics, while adding that critics of China should be allowed to protest peacefully during the Olympic torch relay.
He also repeated his threat to step down as head of the Tibetan government-in-exile if violence in Tibet gets out of hand.
“Sooner or later, the Chinese Communist Party of China must accept reality and act according to reality” toward Tibet, he said.
He said that while he supported China’s aim to become a superpower and believed it deserved to become one, it lacked the crucial element of “moral authority.”
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