Hundreds of Tibetan exile leaders debating how to advance their struggle for freedom yesterday agreed to continue to follow the Dalai Lama’s path of compromise with China, delegates said.
Tibetans from all over the world have met for six days in Dharamsala, home of the Dalai Lama and the self-declared Tibetan government-in-exile, to discuss whether to press on with a path of compromise with China — dubbed the “middle way” — or call for independence for the Himalayan region.
“The majority is supporting the middle way,” said Youdon Aukatsang, a member of the Tibetan parliament.
PHOTO: AP
She said the stance will be reviewed at some point in the future if China persists in not granting the region autonomy.
The Tibetan spiritual leader has sought substantial local autonomy for Tibet to protect its unique Buddhist culture, rather than independence from China.
The delegates “reaffirmed that they will follow the Dalai Lama in whatever path he deems most appropriate,” said Tenzin Tethong, a former prime minister of the government-in-exile.
Tethong said any decisions reached at the meeting must be approved by the Tibetan parliament, which reconvenes in March.
The delegates also recommended that Tibetan leaders stop sending delegates to meet with Chinese officials “for the time being until we are convinced China is serious about negotiating, and so far China is not serious,” said Sonamtopga, a participant in the meeting.
“We are not saying ‘end the dialogue,’ but the formal negotiations must stop now, at least until they invite us,” Aukatsang said. “We did our best and the Chinese have not responded favorably.”
A formal announcement of the meeting’s outcome was expected later yesterday.
The Dalai Lama called the meeting after publicly expressing frustration over the failure of his approach to gain greater autonomy for the region. He has declined to discuss his preference for the best strategy forward, not wanting to tilt the debate.
As a result, the meeting has been an exercise in democracy as the Tibetans tried to formulate a plan without the guidance of “His Holiness,” a man they view as closer to a god than a mere leader.
The Dalai Lama is expected to address the delegates today.
Many Tibetans said the opportunity to present their own opinions was a liberating experience that they hoped would lead to more open discussions.
“We really need to think for ourselves and be independent,” said Tenzin Nyesang of Boston. “People are being very receptive. This meeting was very peaceful.”
For its part, China has made clear that it will not yield in its hard-line approach toward Tibet.
The Dalai Lama’s “so-called ‘middle way’ is a naked expression of ‘Tibet independence’ aimed at nakedly spreading the despicable plot of opposing the tide of history,” an editorial in the official Tibet Daily newspaper said on Friday.
Several areas of Thailand’s capital city Bangkok were inundated by continuous rain from Thursday afternoon to yesterday morning that has disrupted traffic and forced some residents to evacuate. Major canals in Bangkok filled with accumulated rainfall exceeding 20cm, officials said yesterday. Floodwaters spread across the city, particularly in the central and eastern parts, blocking roads and stopping traffic. The Thai Meteorological Department warned that the heavy rain would continue in most parts of the country through today, citing a strong low-pressure system over the central region and strengthening southwest monsoon conditions. More than 84,000 people in 21 provinces nationwide were
BAD TIMING: The disclosure of the incident, which is under investigation by at least two congressional committees, comes as Xi was to meet with Trump The Pentagon is investigating how parts of the US’ most advanced fighter jet ended up in Hong Kong, with a news outlet on Wednesday reporting that China has obtained the F-35 equipment. The F-35 Joint Program Office said in a statement that it and the US Department of Defense are aware of “a shipment issue” with F-35 components. “We are actively working with US authorities and industry partners to retrieve these components, investigate the incident and place safeguards to avoid a future occurrence,” the office said. UPS was shipping a cockpit canopy and weapons-bay door from an Australian military F-35 that was being
Yemen’s Saudi-led coalition early yesterday said it had intercepted two ballistic missiles and two drones launched by the Iran-backed Houthis toward the kingdom. The coalition said in posts on social media that the missiles were headed towards Khamis Mushait and the drones toward the capital, Riyadh, adding that it was monitoring the missile threat and drones launched at the kingdom, without providing further details. The Saudi Civil Defense had sent alerts overnight for Khamis Mushait and Abha, but not for Riyadh. The Houthis, who control the most populous parts of Yemen and much of the north, have been launching attacks
IN DEFENSE: Australia said it takes the protection of classified and export-controlled tech extremely seriously amid concerns over reverse engineering A US House of Representatives committee that oversees defense policy is investigating the diversion of potentially sensitive F-35 jet components this year from Australia to Hong Kong, a spokesperson said. “The committee is aware of this issue and we’ve received multiple briefings on it,” House Committee on Armed Services spokesperson Heather Vaughan said, adding that the group is “continuing to look into the incident and conduct oversight.” The Pentagon’s F-35 program office said in a statement that “we are aware of a shipment issue of unserviceable F-35 components and we are actively working with US authorities and industry partners to retrieve these
RSS