Tibet: No Response for Autonomy
Tibetan government-in-exile has not yet received an answer by China after Dalai Lama’s request presented two months ago.Below is an article published by: International Herald Tribune
The Tibetan government-in-exile said Saturday [17 January 2009] it has yet to receive a Chinese response to its request for autonomy presented by the Dalai Lama's envoys in a memo two months ago [November 2008].
Samdhong Rinpoche, the prime minister of the government-in-exile, called the Chinese response "very funny" because they are "going around in Europe and America explaining their views" on the open memo.
Rinpoche was at an interfaith meeting in the Indian capital New Delhi, which was also attended by the Dalai Lama
The memo — which was submitted by the Dalai Lama's envoys during a meeting with Chinese officials in November [2008] — said Tibet does not seek independence, but wants meaningful autonomy to ensure the survival of the region's unique Buddhist culture.
"(Autonomy) is intended to ensure the protection of the culture and the identity of minority nationalities by powering them to become masters of their own affairs," the memo said.
A telephone call to the Chinese Foreign Ministry seeking comment on Saturday [17 January 2009] went unanswered.
Critics and rights groups say an influx of majority Han Chinese to Tibet combined with Beijing's tight restrictions on the practice of Tibetan Buddhism are eroding the people's identity.
Zhu Weiqun, vice minister of the Chinese United Front Work Department, described the autonomy request in November [2008] as an attempt to undermine Beijing's authority in the region.
The Dalai Lama — who fled to India amid a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959 — said his government-in-exile's contact with Chinese officials was becoming difficult, adding that his faith toward them "is now becoming thinner and thinner."
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