![]() It has clamped down on Hong Kong, carried out major military drills off Taiwan and has been accused by the United States of "genocide" against the Uyghur people in its northwest.Īn image of the Dalai Lama is displayed behind Penpa Tsering, the political leader of Tibetans in exile © Stefani REYNOLDS / AFP ![]() But the issue is how long will it take."Ĭhina, however, has increasingly brushed off criticism. "As Buddhists we don't believe in permanence. Tsering acknowledged it was "difficult" to see a resumption soon of talks with China but did not give up hope. "We urge the US side to take concrete actions to honor its commitment of recognizing Tibet as part of China, not supporting 'Tibetan independence,' and stop using Tibet-related issues to interfere in China's internal affairs," an embassy spokesperson said. Britain, which reached a 1911 accord with Chinese and Tibetan envoys when it ruled India, had uniquely said that China had "suzerainty" over Tibet but in 2008 joined the rest of the world in recognizing Beijing's sovereignty.Ĭhina's embassy in Washington denounced the legislation, which has been introduced with bipartisan support, saying, "Tibet is part of China." Tsering hoped more countries would follow the United States on the historical position. "We tell governments that if you keep repeating the statement that Tibet is part of People's Republic of China, then you're going against international law," Tsering said. The Dalai Lama is seen in Bodhgaya, India in December 2022 © Sanjay KUMAR / AFP/File Tsering insists he is not seeking independence for Tibet, in line with the "Middle Way" of the Dalai Lama who believes that pushing demands beyond autonomy would be suicidal against a vastly more powerful China.īut the Dalai Lama has also rejected Beijing's longstanding demands to say that Tibet was historically part of China, a refusal cited by Beijing in declining dialogue with his representatives since 2010.Īn independent Tibet, Tsering explained, would have been an occupied country when it formalized Chinese rule in 1951, making the agreement "null and void." "We have adopted a different tactic to gain the right leverage," Tsering, who has spent his whole life in exile since his birth in 1967 in India, told AFP in an interview. On a visit to Washington, Tsering met lawmakers about a bill that would recognize that Tibet - ruled with an iron fist by China since the 1950s - was historically an independent country and that its current status is "unresolved." Penpa Tsering was elected in 2021 as the second-ever leader, or sikyong, of the Tibetan government-in-exile in India, part of a plan by the now 87-year-old Dalai Lama - the globally recognizable face of Tibet - to pass the baton.
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