Tibetan Youth UK

Wed Aug 30, 1:52 AM ET Reuters

Time is running out to reach an agreement on Tibet's future which, if not sorted out by 2008, could become a blemish on the Beijing Olympics, a French parliamentary delegation said on Wednesday.

After meetings with Communist officials in Tibet, the group said they had the impression the authorities took a more "nuanced" tone toward the region's problems than the propaganda would suggest, but questions on Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, were rebuffed.

"There is one chance for Tibet and that's before the Olympics," Louis de Broissia, president of the French Senate's Information Commission on Tibet, told a Beijing news conference

after returning from the remote far-western Himalayan region.

"With so much international attention, the Tibet question could become a stain on the Olympics. After that, it's all over," he said.

De Broissia said it was possible a new generation of Tibetan leaders could espouse more violent forms of protest once the Dalai Lama dies.

The Dalai Lama, accused by Beijing of being a separatist, has lived in exile in the Indian hill station of Dharamsala since fleeing Tibet in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese Communist rule.

"The youth in exile are very impatient," he said. "It's in the interests of China to work fast and concretely."

The group was allowed only very limited contacts with people in Tibet other than officials, de Broissia said.

When they asked about the Dalai Lama, officials responded with questions about unrest among young Muslims in France, or the problem of Corsican separatists, he added.

"They told us the Dalai Lama was forgotten, discredited," the senator said. "We couldn't get anyone to really talk about the Dalai Lama. They would hide behind a disarming smile." Read More......

# posted by Tibetan Youth UK @ 8:39 pm 0 comments

International Campaign for Tibet
August 16th, 2006

The Select Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Commons in the United Kingdom has said that "the Chinese assertion that the Dalai Lama advocates Tibetan independence flies in the face of public statements made by the Dalai Lama." It has recommended that the British Government continue to press the Chinese Government on the issue of the Dalai Lama's return to Tibet.

This conclusion and recommendation are contained in the seventh report of the Committee that was made public in July 2006. The report was compiled after committee members visited TibetChina, met Chinese and British government officials and heard from expert witnesses as well as from the Office of Tibet in London. and

Committee members Sir John Stanley, Mr Fabian Hamilton, Andrew Mackinlay, Ms Gisela Stuart, and Mr. Richard Younger-Ross visited Lhasa and Tsethang from May 13 to 15, 2006 and met the Abbot and Management Committee of Sera Monastery, Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the People's Congress of Tibet Autonomous Region, Vice Chairman of the Government of the Tibet Autonomous Region, Deputy Mayor of Lhasa Municipal Government, Officials from the Development and Reform Commission, Public Security Bureau and Environmental Protection Bureau, Tibet Autonomous Region, Tsering, Deputy Director-General of the Working Committee of the People's Congress of Lhoka Prefecture, and the Abbot and Management Committee of Samye Monastery.

The Committee has said "freedom of religious belief and worship in Tibet remains significantly restricted." Further, it said that China's appointment of a Panchen Lama "is a serious abuse of the right of freedom of religion" and has recommended that the British Government press China to respect the right of the Tibetan religious leaders in choosing the next incarnation.

In response to a question by a Committee member on the British Government's views on Tibet, Rt Hon Margaret Beckett, a Member of the House, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, said, "We are also seeking to use what I think is a degree of goodwill and mutual confidence that we are gradually building up with the Chinese Government to encourage political dialogue and try to encourage from all quarters an approach of trying to identify a greater degree of common ground so that there can be a more peaceful approach and peaceful settlement in the area of Tibet."

The Foreign Affairs Committee is appointed by the House of Commons to examine the administration, expenditure and policy of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and its associated agencies.

Following are the full text of the Tibet section of the conclusions and recommendations, the Tibet section of the report, and proceedings of the examination of British Foreign Office officials on Tibet. The full report is available at http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200506/cmselect/cmfaff/860/86002.htm.

Conclusions And Recommendations Read More.........

# posted by Tibetan Youth UK @ 8:29 pm 0 comments

The existing track opened in July, and connects Tibet's capital Lhasa to Qinghai, and from there to Beijing.

It has already caused controversy. The government says it will help the region but critics fear increased control.

They also say the railway line threatens both the delicate Himalayan environment and Tibetan culture.

'Great opportunities'

The line to Xigaze will extend the railway by some 270km (170 miles) and should be completed within three years, the state news agency Xinhua reports.

"The railway will offer great opportunities for the social and economic development of Xigaze," local official Yu Yungui told Xinhua. Read More ...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4778521.stm

# posted by Tibetan Youth UK @ 6:51 pm 0 comments