Dharamsala, May 31 (IANS) Denmark has called upon the Chinese government to resume dialogue with Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama’s envoys and protect the Tibetan people’s unique cultural and religious traditions.
‘The parliament of Denmark, in a motion on Tibet May 27, expresses its continuing concern over the human rights situation in China and the situation in Tibet,’ said a post on the website of the Tibetan government-in-exile here Tuesday.
‘The parliament calls for the dialogue between representatives of the Dalai Lama and the Chinese government to be resumed and to lead to a result that ensures genuine autonomy for the Tibetans within the framework of the Chinese constitution, with cultural and religious freedom and respect for human rights,’ said the motion.
It noted that the Dalai Lama’s representatives have not demanded independence.
The two sides have held nine rounds of talks since 2002 to resolve the Tibetan issue. But no major breakthrough has been achieved so far.
The last talks were held in Beijing in January 2010 in which the Tibetan government-in-exile had submitted an ‘explanatory’ note to the Chinese leadership to clarify its stand on genuine autonomy for Tibetan people.
China, however, said the two sides had ‘sharply divided views as usual’.
In November 2008, the discussion between the two sides collapsed after China’s rejection of the Tibetan demands for autonomy.
The Dalai Lama, 75, has been following a ‘middle-path’ policy that seeks greater autonomy for Tibetans rather than complete independence.
However, the Chinese view him as a hostile person bent on splitting Tibet from China.
In a historic deviation from the 350-year-old Tibetan tradition, the Dalai Lama Monday devolved his ‘formal authority’ to the elected leadership of the Tibetan exiles.
The Dalai Lama will henceforth be draping only the spiritual robe as he will no more have any say in the political arena.
The leader along with many of his supporters fled Tibet and took refuge in India when Chinese troops moved in and took control of Lhasa in 1959.
He then headed a Tibetan government-in-exile which never won recognition from any country.
India is home to around 100,000 Tibetans.
