Reportage – 2008

Dalai Lama turns 73

Tibetan artistes singing Tibetan national anthem at Tsuglakhang temple in Mcleod Ganj to celebrate the Dalai Lama's 73rd birthday. The celebration function was without the usual cultural performances due to the March-April unrest in Tibet. [ click here for print size   3.1M ]

MCLEOD GANJ, India, 6 July 2008 — The rain didn't stop Tibetans from celebrating the Dalai Lama's 73rd birthday, and their hopes were not shrouded by the setback from the lack of progress in the talks held between the Dalai Lama's envoys and Chinese leaders earlier this week.

Tibetans in Dharamshala gathered at Tsuglakhang temple in Mcleod Ganj for a brief function, attended by the Prime Minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile Samdhong Rinpoche.

The Dalai Lama had come out from a short retreat and presided over a small function at his residence attended by his relatives and Tibetan officials. The official and public ceremony in Dharamshala was without the usual cultural performances due to the March-April unrest in Tibet.

Samdhong Rinpoche said that he was disappointed at not making any breakthrough during the seventh round of talks between the Dalai Lamaâ~@~Ys envoys and the Chinese leaders.

"The seventh round of talks has not produced any tangible results. The Chinese selfish attitude is only adding to the existing doubts about their insincerity for future talks," Rinpoche said.

He rejected the Chinese accusations towards the Dalai Lama for inciting the riots in Tibet in March and April and trying to sabotage the Beijing Olympics.

"The Dalai Lama is a messenger of peace and non-violence. He follows a 'middle path' policy, which does not seek separation of Tibet from China and does support the Beijing Olympics," Rinpoche said.

However, Rinpoche added that the issue of Tibet is not that of the Dalai Lama, but is about the well-being of the six million Tibetans.

For the talks to progress in a conducive atmosphere, he said the Chinese government must stop all kinds of torture, arrests of Tibetans and "reeducation and forced confession" of monks in monasteries, exploitation of the resources and destruction of the environment of Tibet, and the Han Chinese population transfer into Tibet.

The exile government has been making every effort to create a conducive atmosphere for a meaningful dialogue.

The exile government will be focused on the next round of talks in October. Rinpoche revealed that the next round of talks will be on "Regional National Autonomy", which he said is a positive step.