Dalai Lama: Tibet Culture Could Soon End
Published: Sunday, 10 June, 2007
Melbourne, Australia 8 June 2007 (AP) - The Dalai Lama warned
Friday that Tibetan culture could be "finished" in 15 years if China
does not allow the region to govern itself.
"Our approach is not seeking independence," the exiled spiritual
leader told reporters in Melbourne. "We are seeking genuine autonomy to
preserve Tibetan culture, Tibetan language and the Tibetan environment."
Wearing his trademark gold and maroon robes, the 71-year-old Dalai Lama said
many Tibetans were growing impatient with the lack of progress in talks with
China.
"If the present situation is the same in 15 years then I think Tibet is
finished," he said.
The Dalai Lama is set to visit Australia's capital, Canberra, later this month,
a prospect that prompted China's foreign ministry to warn Australian officials
against engaging the Nobel Peace Prize winner.
Several Australian leaders have flip-flopped over whether to meet with the
Dalai Lama, with some saying it was not worth upsetting Australia's lucrative
trade relationship with China.
Prime Minister John Howard has refused to announce whether he will meet with
the exiled leader, saying only that he was checking his schedule.
The Dalai Lama said it was "no problem" if Howard did not wish to
meet with him.
"China is a very, very important country, and trade with China is
certainly very important," he said. "So there's no question that is
why the prime minister finds it a little difficult - that's
understandable."
China says it has ruled Tibet for centuries, although many Tibetans say their
homeland was essentially an independent state for most of that time. Chinese
communist troops occupied Tibet in 1951, and Beijing continues to rule the
region with a heavy hand. It regularly expresses displeasure when foreign
leaders meet with the Dalai Lama.
The Dalai Lama, who fled into exile in 1959 following a failed uprising, is one
of the figures most reviled by the Chinese leadership, which has accused him of
waging a clandestine campaign for formal independence.
