Dalai Lama Makes Conciliatory Gesture To China Ahead Of Talks

Sydney Morning Herald

Friday June 13, 2008

Linda Morris Religious Affairs Writer

THE Dalai Lama chuckled with wry amusement yesterday when he suggested some people had described China's rapid economic growth as "communist capitalism".

At his only media conference in Sydney, the 72-year-old Nobel Peace laureate commended the Chinese Government for greater openness and said the opening of the Chinese economy helped sustain his optimism that there eventually would be a political solution to the tensions gripping his homeland.

Much had changed in China since the People's Liberation Army invaded Tibet in 1950, and since China's crackdown on dissidents in 1959, which caused the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader to flee to India, he said.

The devastating May 12 earthquake in Sichuan province had led to greater transparency, and he was heartened by the deep reflection demonstrated in some Chinese scholarly essays which emerged after fierce rioting erupted in Tibet against Chinese rule in March.

The Dalai Lama's remarks, made to reporters yesterday, were interpreted as a conciliatory gesture to China ahead of fresh talks on the Tibetan crisis before the Beijing Olympics.

Yesterday Tibet's spiritual leader appealed to the Tibetan community inside and outside the country not to disrupt the Olympic torch relay when it arrives in Tibet's capital of Lhasa next week.

The champion of Tibetan autonomy said he had always fully supported the Beijing Olympics and the passage of the torch and did not fear a renewal of violence against Chinese rule.

"We have fully supported the Olympic Games right from the beginning," he told journalists.

"The torch is part of that," he said. "Over 1 billion Chinese brothers and sisters feel really proud of that. We should respect that. I don't think there will be any trouble."

But he also said unity and stability in Tibet could not be secured by Chinese authorities through spending on new infrastructure, nor by military force.

Dissatisfaction and disenchantment with Chinese authorities had carried across generations and support and loyalty from the masses "must come from the heart, not gun" and engendered "from trust, not fear".

© 2008 Sydney Morning Herald

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