DNA
LHASA, China, 15 July 2019
A top Chinese government official in Tibetan autonomous region has said that China will not recognise any personal moves of 14th Dalai Lama on his successor. Speaking exclusively to DNA’s principal diplomatic correspondent Sidhant Sibal who is in Lhasa, Wang Neng Shang, a vice minister in Tibet autonomous region of China and Director General of people’s government information office shared views on India-China ties.
How do you see India China ties?
Both India and China are ancient civilisation in the east and we are the two largest developing countries in the world. People of China and India are connected by traditional friendship and similar historic reason, which is a foreign invasion and in history, we have enjoyed friendship and supported each other. Now in the new era, we are happy to see that India has made great strides, in economic development, cultural prosperity & improving people’s livelihood, in particular, high-tech industry India’s progress has impressed the world.
On part of China, we under the guidance of the Xi Jinping thought of socialism with Chinese Characteristics for new era is building socialism with Chinese features and to realise common prosperity. Our two countries share a common interest as we are bounded by our common history and brilliant civilisation and we are working towards the same goal. Leaders of our both countries have met at multiple occasion time, they are carving for future of our ties. Very happy and looking forward for closer cooperation between our two countries and people in promoting national development and overcoming challenges.
Who after the current Dalai Lama because people in Dharamshala and people in Beijing have different views?
On reincarnation of Dalai Lama, the position of Chinese government is clear. It’s not his personal decision to make. The process must go through a lot drawing in the golden urn, and reincarnation must be recognised by the central government as history goes. The centrality of the central government must be recognised.
His personal move will not be recognised by Chinese government and religious followers in Tibet. It was with central government’s recognition that Dalai Lama became the 14th Dalai lama otherwise he would not have this position.
Are there any talk currently on between Dalai Lama and Chinese government as it happened in 2010?
We do not have any information about that. If there are going to be any talks, information will be released.
Thanks to China’s efforts, by installing Fake Lamas, they are drawing the younger generation of Tibetans, away from the old system. China thinks they can control Tibet if they control all the Lamas. They could if they had the genuine ones, but with fakes, there are no takers. Mind you, China gives little credit to Tibet’s people power, i.e., Currently CTA and the many more in Tibet. Little does China realize that Tibetans have survived on the high plateau for centuries, and will do so still no matter how strong China is.
Just a couple of not too important factual asides.
The correct romanization of the Chinese official’s name is WANG Nengsheng [surname capitalized].
To describe Wang as a Vice Minister in the TAR is really a bit of puffery. The fault could lie with Sidhant Sibal or possibly the Chinese translator either of whom might wish to elevate artificially the importance of Wang. Simply put, Chinese Vice Ministers reside in Beijing not in the provinces or autonomous regions of the country (although from China’s nomenklatura system we can see that the TAR head of Government and the head of its People’s Congress receive an equivalency in rank and perks to that of a Vice Minister). Wang at present is at least a couple of dozen names down the line and below the TAR Governor and Chairman of the TAR People’s Congress.
To my knowledge Wang now holds three main titles. Most important he is the Executive Deputy Party Secretary of the TAR Propaganda Department (a Communist Party body). Second he is Director General of the TAR External Information Office (a Government body). Third, he is Deputy Secretary General of the TAR Association for Cultural Exchange with Foreign Countries (an externally focused united front body). It’s probably the 2nd and 3rd positions that brought him together with the visiting DNA diplomatic correspondent. For the moment however Wang is not among the top leaders in the TAR. Earlier in his career he was Chief Editor of the Tibet Daily newspaper.
Wang Neng Shang, first get yourself ordained from His Holiness the Dalai Lama and become his follower. Then only you have some sort of right to say something. BUT as for Dalai Lama’s human right to be born in a place of his choice is no one not even Tibetans have the right to force his future birth place. Even his reincarnation is his own human right.
What kind of human right you are talking about when you are trying to curve the right of His Holiness Dalai Lama’s future reincarnation? Everything has limit and Chinese communist think that they can do anything. Watch out buddy. World is watching you. You might escape one day, two days, but at the end your day will also come.
China and India had no common border till 1950s when Tibet was occupied by China. There is nothing in history about China and India except the travels of Hieun Tsang and Fahien who visited India as Chinese Buddhists. Coming back to the question of the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation, it is a total lie to claim that the present Dalai Lama was recognised by the Chinese by using the so called “golden urn”. There were only two or three Dalai Lamas who are said to have been recognised through the process but it was long discarded by the time of The 13th Dalai Lama who re-asserted Tibet’s independence by abolishing the Priest-Patron relationship with the Manchu Mongols who were Buddhists.If the Chinese communists don’t respect the words of the Dalai Lama, why is the communists trying to interfere in the Dalai Lama reincarnation process? Rejecting the words of the Dalai Lama means they have no respect for him so why do they even bother to push themselves into this conundrum? It has been scandalous for a communist regime who assails religion as poison and put thousands of Tibetan monks and nuns to death, now wanting the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation!! Besides, they have vilified the present Dalai Lama for the rest of his life. Why is the Dalai Lama hating Chinese communists want his reincarnation? The whole fiasco is an attempt to bring about a stooge of the CCP to pull wool over the people of Tibet to legitimise their illegal occupation of Tibet. The very act of disrespecting the words of the Dalai Lama and forcing the will of the CCP on the Tibetan Buddhists is fascism. However, they are doomed to fail in their diabolical mission. The Internatiinal community at large and especially the Tibetan Buddhists in the world will NEVER, EVER accept a CCP lackey as the future Dalai Lama.