Sikyong of the Central Tibetan Administration, Lobsang Sangay, speaks during a press conference in Dharamshala, India, on 25 September 2012. More than 400 Tibetans converged at their exile headquarters in Dharamshala to find out ways to avert the current crisis in Tibet. Tibet Sun/Lobsang Wangyal
By Lobsang Wangyal | Tibet Sun
MCLEOD GANJ, India, 25 September 2012
More than 400 Tibetans have converged at their exile headquarters in Dharamshala to find ways to avert the current crisis in Tibet.
For the next four days the exiles will discuss ways and means to challenge the situation in Tibet, which is becoming more and more grave every day with a wave of self-immolation protests against Chinese rule in Tibet.
Exiled Tibetans from 26 countries will convene in small working groups to deliberate on what should be done to express their solidarity with the Tibetans in Tibet. They will also work on methods to reach out to the international community, to seek their support and their intervention to stop what is happening in Tibet.
Speaker of Tibetan Parliament-in-exile Penpa Tsering said that the conclave will be purely for discussing activities that the exile Tibetans could implement to address the grave situation in Tibet.
He said that the main responsibility of the current crisis in Tibet lies with the Chinese government.
Ten working groups will brainstorm for three days on the issue of self-immolations and ways to make the Chinese government understand their own role in the crisis: What is happening inside Tibet and why Tibetans are resorting to such drastic action.
Sikyong Lobsang Sangay said that the majority of the self-immolators were born after the Chinese occupation of Tibet. “The fact that Tibetans after more than 50 years are still protesting, in such a drastic form as self-immolation, clearly indicates that they are protesting the occupation of Tibet and the repressive policies of the Chinese government.”
He said Tibetans want to see concrete action from the Chinese government and the international community. And that international delegations and the media could visit Tibet to assess and report on why these self-immolations are occurring.
Sangay affirmed that the exiled Tibetan administration in Dharamshala still follows the Middle Way as the policy to seek autonomy for Tibet. He said that there will be no change in that policy, and that dialogue will remain as the means to resolve the issue of Tibet.
On the last day of the meeting, a list of activities and strategies will be compiled, to be implemented by Tibetans and Tibet supporters around the world.
About fifty Taiwanese and overseas Chinese are also present to observe the meeting.
On Friday morning the members will participate in a long-life ceremony being offered to Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, by the Central Tibetan Administration.
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