Dalai Lama resigns to give democracy a leg up

The Dalai Lama put the six-decade long Tibetan movement firmly on the path to greater democracy by announcing in Dharamsala on Thursday that he would step down as the political head of his government- inexile. He will, however, remain the spiritual leader and continue to advocate meaningful autonomy for Tibet.

The 75-year-old Nobel peace laureate, who has been at the forefront of the struggle for freedom of Tibetans, also said he would hand over his formal authority to a freely elected leader. His proposal is seen as bestowing upon the incumbent prime minister greater clout, both on the world stage and in any negotiations with China.

Speaking on the 52nd anniversary of the Tibetan people’s peaceful uprising of 1959 against China’s repression in Lhasa, The Dalai made it clear that he was committed to playing his part for the just cause of Tibet. On March 14, when the 14th Tibetan parliament- in- exile will be in its 11th session, the Dalai will propose to amend laws to pave the way for his retirement.

“ From the 1960s, I have stressed that Tibetans need a leader, elected freely by the people, to whom I can devolve power. Now, we have clearly reached the time to put this into effect,” he said, addressing a rapt audience of hundreds of exiled Tibetans at the Main Temple in the hill resort.

The Dalai Lama, who has reiterated time and again that he is in a semi- retirement state, said he had been receiving requests from exiled Tibetans not to take a back seat. He, however, clarified: “ My desire to devolve authority will benefit Tibetans in the long run.” The Dalai exhorted the Chinese government to be transparent in matters related to Tibetans and their well- being.

“ China must earn the international community’s respect and trust. Its leaders must develop greater transparency,” the spiritual leader said.

In a quick response, China said the talk of retirement was a trick to deceive the international community. “ The Dalai Lama is the mastermind of a political clique of activists of Tibetan independence. He often talked of retirement earlier,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Jiang Yu said, PTI reports from Beijing.

For its part, India indicated that there would be no change in the hospitality extended to the spiritual leader even after his stepping down from the present formal position. “ His holiness, the Dalai Lama, is an honoured guest of India,” an MEA spokesperson said.

Delivering his speech, the Dalai said for more than 60 years, Tibetans — despite being deprived of freedom — had been able to maintain their unique identity and cultural values. As he has done in the past, the Dalai Lama emphasised on the need for treading the middle path. “ In our efforts to solve the issue of Tibet, we have consistently pursued the mutually beneficial Middle- Way Approach, which seeks genuine autonomy for the Tibetan people within the People’s Republic of China,” he pointed out.

He further said: “ During our talks with officials of the Chinese government’s united front work department, we have explained in detail the Tibetan people’s hopes and aspirations. The lack of any positive response to our reasonable proposals makes us wonder whether these were fully and accurately conveyed to the higher authorities.” Soon after the Dalai’s announcement, prime minister of the Tibetan government - inexile Samdong Rinpoche Lama said his decision to step down may affect the dialogue process with the Chinese government.

“ But the biggest impact of the retirement would be on the legitimacy of the government inexile,” he added.

Tibetan Youth Congress president Tsewang Rigzin said the Dalai would continue to guide exiled Tibetans. A peace march was organised in Dharamsala to mark the anniversary of the uprising.