Wednesday, October 13, 2004
Discussions with China extensive, serious: Dalai Lama's envoy
Associated Press Dharamsala, October 13
Exiled Tibetans and China's Communist government held "serious and frank discussions" recently about the future of Tibet and agreed to continue talks aimed at finding common ground between the two sides, an envoy for the Dalai Lama, Tibetan Buddhists' spiritual leader, said on Wednesday.
The envoy, Lodi Gyari, headed a delegation that returned to the Tibetan exile government's headquarters at Dharamsala on October 1 after two weeks of discussions with China.
In a statement, he described the talks, held in Beijing, as "the most extensive and serious exchange of views on matters relating to Tibet so far."
It was the third such meeting since 2002 between the Dalai Lama's envoys and the Chinese government, which claims Tibet as part of its territory and has accused the exiled leader of campaigning for independence.
The Dalai Lama, who fled Tibet along with his followers in 1959 amid a Chinese crackdown, says he wants some form of autonomy that would allow the exiled community to return to the Himalayan region to freely practice their culture, language and the Tibetan form of Buddhism.
While Gyari refused to divulge any details of the meetings during a news conference on Wednesday, he later said in a written statement that despite "major differences on a number of issues, including some fundamental ones, both sides agreed on the need for more substantive discussions in order to narrow down the gaps and reach a common ground."
Gyari said the Dalai Lama, "is pleased that we were able to have extensive, serious and frank discussions with Chinese leaders and officials. The Dalai Lama is aware that this is a long process and has encouraged and instructed us to continue to pursue this process with patience and determination."
The envoys said that they met Liu Yangdon of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Committee and other Communist Party and government officials in Beijing.
© HT Media Ltd. 2004.