US encourages China to resume Dialogue with His Holiness
Tuesday, 22 April 2008, 10:18 a.m.
 Undersecretary Dobriansky and His Holiness the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala in 2006/FILE PHOTO |
Dharamshala: The United States
said it strongly encourages the Chinese government to resume dialogue
with His Holiness the Dalai Lama, stressing that His Holiness is not
seeking independence for Tibet, but through talks, wants to resolve
outstanding issues of Tibet.
“The Dalai Lama’s public statements mirror the private
statements he’s made to us. He’s not calling for independence for
Tibet; he’s calling for dialogue with Chinese authorities to be able to
help resolve many of the outstanding questions, including people’s
rights to practice their religion freely, to observe their cultural
traditions freely and to be able to otherwise enjoy some basic civil
liberties,” State Department Deputy Spokesman Tom Casey said.
“Weve strongly encouraged them (Chinese government) to reach
out to the Dalai Lama and to his representatives to be able to have the
kind of dialogue that would reduce tensions and help lead to a
resolution of some of these differences,” Casey said.
The remarks came after His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s meeting US
Undersecretary of State Paula Dobriansky at the University of Michigan
on Monday.
It was His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s 12th meeting with Dobriansky, who is also the special coordinator for Tibet Issues.
“I want to express my deep appreciation to your government, your
president and State Department and secretary of state and yourself
(for) always showing genuine concern,” AP reported as His Holiness was
quoted saying.
Tom Casey said: “Her (Dobriansky) meeting was part of our
ongoing efforts to promote dialogue between His Holiness the Dalai Lama
and the Chinese government. Weve long held that that kind of dialogue
is the best way to resolve the longstanding issues with respect to
Tibet. And of course, that includes trying to help deal with the
consequences of some of the recent violence there.”
