Dalai Lama to submit proposal to give up political power

[News_Editor]

Dalai Lama to submit proposal to give up political power

2011-03-10 13:20:27 GMT+7 (ICT)

DHARAMSALA, INDIA (BNO NEWS) -- Tibet's exiled Buddhist leader Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, on Thursday announced he will formally propose necessary amendments to the Charter for Tibetans in Exile in order to give up his political power, saying Tibetans need an elected leader.

The Dalai Lama, 75, took over as the 14th Dalai Lama in November 1950 to succeed Thubten Gyatso, who died at the age of 57 in December 1933. He remained largely unknown to the international community until he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.

As Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso is traditionally believed to be the reincarnation of Thubten Gyatso and was first recognized at the age of two. He assumed full political power at the age of 16 in 1950 but was forced into exile in India after the Chinese military occupation of Tibet.

Since 1960, the Dalai Lama has resided in the Indian city of Dharamsala which is now the seat of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile. This fact remains a major irritant in Chinese-Indian relations. Dharamsala is sometimes also referred to as 'Little Lhasa', referring to the capital of Tibet.

On Thursday, the 52nd anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising Day, the Dalai Lama said in a speech that the time had come to devolve power to a freely elected leader. He said he would formally propose the necessary amendments to the Charter for Tibetans in Exile during the eleventh session of the fourteenth Tibetan Parliament in Exile, which begins on 14th March.

"As early as the 1960s, I have repeatedly stressed that Tibetans need a leader, elected freely by the Tibetan people, to whom I can devolve power. Now, we have clearly reached the time to put this into effect," he said during a speech in Dharamsala. "My desire to devolve authority has nothing to do with a wish to shirk responsibility. It is to benefit Tibetans in the long run."

There were no immediate reports on Chinese state-run media about the Dalai Lama's announcement, similar to when imprisoned Chinese human rights activist Liu Xiaobo was awarded the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize. Media in China is heavily censored and run largely by the government, which tries to avoid sensitive subjects such as Tibet and human rights problems.

The Dalai Lama's speech on Thursday also heavily focused on such restrictions in China, saying citizens should be fully informed. "This Earth belongs to humanity and the People's Republic of China belongs to its 1.3 billion citizens, who have the right to know the truth about the state of affairs in their country and the world at large," he said.

The leader-in-exile said he admires the economic development made in China, but added that the country could make a huge contribution to human progress and world peace. "China's leaders must develop greater transparency, their actions corresponding to their words," he said.

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