Nancy Pelosi set to meet Dalai Lama, China protests

NEW DELHI: Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi is all set to meet and hold discussions with the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala on Friday even as Beijing expressed its strong opposition to the meeting.

The speaker, who is heading a delegation of top Republican and Democrat Congress members including Ed Markey, a strong critic of the nuclear deal, on Thursday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who hosted a lunch for her. She then held discussions with external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee. The Indo-US civilian nuclear deal and the Tibet issue clearly figured in the discussions.

But it is her visit to Dharamsala which is being watched closely and with interest by China and the government here. Ms Pelosi is the first high profile US visitor to Dharamsala and her visit is expected to send a strong signal to China that it must begin talking to the Dalai Lama.

In this acrimonious atmosphere, Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Dharamsala assumes significance. The Bush administration has also been urging China to begin talking to the Dalai Lama and believes that a solution to the Tibetan crisis cannot come by without the Dalai Lama.

Ms Pelosi incidentally is also a strong and outspoken supporter of Tibetan rights and lobbied hard for awarding the US Congressional gold medal to the Dalai Lama. Last week, the speaker had issued a strong statement criticising China’s handling of the protests calling the “violent response’’ by the Chinese police against “peaceful protestors...disgraceful.’’

She is being given the red carpet treatment in Dharamsala with a welcome reception being organised for her by the Tibetan government in exile. After the reception she has been granted a audience with the Dalai Lama. She is expected to release a statement after her meeting with the Dalai Lama. The government here is watching the visit and has made no attempts to dissuade the Speaker from traveling to Dharamsala.

China has already criticised the meeting and at a foreign office briefing on Thursday said that it ``firmly opposed any official of any country meeting with Dalai (Lama)’’. Indicating that talks between Beijing and the Dalai Lama are not anywhere on the cards right now, the Chinese foreign office spokesperson called the Dalai Lama ``a political exile engaged in activities aimed at splitting the motherland and undermining national unity under the pretext of religion.’’

The spokesperson also set pre conditions for talks and has asked the Dalai Lama to abandon the “proposition of independence” of Tibet and cease his “separatist activities”.

Even though the Dalai Lama is no longer seeking independence, the Chinese spokesperson said that the spiritual leader’s actions speak otherwise. He also expressed ``grave concerns’’ over British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s proposed meeting with the Dalai Lama.

In spite of the response from China, the Dalai Lama said he is ready for talks with Chinese leaders and is even willing to travel to Beijing after the violence dissipates. He asked the international community to help lobby the Chinese government to start a dialogue with him.

“Still, if concrete indications come from China, sure I will be happy,” he said, adding “when time comes to go there I am ready after this crisis — in a few weeks, in a few months.” He also expressed fears that there are a ``lot of casualties” from China’s crackdown.

“We don’t know exact numbers. Some say six, some say 100, but places have been cut off. There are movements of Chinese troops. I am really worried a lot of casualties have happened,” he said.