India's Media frenzy over karmapa's cash is unwarranted

New York

Over indulgence of Indian Medias over cash found in Karmapas residence and the manner in which news was relayed was most unfrotunate and unwarranted to say the least. Indian medias should pause and not draw any conclusion without the outcome of investigation. linking the cash discovery to Karmapa being an agent of China without any evidence is unfortunate. It is common practice in India for devoties of any religion to offer donation in cash and kind and accumulation of such cash within the premises of religious places is not uncommon. Having said that cash found in karmapa's residence in so called raid is at the worst the lack of proper bookkeeping. Indian medias uproar over the matters without conducting proper investigation is highly deplorable.When all the dust settle down, truth will come out and all the hooplas and uproar will prove nothing but a mere smoking gun. Raiding of places of worship in india is considered sensitve and same should be the case  here.

AFTER EARTHQUAKE COMES, CHINESE MACHINERY TO OBLITERATE TIBETAN ROOTS

Source: AHN
China is using the devastating earthquake of April 2010 to rebuild badly affected Tibetan areas, but with a Chinese name and a culture-imposing agenda, according to reports from the region.
The reports are in direct contrast to an earlier message of hope U.S. President Barack Obama presented during his joint press conference with Chinese President Hu Jintao on Jan. 19 at the White House.
Obama told journalists in his opening remarks that the United States supports "further dialogue between the government of China and the representatives of the Dalai Lama to resolve concerns and differences, including the preservation of the religious and cultural identity of the Tibetan people."
Commenting on his discussion with Hu on the human rights situation in China, President Obama stated, "I reaffirmed America's fundamental commitment to the universal rights of all people. That includes basic human rights like freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly, of association and demonstration, and of religion -- rights that are recognized in the Chinese constitution.”
“As I've said before, the United States speaks up for these freedoms and the dignity of every human being, not only because it is part of who we are as Americans, but we do so because we believe that by upholding these universal rights, all nations, including China, will ultimately be more prosperous and successful." Obama continued.
One of the latest cases mentioned in recent reports from the region is the Tibetan town of Kyegu in the rural county of Yushu.
The International Campaign for Tibet, a global organization founded in 1988 to promote human rights and democratic freedoms for the people of Tibet, cited a Xinhua repot quoting Qinghai provincial governor Luo Huining as saying, “In light of the post-quake rebuilding work and Qinghai’s urbanization drive, we will build Yushu County into a city with a new temporary name of Sanjiangyuan [The Three River Sources].”
Commenting on the controversial move, Mary Beth Markey, president of ICT, said: “Although the authorities recognize Yushu as a ‘Tibetan autonomous’ area, they are excluding Tibetan involvement in this reconstruction of a new city that is now being given a Chinese name.”
“This contravenes their own ‘ethnic autonomy’ laws and creates further distress among those already devastated by loss and dispossession,” Markey noted, cautioning, “There is also a danger that historic Tibetan buildings that survived the quake may now be razed in the reconstruction.”

The ICT recalled a resolution passed by the U.S. Congress on May 20, 2010, expressing condolences to those affected by the earthquake and highlighting the integral role Tibetans should have in the reconstruction.
The report cited Rep. Mike McMahon (D-NY), the sponsor of the resolution, describing Yushu as “a cradle of Tibetan culture and religion for centuries,” and encouraged the Chinese government to “include the local Tibetan population in reconstruction plans.”

Tibet in US-China Relation

Kudos to President Barrack Obama for mentioning Tibet in his welcoming speech during State Dinner in honor of visiting Chinese President Hu. While it is of paramount importance for President Obama to walk a fine line engagning China in global economy and at the same time reminding them of US core value of fundamental human rights, dignity and freedom the world over. President Obama acknowledged in his speech the unprecedented growth of Chinese economy and its reciprocal contribution to US and global economy, however, he also warned that China must make a sincere effort improve the human rights situation in China and to respect the religion and culture of Tibetan people in Tibet . He also said that China must talk to representatives of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to address Tibetan issues. While Chinese leadership have always treated Tibet as non-issue and always avoided mentioning Tibet, however they know that Tibet is their biggest challenge as they go about improving their image in the world. Therefore, it is in the China's vital interest that they sincerely and seriously engage Dalai lama in resolving the Tibet issue. Longer they wait to deal with it, lesser  the chance for them to make real impact in their effort to improve the image as an emerging power in the world. 

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Hu warns US on handling of Taiwan, Tibet

Source Credit: Taipei Times

Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) left Washington on Thursday with a warning that relations between the US and China would face “constant trouble or even tension” if issues involving Taiwan and Tibet were not handled well.

“Taiwan and Tibet related issues concern China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and they represent China’s core interests,” he said. “They touch upon the national sentiments of the 1.3 billion Chinese. We hope that the US will honor its commitments and work with us to preserve the hard-won progress of our relations.”

Hu’s remarks were made during a speech to US business leaders shortly before he flew out of the US capital to spend a day in Chicago prior to returning home.

While Hu’s three-day state visit has resulted in no significant policy changes or concessions from either side, US diplomats believe that China achieved its major goals, which involved boosting its international image and prestige.

Nevertheless, groups of Taiwanese, Tibetan and Uighur protesters shadowed Hu and his delegation as they moved around Washington, waving banners reading “China Hands Off Taiwan” and “China Out of Tibet.”

Bob Yang (楊英育), president of the Formosan Association for Public Affairs, told the Washington Post: “There is a strong alliance now of people oppressed by China which is putting pressure on the US to change its foreign policy.”

Talks between Hu and US President Barack Obama on Taiwan took place behind the closed doors of the Oval Office and there are still few hints of just what was said.

Clearly referring to Taiwan and Tibet, Hu said in his speech that if US-China relations were to thrive, both sides needed to treat each other with respect and as equals “and handle major sensitive issues in a proper manner.”

“A review of the history of our relations tells us that China-US relations will enjoy smooth and steady growth when the two countries handle well issues involving each other’s major interests. Otherwise our relations will face a constant trouble or even tension,” Hu added.The Chinese president said that relations should be viewed from the strategic and long-term perspective and should not be affected by any one incident.

“China stands for peaceful settlement of international disputes on hot-spot issues and follows a national defense policy that is defensive in nature,” he said. “We do not engage in arms races or pose a military threat to any country. China will never seek hegemony or pursue an expansionist policy.”

Earlier, Hu had visited Congress where he met -Democratic and Republican leaders from the House of Representatives and Senate.

Republican Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Committee, personally handed Hu the copy of a letter she had sent to Obama.

It said in part: “As you know, the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979 (TRA) specifies that it is US policy to consider any non-peaceful means to determine Taiwan’s future a threat to the peace and security of the Western Pacific area and of grave concern to the United States. Over those past three decades a steady course has been adopted by both Republican and Democratic Administrations to maintain the security in the Taiwan Strait through both defensive arms sales and regular consultations. The six assurances offered by [former US] President [Ronald] Reagan to Taiwan in 1982 further clarified the commitment the United States has made to Taiwan’s security.”

“Despite recent overtures in cross-Strait relations, Beijing continues to modernize its military and expand its arsenal of short-range ballistic missiles targeting Taiwan in ways that raise serious questions about the sincerity of China’s charm offensive,” the letter added. “In this context, the Congress continues to view the judicious sale of defensive weapons systems, such as advanced fighter aircraft, as an essential element of United States support for a secure, stable and democratic Taiwan, as well as peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait,” it said.

China strongly opposes all arms sales to Taiwan, but has let it be known in Washington that it is particularly against Taiwan’s request to buy 66 new advanced F-16 fighters.

Congressional sources said that the letter handed to Hu by Ros-Lehtinen was meant to demonstrate that despite Chinese objections, there remains considerable support for the F-16 sale on Capitol Hill.

Three Chinese Held in India not spies: Beijing

Source: TOI

BEIJING: China on Thursday said that the three Chinese citizens, who were arrested in India without valid travel documents recently, were not spies but "tourists" who entered the Indian territory by "mistake".

"The relevant report is inaccurate," Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson told a media briefing here.

"In recent days three Chinese tourists crossed over to Indian border by mistake along the India-Nepal border. They were detained by Indian police", Hong said. He said the three were not spies. "The reports that three Chinese tourists were spies or had engaged in money laundering were groundless," Xinhua news agency quoted Hong as saying.

"The Chinese Embassy in India is in touch with the Indian police and urge the Indian side to properly handle the issue", Hong said.

The three, including a woman, were arrested near the Indo-Nepal border for allegedly sneaking into the Indian territory and taking pictures of vital installations, according to the Indian paramilitary personnel.

The three, identified as Liao Xing, Yu Dangli and Yang Liu, were arrested by Shashastra Seema Bal (SSB) near Rupedhiya border in Uttar Pradesh on January 17 when they were taking pictures of some important installations. An Indian PAN card, two mobiles and a camera were recovered from them. They were booked for illegally entering country and under the Passport Act. 

Hu Pushed on Tibet Dialogue

The U.S. president calls on his counterpart to restart talks with the Dalai Lama for greater Tibetan autonomy.

AFP

Tibetan activists protest the visit of Chinese President Hu Jintao outside of the White House, Jan. 19, 2011.

U.S. President Barack Obama raised the plight of the Tibetan people directly with visiting Chinese leader Hu Jintao on Wednesday, calling on Beijing to resume talks with the Dalai Lama on greater autonomy for the Himalayan region.

As Obama and his counterpart sparred over human rights at a rare press conference, the U.S. leader said Beijing should make better efforts to reconcile differences with the Tibetans, who complain their rights are being eroded under Chinese rule.

“Even as we, the United States, recognize that Tibet is part of the People’s Republic of China, the United States continues to support further dialogue between the government of China and the representatives of the Dalai Lama to resolve concerns and differences, including the reservation of the religious and cultural identity of the Tibetan people,” Obama said.

Some see Obama’s move to publicly raise the Tibet issue as an attempt to make amends for what was widely considered to be a snub of the Dalai Lama during the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader’s visit to Washington last year.

Obama finally met with the Dalai Lama at the White House in February 2010 after declining to meet with him during his previous visit to Washington in October 2009.

But some advisers had argued against the delay, which was widely panned at home as an appeasement of China. At the meeting that was finally held, the president agreed only to a brief meeting with the Dalai Lama that was closed to the press and held in the White House basement Map Room.

Little progress

The Dalai Lama’s representatives have met with Chinese officials a total of nine times to discuss Chinese rule in Tibet, but little progress has been made in the talks. The last time the envoys sat down with Chinese officials was in January last year, when the two sides met in Beijing.

Hu did not respond directly to Obama’s comment about Tibet, but did admit later that as a developing country with a large population and in the midst of reform, China could do better to protect the rights of its people.

“China still faces many challenges in economic and social development.  And a lot still needs to be done in China, in terms of human rights,” he said.

He added that China would be willing to engage in dialogue and exchanges with the United States “on the basis of mutual respect and the principle of non-interference in each other’s internal affairs.”

‘Make change happen’

Mary Beth Markey, president of the International Campaign for Tibet, said that while it was atypical of Obama to make such a strong statement about Tibet on the public stage, his message was “nothing new.”

“That is what the president has been saying to the Chinese privately. And yes, it’s enormously gratifying to have him say it publicly. But again, it’s not new … and it’s something that Hu Jintao would have heard many times before,” Markey said.

“It is Hu, and it is only President Hu, who has the authority to make change happen in Tibet. So it would have been much more gratifying to then have President Hu say something and … he was pretty dodgy on those human rights issues,” she said.

“[But] the Chinese do not like to appear to be acting at the behest of U.S. concerns for Tibet.”

Many Tibetans have chafed for years under Chinese rule, which they say has eroded their national culture and curbed their freedom to practice Buddhism.

The Dalai Lama has accused China of perpetrating "cultural genocide" in Tibet, and is regarded by Beijing as a dangerous separatist.

Call for concern

As Obama and Hu fielded questions at the joint press conference, hundreds of Tibetan and other demonstrators converged on Lafayette Park outside the White House, protesting against what they called China’s human rights abuses.

Some chanted "Who is a liar? Hu Jintao is a liar" and "Killer, killer, Hu Jintao."

Two actors wearing 12-foot-tall skeleton costumes played out an attack on others portraying a Chinese dragon in front of a banner that read, "Hu has Tibetan skeletons in his closet."

"We're here to urge President Obama to raise the issue of human rights and freedom for the Tibetan people during his talk with President Hu Jintao, publicly and vigorously, because these are universal values and especially ones that us Americans ... cherish," said Tenzin Dolkar of Students for a Free Tibet.

Written by Joshua Lipes.

Copyright © 1998-2011 Radio Free Asia. All rights reserved.

Beijing and the (next) Dalai Lama

Source Credit: The Washington Post
This is the first in a series of five columns written by Matteo Pistono for the visit of Chinese President Hu Jintao to Washington this week. Pistono, a practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism, is the author of "In the Shadow of the Buddha: Secret Journeys, Sacred Histories, and Spiritual Discovery in Tibet," an account of a human rights monitor operating covertly in China and Tibet. By Matteo Pistono
Since the 14th Dalai Lama turned 70 in 2005, the international media has increasingly focused on the question of his successor. The Dalai Lama himself has offered varying possibilities regarding how the 15th Dalai Lama could be identified but has not publicly stated definitively how the reincarnation would occur. How a young Dalai Lama might be invested with spiritual authority would be a matter of interest primarily for Tibetan Buddhists devotees if the Dalai Lama were not a prominent and influential leader on the world stage whose Tibetan voice represents an oppositional position to the ruling Communist Party of China.
It will be incumbent upon the United States and other governments who support the Dalai Lama to pay close attention to how and to whom he gives the authority to identify the next Dalai Lama. The reason should be obvious; the Chinese government already has a plan to control the 15th Dalai Lama.
China maintains that the Dalai Lama wants an independent Tibet, although since 1988, the Tibetan leader has officially and publicly stated that he is seeking genuine autonomy for Tibetans within the People's Republic of China. Chinese officials vilify and portray the Dalai Lama as the single greatest threat to the unity of the Chinese nation. The Dalai Lama has been said to have "the face of a man and the heart of a beast" and is "a wolf in monk's robes." These words are not from some backwater cadre; rather a spokesperson of the Chinese central government in Beijing and the senior official of the Tibet Autonomous Region spoke them. Not only does the Chinese government consider the Dalai Lama to be a dangerous "separatist," they also see religious devotion to him as seditious. Displaying a photograph of the Dalai Lama, praying for his long life, wearing an amulet with his image, or having his voice chanting mantras on a mobile ring tone, is a subversive criminal act in China.
Authority and power within Tibetan Buddhism has historically been decentralized among many different reincarnate lamas and monastery abbots. However, since China invaded Tibet and the Dalai Lama fled into exile to India in 1959, the Dalai Lama has been elevated by those Tibetans who have been deprived of his presence as the preeminent representative of their faith and their identity. Today, for the nearly six million Tibetans living under Chinese rule in Tibet, the Dalai Lama is their spiritual protector and political leader--and devotion to him and his message is at an all-time high.
Beijing's future attempts to control the 15th Dalai Lama will be a testament to their failure to dampen devotion to and influence of the current 14th Dalai Lama, despite decades of dogged attempts to do so. In March 2009, Jiao Zai'an, an official of the Chinese Communist Party's United Front Work Department, said the Party must "decide what kind of person is allowed to be reincarnated," because such approval is essential to "ensure the political soundness of reincarnate lamas." Tibetans reject these Party-appointed lamas, making Beijing's religious politics a perilous path. Beijing argues that they are the sole authority on choosing reincarnate lamas, ignoring the incongruity of an atheist government involved in the mystical process of identifying a reincarnate lama.
The Dalai Lama has repeatedly stated that he will never reincarnate inside territory where he could not be a free spokesman for the Tibetan people. Not long ago, in Benares, India, he told me, "If the Tibetan people want another Dalai Lama, then I will be reborn outside of China's control. The purpose of reincarnation is to continue our duty, our work from before. The Chinese do not like my work today, so why would they want it again in my next reincarnation?"
After the Dalai Lama passes, Beijing intends to promote a child they select to be their next Dalai Lama, as they have done with the 11th reincarnation of the Panchen Lama. This gross trespass against religious freedom by the Chinese state has been a terrible tragedy for the young Panchen Lama identified by the Dalai Lama (he was kidnapped and disappeared) and the young boy chosen by China (who is regarded with suspicion by the Tibetan people as a puppet of the Chinese government). Similarly, we can expect that the Tibetan people will reject the search and carefully managed ceremony overseen by the Chinese Communist Party's leadership that purports to invest a young 15th Dalai Lama with spiritual authority.
The Tibetan people will expect governments that have long supported the Dalai Lama to reject a Chinese-appointed Dalai Lama and to stand firmly behind those in whom the 14th Dalai Lama has entrusted the continuation of his work for a peaceful and just solution for Tibet, and to affirm that the institution of the Dalai Lama does not belong to the Chinese government but rather to the Tibetan people themselves.
Matteo Pistono is a writer, practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism, and author of "In the Shadow of the Buddha: Secret Journeys, Sacred Histories, and Spiritual Discovery in Tibet." Pistono's images and writings about Tibetan and Himalayan cultural, political and spiritual landscapes have appeared in BBC's In-Pictures, Men's Journal, Kyoto Journal, and HIMAL South Asia. Pistono was born and raised in Wyoming where he completed his undergraduate degree in anthropology from the University of Wyoming, and in 1997 he obtained his master of arts degree in Indian philosophy from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London. After working with the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. on Tibetan cultural programs, Pistono lived and traveled throughout the Himalayas for a decade, bringing to the West graphic accounts and photos of China's human rights abuses in Tibet. He is the founder of Nekorpa, a foundation working to protect sacred pilgrimage sites around the world, and he sits on the executive council of the International Network of Engaged Buddhists, Rigpa Fellowship, and the Conservancy for Tibetan Art and Culture.
Pistono and his wife, Monica, divide their time between Colorado, Washington D.C., and Asia.
In the Shadow

Nepal's king traded Tibetan refugees for US support: WikiLeaks

Source: The Economic Times

KATHMANDU: After ordering the closure of the Dalai Lama's envoy's office in Kathmandu and taking over absolute power with a military-backed bloodless coup in 2005, Nepal's King Gyanendra dangled Tibetan refugees as bait before the US in a bid to get American support, whistle-blowing web site WikiLeaks said in its latest revelation.

Ramesh Nath Pandey, the man appointed foreign minister by the king, met the then American ambassador to Nepal, James Moriarty, saying the royal regime wanted a long-term relationship with the US and would respond better to "engagement" rather than pressure.

The American ambassador emphasised that the Congress was considerably concerned about the Tibetan refugees escaping to Nepal from China-held Tibet and urged the royal minister to ensure the refugees' transit was proceeded without hindrance.

At time, there were about 1,000 Tibetan refugees at the Tibetan Refugee Reception Center, that facilitates the forward journey of the refugees to India and other countries, and the envoy said Nepal needed to make sure that the process of transiting refugees to India resumed.

The US had earlier proposed it would resettle the Tibetan refugees in Nepal in American cities but the proposal remains stuck officially after Nepal declined, due to Chinese pressure.

The ambassador also pushed for an NGO, the Tibetan Welfare Society , to be given registration. The society, believed to be a new form for the office of the Dalai Lama's representative in Nepal, was shut down in January 2005. The leaked cables said the Nepal minister's response was ambiguous.

He first said Nepal needed to have a close relationship with the US and then indicated that given the Chinese support, Nepal might not act on the issues raised by the ambassador unless Washington changed its Nepal policy.

The king's messenger reportedly said Nepal's long-term interest was in a relationship with the US, not China or India. He also claimed that though India and the US had stopped providing military assistance to Nepal after the coup, "Nepal would not be short of arms" and that "a plane of material from one of your best friends" would arrive.

The American ambassador advised the king, who was waging a war on the Maoists with little result, to declare a cease-fire with international monitoring and to reconcile with the political parties.

The royal minister countered that saying the party leaders were a major problem and the king should bypass them and ally with middle-tier leaders. He also said the Maoists would exploit the parties against the king and dump them when they had their way. The ambassador noted that Pandey's proposal meant "essentially... decapitating the parties and was unacceptable".

The ambassador also emphasised that Tibetan refugee issues were one of the administration's and Congress's key concerns regarding Nepal, and if there were no progress, Nepal could put at risk other parts of the relationship, including development assistance.

The new revelation comes even as the controversial memoir of a former military secretary to the palace claimed China wanted Nepal to deploy its army to prevent Tibetan refugees from escaping and proposed the army should be strengthened for that.

Separate helipad for Dalai Lama likely

Source: HT

In wake of repeated security threats to exiled spiritual leader Dalai Lama security agencies have once again revived plan to built a separate helipad for Noble laureate in Mcleodganj. The proposal to construct a separate helipad for exiled spiritual leader had been lying in limbo for the past six

years. Agencies manning Dalai Lama's security had planned to build a helipad  within Dalai Lama's palace located at hill top to meet the exigency, since the Nobel laureate has been provided high security cover.

"Helipad close to Dalai Lama's residence would prove significant in many ways since he is under high security cover and also it is important from his health point of view"  Senior Superintendent of Police Kangra Diljeet Thakur told Hindustan Times.

The proposal of setting up helipad for Dalai Lama had been gathering dust for want of green signal from the separate ministries involved in giving clearances. It is learnt ministry of external affairs had discussed the plan but it was not further pursued with ministry of Civil aviation and defense ministry. 

Dalai Lama's growing age and security threat is stoking concern security agencies and the Tibetan government in exile. Security agencies involving the military and air force had been conducting routine mock drills to update evacuation plans drawn for Dalai Lama, after the 76–year-old leader was taken ill two years back.  Security agencies had been using army helipad at Dharamsala cantonment for mock drills, which is located about seven kilometers away from Dalai Lama's residence. Security agencies had felt the need for helipad close to Dalai Lama's residence since the narrow lanes and traffic congestion could cause delay in the evacuation plans drawn for the spiritual leader.  It is likely that the proposal for helipad for Dalai Lama could be taken up once again with the central government.

Owing to security risk posed, Dalai Lama palace in Mcleodganj is heavily guarded. Dalai Lama who fled in 1959 after failed uprising against Chinse troops has three tiers three tier security manned by Himachal Police. Internal security is looked after close protection group of Tibetans. 

More than 150 men are deployed for round the clock security of Dalai Lama's palace.

Recently security wing of Central Tibetan Administration had anticipated threat to Dalai Lama, the security around his palace was beefed up. The state police installed close circuit cameras at Dalai Lama's palace and main Buddhist temple located outside his palace. Police department had also asked the ministry of external affairs to provide funds for installing chemical detectors at Dalai Lama palace, which is frequented by hundreds of visitors across the world.

Is Global Warming Making Tibet Dustier?

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA—Sediments taken from the bottom of a lake on the Tibetan Plateau suggest that changes in wind patterns caused by global warming may be making the area dustier. That trend could accelerate the melting of crucial glaciers in the Himalayas and affect already imperiled water supplies.

Jessica Conroy, a graduate student in paleoclimatology at the University of Arizona in Tucson, and colleagues collected sediment cores from the bottom of Kiang Lake in southwestern Tibet using equipment suspended from rafts. The cores track the history of climate in the region back to 1050 C.E. According to Conroy, who presented the data here at the fall meeting of the American Geophysical Union on 15 December, the amount of fine-grained dust in the lake sediment increased over the 20th century. Finer dust arrives from distant desert regions hundreds of kilometers away, suggesting stronger winds with the power to deliver the material.

Scientists have previously noted the rise of dust in the region but attributed it to the increase in agriculture, grazing, and other relatively local developments. Data Conroy presented showed that dusty periods coincide with summers when a Northern Hemisphere atmospheric phenomenon called the Arctic Oscillation is in a "positive phase." A positive phase of this pattern in the summer leads to stronger winds in desert areas to the north of the lake as well as south of the Himalayas.

Global warming seems to be keeping the Arctic Oscillation in its positive phase more often, which Conroy says could mean that climate, not just changes in the local landscape caused by human activity, could be making southwestern Tibet dustier. Lonnie Thompson, a paleoclimatologist at Ohio State University in Columbus, who did the earlier work noting the rise of dust, says he was "impressed" with the data and called the work "thoughtful." The findings mirrored patterns he had documented within ice in a Himalayan glacier called Dasuopu, "particularly the increase in the past century or so of dust," he says. Conroy's hypothesized link between dust levels and the Arctic Oscillation "probably warrants more investigation," Thompson says.

"It's going to continue to be dusty in this region, and dust can accelerate the melting of the glaciers in the Himalayas," says Conroy. That's because the dust lands on the white ice and makes it darker, absorbing radiation and accelerating melting in the Himalayas. These glaciers, which provide water for hundreds of millions of people across Asia, are in serious danger—although a well-documented typographic error in the 2007 IPCC report exaggerated the rate of their disappearance. Dust also warms the air above the Tibetan Plateau, enhancing monsoon circulation patterns, which could affect rain and alter rainfall patterns across the southern Asia.

PRESS RELEASE by Kasur Tashi Wangdi

New York,Janaury 2, 2011
Following is the reproduction of Press Release issued by Kasur Tashi Wangdi la

I, Tashi Wangdi have resigned from my post as the Representative of H.H. The Dalai lama in Brussels, Europe on December 17, 2010. I will be contesting in the final elections on Kalon Tripa.
During the last couple of years, individuals and Non-government organizations have continuallyy asked me if i plan to be in the future Kalon Tripa elections, and requested fervently that I do so. I have stated that I have no such plans. Last year, Websites in Norway and Canada have listed my name as a candidate for the 3rd Kalon Tripa and i have withdrawn from them. Non-governmental organizations have similarly written to me to stand for the election. However, I replied both orally and in writting that I have no such plans.
When the Election Commission announced my name with the candidates winning in preminilaries, some concerned citizens in the US, Europe and India have called me and told me that this is not the time to shirk from responsibility and asked me if I would stand for the elections if the voters elected me in the preliminaries. I told them that my decision for not standing in the preliminary elections was because I got disheartened or that I have no desire to serve and for that matter that I am running away from challenges.
I have served the Tibetan government and people for over 40 years and I thought if I would still be of help or not. That was my reason for not standing in the elections. However, the larger public has put great hopes and trust on me and if they vote for me, I cannot disregard their support. Therefore, I agreed to stand if I am on the list of the candidates for the final election.
On November 12, 2010, Election Commission announced the candidates for the final election and I presented my resignation from the Brussels Representatives office to the Kashag. I hope to be participating in media interviews, debates, and conferences in the 3 months until the final election and general public will have chance to know more about my stand on the movement and the administrative policies.
During this time period, I won't be able to travel to Tibetan settlements because of time and financial constraints. But it does not mean I understimate the election process and the electorate. As we all know, Kashag has to implememt the policies and procedures legislated by the Tibetan Parliament according to the charter.
As for me, I have climbed the ladders of administration in serving the Tibetan government and people for the last 40 years and the general public are aware of that. However, youngsters and newcomers from Tibet in the last two decades may not know clearly and that is a reality. As our credentials and to see if I am a viable candidate for the Kalon Tipa position.
Under the leadership of H.H.The Dalai Lama and with the welfare of the 6 million Tibetans in mind, I hope to cement the organizations and disciplines we have established and to sustain and improve them, and to handover them to the new generation in a calm and smooth transition. These would be my commitment for the five years.
December 21, 2010.