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November 22, 2008

Tibetan Exiles Agree to Pursue Compromise with China
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=20890F6:5F753BCA39991A3BF8C239D45718395DC030207A0BD70133&
 
Delegates from around world end week-long meeting in Dharamsala, saying
they will try to achieve autonomy for region, rather than independence 
Special Tibetan meeting in Dharamsala, India, 21 Nov 2008Hundreds of
Tibetan exiles meeting in India have agreed to keep
following the Dalai Lama's path of compromise in negotiations with
China. Six hundred Tibetan delegates from around the world ended
a week-long meeting in the town of Dharamsala Saturday, saying they
will try to achieve autonomy for the region, rather than independence
from China. Speaker of the parliament in exile, Karma Chophel,
said a majority of participants at the meeting favor a continuation of
the present middle-way approach. However, deputy speaker Doma
Jyari said if China does not respond positively to Tibetan demands for
meaningful autonomy, the Tibetans will pursue "complete
independence."The
Dalai Lama, Tibet's spiritual leader in exile, has long sought what has
been called "the middle way" for the remote Himalayan region. Some
Tibetan exiles say his approach has failed, and that it should now be
replaced by a more aggressive pro-independence stance. On
Friday, the Chinese government accused the Nobel Peace laureate of a
covert campaign to secure Tibet's independence from China. Earlier
this week, the prime minister of Tibet's government-in-exile Samdhong
Rinpoche said demands for Tibetan independence from China could replace
requests for greater autonomy for the region. China took control
over Tibet in 1951. The Dalai Lama fled in 1959 and resettled in
Dharamsala after a failed uprising against Chinese communist rule.


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