Dharamsala, November 8: Attacking China over the “atrocities” committed in Tibet in the name of Cultural Revolution, veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former deputy prime minister of India LK Advani on Sunday hoped that Tibetan people living in exile, including the Dalai Lama, would be able to return to their home land soon.
Mr Advani, formerly the leader of opposition in the Indian parliament, also expressed hope that exiled Tibetan leader and Tibetan community living in exile will be able to return to their homeland in an “honourable” and “dignified way” and build the destiny of Tibet.
The BJP veteran said though a lot of atrocities have been committed and much of the cultural and spiritual heritage of Tibet damaged – “most of all during China’s shockingly mis-named Cultural Revolution (1967-77)” – Tibet continues to be the holy land of the Tibetan people.
“…I do hope and pray that a day will come soon when His Holiness the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan people living in forced exile are able to go back to their Home Land and Holy Land in an honourable and dignified way, and thereafter be able to build the future destiny of Tibet,” he said in a latest post on his blog.
The BJP leader, who last week inaugurated the sixth international conference of the Tibet support groups at Suraj Kund near Delhi which was also attended by the Tibetan spiritual leader, said Beijing should reach out to the Dalai Lama with the intention of a sincere and genuine dialogue. “There can hardly be a more reasonable and peace-loving interlocutor for the resolution of the Tibetan issue than this living embodiment of the teachings of the Buddha,” he said.
At the conference of international Tibet support groups, Advani said he recalled his meetings with Chinese president Hu Jintao in New Delhi during his visit to India in November 2006. “At this meeting I had urged the Chinese leader to create conditions in China which could enable the Dalai Lama to visit Tibet before the Beijing Olympics. Unfortunately, China missed the opportunity,” Advani said.
Noting that the conference was attended by over 260 delegates from 56 countries, Advani said it was the first time there were participants from mainland China and they strongly supported the Tibetan cause.
The conference was the second time this year that Advani met with the Tibetan leader.
The two earlier met during the Kumbh Mela at Haridwar in April, during which the two joined hands in the launching of the Hindu Encyclopedia and the Sparsh Ganga project launched by the Uttarakhand State Government to cleanse the Ganga.
“Twice during this year have I had the good fortune and privilege of sharing the dias with His Holiness the Dalai Lama,” Advani fondly wrote in his post.
