By Phuntsok Yangchen
DHARAMSHALA, March 19: Tibetan Parliament in Exile on Monday unanimously passed a five point resolution concerning the worship of Dorjee Shugden (Dholgyal) after an intensive discussion during its ongoing parliament session.
The resolution re-affirms the Tibetan Parliament’s earlier resolutions passed in 1996, 1997 and 2008 on Dholgyal and directs the Tibetan Cabinet (Kashag) to probe the real motives of the recent protests in San Francisco and Washington DC against His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
On February 23, a nun apparently belonging to the “International Shugden Community” alleged the Tibetan spiritual leader was “lying” and “undermining their religious freedom”. A youtube user called “Shugden” uploaded a video of the encounter on youtube.
The Tibetan leader says he was himself a follower of Dorje Shugden but that he later quit in 1975 for reasons he describes as “strong sectarian overtones” and “a history of contributing to a climate of sectarian disharmony” among the four traditions of Tibetan Buddhism. The Tibetan leader denounces the worship of Dorje Shugden as “spirit worship” and fears that the propitiation of it might degenerate the “rich tradition of Tibetan Buddhism” into “mere propitiation of spirits.”
The resolution also denied the allegation of ‘absence of religious freedom’ and stated that it clearly recognizes the actions of Dholgyal followers as a political tool to create conflict within the Tibetan community.
Dongchung Ngodup, Minister of the Department of Security of the Tibetan government in exile also rejected the allegations against the Tibetan government in exile of discrimination against Shugden followers in India.
“The allegations of discrimination in monastery and schools are baseless. The allegation against the Tibetan government in exile for not issuing supporting letter to apply for their Identity Certificate (IC) is also completely untrue,” Ngodup said in the Tibetan Parliament.
The resolution further advised to ensure greater security for His Holiness the Dalai Lama during his visits.
The parliament will conclude the current session on March 22. The Tibetan Parliament in exile meets twice a year to enact laws, frame rules and regulations and issue policy decisions of the Tibetan government in exile, which officially is known as the Central Tibetan Administration.
