By Tenzin Monlam
DHARAMSHALA, August 27: In what comes as a major blow to the Tibetan exile government’s efforts of reestablishing dialogue with Beijing, China has said that the “Middle Way proposed by the Dalai Lama group” will never be accepted.
“The Central Government neither did in the past, nor now or in the future will ever accept the Middle Way solution to the Tibet issue,” said United Front Work Department of the CPC Central Committee on the conclusion of the 6th Tibet Work Forum held in Beijing on 24-25 August.
The United Front Work Department said in a release posted on its website that the Middle Way’s main intention is to split China and that the Dalai Lama’s envoys refuse to accept China’s idea of Sovereignty over Tibet. The UFWD also has accused the 1989 Nobel Peace laureate of “wanting to seize all the power and set up a semi-independent political regime.”
The Central Government arm which manages relation with overseas Chinese had held nine round of talks with the Tibetan side between 2002 and 2010.
The Tibetan leader who devolved all his political powers to an elected leadership maintains that the Middle Way Approach – official policy of the Central Tibetan Administration – seeks a genuine autonomy for the Tibetan people under the framework of the Chinese government.
The Tibetan exile leadership says it remains firmly committed to non-violence and the Middle-Way Approach, and that it strongly believes the only way to resolve the issue of Tibet is through dialogue. “The Tibetan leadership considers substance to be primary and process as secondary, and is ready to engage in meaningful dialogue anywhere and at anytime,” the CTA said in a release in 2012.
Many governments, including the United States, have publicly supported the Middle Way Approach and urged China to find ways to negotiate a mutually acceptable solution to the Tibet issue.
The last round of talks between the Envoys of the Dalai Lama and representatives from the Chinese United Front Work Department was held more in January 2010. Since then, the Chinese have refused to meet the Tibetan delegation. The dialogue process has failed to yield much result, with the Envoys, who resigned in 2012, repeatedly stating that large differences still remained on “fundamental issues”.
Meanwhile, Chinese president Xi Jinping has called out to his communist officials in Tibet to “firmly take the initiative” in the fight against exile ‘separatist forces’, a term often found in Chinese propaganda to refer to Tibetan exiles, “vowing to crack down on all activities seeking to separate the country and destroy social stability.”
Speaking at the 6th Tibet Work Forum, Xi asked his officials in Tibet to promote “patriotism among the Tibetan Buddhist circle and effectively manage monasteries in the long run, encouraging interpretations of religious doctrines “that are compatible with a socialist society.”
