Dharamsala, June 19 – China has denied visa to a group of Dutch lawmakers who planned to visit the country next month, Nos TV reports.
The Chinese ambassador to the Netherlands has told the Dutch parliamentarians about the ban on their entry into China, Nos TV added.
According to NOs TV, the Dutch lawmakers being refused entry into China could be linked to the visit of the Tibetan leader, the Dalai Lama, to the Dutch parliament during his visit to the country on June 4 and 5 on the invitation of Dutch lawmakers.
Days before the Tibetan leader’s visit to Netherlands Chinese ambassador in The Hague had officially written to the country’s parliament objecting to the Dalai Lama being received by the speaker, Gerdi Verbeet, and other MPs. The letter said the move would not be conducive to good relations “in this time of economic crisis”. Dutch parliamentarians however defied China’s protest and welcomed the Dalai Lama to their parliament despite warnings from China that it might affect ties between the two countries.
A lawmaker for the ruling Christian Democrats also sharply criticized China’s ambassador for attempting to interfere with Dutch politics. The Dutch don’t interfere with Chinese political meetings “and we expect the same respect from the Chinese ambassador,” legislator Maarten Haverkamp was quoted by AP as saying earlier this month.
China sent military troops to occupy Tibet in 1950 and, nine years later, the Dalai Lama fled to India. The exiled Tibetan leader is now seeking a meaningful autonomy for Tibet within the constitutional framework of the People’s Republic of China.
