By Phuntsok Yangchen
DHARAMSHALA, January 5: A two-day meeting of the Task Force for Sino-Tibetan negotiations began today at Asia Health Resorts in Dharamshala.
The meeting, presided over by Tibetan PM Lobsang Sangay will “review the prospects of dialogue process in the light of prevailing situation inside Tibet and China,” the official website of the Tibetan government in exile (officially known as Central Tibetan Administration) said.
This is the 27th Tibetan Task Force meeting on Negotiation, fifth since Sangay took over the office of the Tibetan PM. The last task force meeting was held on September 5, 2013.
Former Kalon Tripa Professor Samdhong Rinpoche; Lobsang Nyandak, Executive Director of Tibet Fund and former Kalon; Tashi Phuntsok, Secretary of Department of Information and International Relations; Kunga Tashi, Chinese Liaison Officer at Office of Tibet, New York; Phagpa Tsering, Secretary of Department of Security and Sonam Tsering Frasi, former Tibetan Parliamentarian from Europe, were added to the Tibetan Task force In during the last meeting.
The Task Force on Negotiation was set up in 1999 to assist the Dalai Lama’s envoys in the dialogue process with the Chinese government.
The last round of talks between the Envoys of the Dalai Lama and representatives from the Chinese United Front Work Department was held five years ago in January 2010. Since then, China has refused to meet Tibetan representatives.
In May 2012, the two Envoys of the Dalai Lama, who had led nine rounds of talks with China since 2002, resigned citing the deteriorating situation inside Tibet and their “utter frustration” over the lack of positive response from China.
