Anger as parliament chiefs refuse to raise Tibetan standard
By IAN SWANSON
SCOTTISH POLITICAL EDITOR
SCOTTISH Parliament bosses came under attack today after they refused to fly the Tibetan flag during the Dalai Lama’s visit next month.
The Nobel Peace Prize- winning spiritual and political leader of the Tibetan people is due to address MSPs as part of a busy two-day programme in the Capital.
Officials said the parliament only flew foreign flags for heads of state or heads of government and since the Dalai Lama was a religious leader, it was not appropriate.
But Edinburgh South Liberal Democrat MSP Mike Pringle said the parliament should follow the example of Edinburgh City Council, which will fly the flag during the visit.
And he has tabled a motion calling on Presiding Officer George Reid to put aside normal protocol and agree to the Tibetan flag being flown from the Assembly building at The Mound and the committee chambers on George IV Bridge.
Mr Pringle said: “This is a really historic event. The Tibetan flag will be flying at the City Chambers down the road. We should take the lead from the city council and do the same thing.”
The row came as details were announced of the Dalai Lama’s six-day visit to Scotland, starting on May 29. Organisers said they expected at least 30,000 people to see him during the visit.
He will spend four days teaching Buddhism in Glasgow before travelling to Edinburgh, where he is due to speak to MSPs during the parliament’s Time for Reflection slot on June 2.
Then he will meet politicians, religious leaders, civic representatives and other guests in Edinburgh and hold a question and answer session with school children from across Scotland.
All 2200 tickets for his appearance at the Usher Hall were sold out months ago, as were 9000 tickets for similar event at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre in Glasgow.
But thousands more are expected at a free-entry peace ceremony in Pittencrieff Park, Dunfermline, on June 3. The 66-year-old spiritual leader is believed by his followers to be a manifestation of the Buddha of compassion, and a reincarnation of 13 previous Dalai Lamas. He fled Tibet in 1959 following the Chinese occupation and now leads a government in exile.
Mr Pringle acknowledged flying the Tibetan flag might upset the Chinese.
“You can rest assured the Chinese will be very unhappy,” he said. “Obviously there are sensitivities, but I think we should recognise him for the person he is.
“Flying the flag is a symbolic act saying you are supporting the visit and it makes it a public event.
“The Dalai Lama is probably one of the top five religious leaders in the world and we should acknowledge that fact.”
A parliament spokesman said: “We only fly the flags of other nations when visiting heads of state or heads of government address MSPs.
“The Dalai Lama’s visit is in his spiritual capacity as a Buddhist leader, so there will be no change of flags for that occasion.”
