MEXICO CITY – The Dalai Lama, exiled spiritual leader of Tibet, demanded that China grant “authentic” autonomy to Tibet, arguing that the status is guaranteed under the communist nation’s constitution.
“According to the constitution of the Popular Republic of China, we already have an autonomous status,” he said here as he met with Mexican legislators. “That autonomy should be authentic.”
“In the totalitarian regimes, particularly in the Popular Republic of China, as in the former Soviet Union, there is always a gap between what is written and what happens in the reality,” the Dalai Lama said. “We are trying to reduce that gap.”
China, which has ruled Tibet since 1951, regularly protests the frequent travels of the Dalai Lama, who it accuses of being a separatist.
Before his visit with Mexican legislators, the Chinese Embassy had requested that the Dalai Lama be given no political platform. Mexican President Vicente Fox declined to meet him.
The 69-year-old Buddhist leader has been in Mexico since Sunday and leaves Friday.
India has hosted the Dalai Lama since he fled Tibet in 1959 amid a failed uprising against Chinese rule. In recent years he has been trying to engage Beijing in negotiations on a potential return.
The 1989 Nobel Peace laureate has agreed to end activities aimed at establishing Tibet’s independence, but he has requested that Beijing allow greater autonomy to the Himalayan region, especially in efforts to preserve Tibet’s unique culture and religion.
