Dalai Lama Remains A Symbol Of Resistance, But Can’t Change Plight Of Tibetans In China

Tibet’s spiritual leader the Dalai Lama has been a thorn on China’s side since 1959 when he fled to India after the Tibetan uprising was crushed. The Dalai Lama remains the favourite whipping boy of the Communist Party of China and has been variously described as a splittist, a renegade, and a saboteur opposed to the development of Tibet. He remains a powerful symbol of Tibetan resistance though at best he is a toothless tiger.

It has become the norm for countries wishing to send a message of disapproval to China to invite the Tibetan leader to visit the country and, depending on the measure of irritation, diplomats arrange an audience with the President or Prime Minister. French President Nikolas Sarkozy did that in December 2008 when he met the Dalai Lama in the Polish city of Gdansk, leading to an angry outburst from China. A 1997 visit by the Dalai Lama to Taiwan, where he was welcomed like a head of state, made China furious. He naturally met with President in Taipei. This infuriated Beijing. The Chinese foreign office accused him of using Buddhism as a guise to divide China. The Dalai Lama visited Taiwan again in 2009, enraging Beijing once again.   

But these are mere cosmetic gestures and no nation now is willing to do more than offer strong statements to a powerful world power that’s China. There is little that the rest of the world, including the United States, can do to ensure that Tibetans get their religious freedom or that their rights are protected. Nor can the world stop the Chinese authorities from sending in Han Chinese settlers to Tibet besides issuing statements. China resents what it sees as outside interference in its affairs, especially as most nations are committed to the One China Policy.   

“There was a time when foreign powers opposed to China could score political points by welcoming the Dalai Lama to their countries despite protests from Beijing. However, as China is now much more powerful than it was in the past, there is a reluctance to use the Dalai Lama politically. In the last couple of years, there has been greater thrust on his religious teachings and while he continues to address the international community, it is more as a spiritual leader,” says Alka Acharya, Professor for Chinese Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Delhi.

The Dalai Lama, an astute politician, also changed his stand from full independence for Tibet that he had advocated during 1961-74 to a more pragmatic “middle path” — meaning that while remaining within China, the people of Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) have the freedom to practice their religion and protect their culture without restriction.

“The Tibetan people do not accept the present status of Tibet under the People’s Republic of China. At the same time, they do not seek independence for Tibet, which is a historical fact. Treading a middle path in between these two lies the policy and means to achieve a genuine autonomy for all Tibetans living in the three traditional provinces of Tibet within the framework of the People’s Republic of China. This is called the Middle-Way Approach, a non-partisan and moderate position that safeguards the vital interests of all concerned parties — for Tibetans: the protection and preservation of their culture, religion and national identity; for the Chinese: the security and territorial integrity of the motherland; and for neighbours and other third parties: peaceful borders and international relations,” the Dalai Lama clearly explained his position a few years ago.

The 2008 Summer Olympics, the first to be held in China, aimed to focus on the tremendous progress made by the country under the Communist Party. But some of the pomp and show was dampened by Tibetans using the opportunity to highlight their plight under Chinese rule. A number of protests took place in Tibet ahead of the summer games and self-immolation of several monks were reported from Tibet. Protests took place in several areas of the Tibet Autonomous Region and Han Chinese settlers were attacked in several places by local protesters. The government swung into action immediately and crushed the demonstrations with an iron hand. China’s tough action led to condemnation by the United States and other Western powers. 

In solidarity with the protesters, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi travelled to Dharmshala to meet the Dalai Lama. Standing besides the spiritual leader, Pelosi said, “If freedom-loving people throughout the world do not speak out against China’s oppression and China and Tibet, we have lost all moral authority to speak on behalf of human rights anywhere in the world.”

China’s ambassador in New Delhi accused Pelosi of interfering in Chinese “internal affairs”.

“We don’t allow anybody to meddle in China’s internal affairs,” Zhang Yan told reporters in New Delhi. “Any attempt to cause trouble to China is doomed to fail.”

Later that afternoon, Tibetan protestors scaled the walls of the Chinese embassy compound in Delhi and ran around the grounds raising slogans and unfurling Tibetan flags. Police arrested 33 protesters and security was tightened around the embassy.

Across the world, there were protests against China’s use of force against protestors. All along the route taken by the Olympic torch, anti-China protesters showed up. In London, there were attempts to snatch the torch and extinguish the flame. In San Francisco, the route had to be changed to avoid confrontation with protest groups. But the games took place peacefully that summer though the Tibetan cause got highlighted internationally.

Ahead of the Olympics in 2007, the Dalai Lama was given the Congressional Gold Medal, US governments highest civilian honour. It was presented to him by President George W Bush. It was also the first time the Dalai Lama appeared in public with a sitting US president. To further anger China, he was given a half-an-hour meeting with Bush. Xinhua, the Chinese news agency, noted that such moves will gravely sabotage the China-US cooperation. 

The Winter Olympics held in China in 2022 was boycotted by many countries, including the United States and many Western democracies. India too boycotted the opening ceremony when it came to know that one of the torch bearers was a commander of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who had been deployed in Galwan — where 20 Indian personnel were killed in a clash in 2020. The boycott did not mean that sportspersons did not participate. It was just that political and administrative ministers and officials stayed away.   

In India, where the Dalai Lama was welcomed with open arms, the government regards him as a spiritual leader. Yet many Indians believe that New Delhi could have used his presence in the country much more effectively against China. However, successive Indian governments have stuck to the old Nehruvian stand. Government ministers and officials are not allowed to meet the Dalai Lama in their official capacity.

Much depends on the state of India-China ties. Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeted the Dalai Lama publicly on his birthday in 2021 and 2022 after the India-China face-0ff in Ladakh. Yet in 2020 when the military confrontation took place, he did not greet the Dalai Lama as around that time as China had agreed to pull back its troops from Galwan. Before the public greetings to the Dalai Lama in 2021-2022, Modi had wished him on his birthday in 2013. Since taking over as PM in 2014, he did not, though during his oath-taking ceremony in 2014, Lobsang Sangay, the then-Tibetan Prime Minister in Exile, was invited. And until 2015, Modi had thanked the Dalai Lama’s wishes for birthday greetings sent to him. That stopped in 2016, keeping China’s sensitivities in mind. But after Ladakh, it has become a different ball game.

However, Dalai Lama’s role in international politics has waned considerably with China’s growth as the number two power in the world.