Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama,
says he gets hope from Western concern about Chinese-ruled Tibet, even though
the situation seems hopeless when viewed from inside the region.
The
Dalai Lama told U.S. cable news broadcaster CNN Sunday that he seeks to preserve
Tibetan culture, which he said has been given a "death sentence" under Chinese
rule.
He told CNN he believes the future of all human beings is to live
in an open society, under the rule of law and a transparent
government.
The Dalai Lama said he wants to negotiate with China to
provide a degree of cultural and political autonomy for Tibetans where they live
in China, and not in a separate state.
China has accused the Nobel Peace
Prize laureate of seeking the separation of one quarter of China's territory.
The Dalai Lama said Tibetans in China, whether it is intentional or not,
face a kind of cultural genocide. But he said international opposition and
recent changes in China make it unlikely that Tibetans will become a minority in
their own homeland like ethnic Mongolians in Inner Mongolia.
The 14th
Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, acknowledged that his approach to dialogue with the
Chinese leadership has failed to improve the lives of Tibetans in China.
However, he said there are hopeful signs, such as the increasing support of
Chinese intellectuals.
The Dalai Lama said it will be up to the Tibetan
people to decide on what path to take after his death. He said if he dies
before Tibet has autonomy, it is logical that his reincarnation will be born
outside Tibet in order to continue his work.
Some information for this report was provided by
AFP.
གཟའ་པ་སངས། ༢༠༢༤/༠༤/༡༩