23 October 2006
Jia Qinglin in London
Jia Qinglin, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), China's top advisory body, and one of the nine members of the Standing Committee of the politburo of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, the highest power organ of the PRC, visited London as part of a current travel across Europe. The visit, which stands under the impression of lethal shootings of Tibetan refugees by Chinese border guards, was punctuated by demonstrations. At a meeting with Akong Rinpoche at a hotel in Kensington, London, Jia said the Chinese government would "continue to enhance the level of support for economic and social development in Tibet, and to improve the living standards and conditions of production for farmers in Tibet". He said the government would support the development of Tibet's traditional culture, make efforts to promote not only Tibet's industrial modernisation but also its environmental protection. He also reiterated the Chinese government's policy of welcoming ‘patriotic Tibetans’, saying: "The motherland always welcomes and firmly supports the overseas Tibetans and expects that they would make contributions to a prosperous and stable Tibet". Akong Rinpoche is quoted by Xinhua as saying: "Though we have settled abroad for a long time, we are always concerned about the development of our motherland, in particular the development in Tibet". The founder of the Samye Ling monastery in Scotland also said: "We will continue to make contributions to the development of Tibet".