12. Sep 2009
British minister backs 'greater autonomy' for Tibet
(AFP) A British minister underlined London's support for greater Tibetan autonomy during a visit to Lhasa, and talks in Beijing. Junior Foreign Office minister Ivan Lewis made the first ever trip to the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) by a British government member. "This is a historic visit", he was quoted as saying by a UK foreign office statement, adding that it was in the context of "our decision to change UK policy, and the significant international concern following the events in March 2008". "We recognise Tibet as an autonomous region of China (...) But long-term stability can only be achieved through respect for human rights and greater autonomy", he said. "This depends on substantive dialogue between the Chinese government and the representatives of the Dalai Lama. China has said all matters except independence can be discussed. But its position has hardened. I urged them to reiterate the earlier position", he said. In Tibet, Lewis met the chairman of the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), while in Beijing he discussed the situation there with the vice minister of the United Front Work Department. Lewis does not appear to have met with the Chinese foreign ministry.
12. Sep 2009
(1 comments)
Tibet's mineral deposits estimated at 600bn yuan
(Xinhua) Tibet has verified mineral deposits with a total value estimated at over 600 billion yuan (UK£45.33bn; US$72.6bn; EUR€49.5bn), according to the TAR Department of Land and Resources. The report said that there are verified reserves of 12 types of minerals, and another 102 types of minerals have been found in the region. Nine key zones have been marked off for mining industrial development, including the Yulong copper production base in eastern Tibet and Nyixong iron production base in southern central Tibet, said Dorje, a leading official of the department. He also indicated that mining zones in Lhasa's Maldrogongkar (Chin: Mozhugongka) county and around northern Tibet's salt lakes are expected to become national bases for developing mineral resources.
13. Sep 2009
(1 comments)
President Obama sends delegation to Dharamsala
(Phayul) US President Barack Obama's emissary, Valerie Jarrett, called on the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala. Jarrett discussed with the Dalai Lama the best way the US could assist in the resolution for the Tibetan issue, particularly in the light of the first visit by President Obama to China in November. The delegation was led by Ms Jarrett, the Senior Advisor and Assistant to the US President for Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Engagement, and also present was Maria Otero, Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs and Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues. Ms. Jarrett personally conveyed the commitment of President Obama "to support the Tibetan people in protecting their distinct religious, linguistic, and cultural heritage and securing respect for their human rights and civil liberties" as well as the US President's commendation for the Dalai Lama's consistency in seeking genuine autonomy for Tibetans within the People's Republic of China (PRC) through his middle way approach. In a statement, the Dalai Lama's office said that President Obama and the Dalai Lama would meet in Washington, DC, after the US-China Summit in November.
16. Sep 2009
India rejects Beijing's opposition to Tawang visit
(Bloomberg; IANS) Indian Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna has rejected China's opposition to the Dalai Lama visiting northeastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. The Dalai Lama will inaugurate a hospital in Tawang, the capital of the state. In an interview, Krishna claimed China's objection, voiced by its foreign ministry, "has no merit". Arunachal Pradesh, he said, "is a part of India and the Dalai Lama is free to go anywhere in India. The only question is that he is not expected to comment on political developments". The Dalai Lama is expected to visit Arunachal sometime in November, a territory which Beijing claims as its own and over which it has been lately renewing its claims. Speaking to a group of visiting journalists in Dharamsala, Prime Minister of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche reportedly described Beijing's objections to the Dalai Lama's visit as "absurd".
16. Sep 2009
UN Human Rights Chief Urges China to Respect Human Rights in Tibet
(Tibetcustom) Expressing concern over the recent events in Tibet and East Turkestan (Chin: Xinjiang), Ms Navanethem Pillay, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights called on the Chinese government to examine the underlying causes of the incidents, highlighting "discrimination and the failure to protect minority rights by the Chinese authorities". During a keynote address to the members of the Human Rights Council at the 12th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva. "While condemning such violence and urging the Chinese authorities to respect human rights in upholding the law, I also encourage them to reflect on the underlying causes of such incidents, which include discrimination and the failure to protect minority rights", Pillay added.
16. Sep 2009
Protesting children beaten in Yushu
(VOT) Police in Nangchen (Chinese: Nangqian) county, Yushu prefecture, Qinghai province, severely beat up four school children for allegedly filming a demonstration that took place during a musical event, according to a report by the Oslo-based Voice of Tibet (VOT) radio, citing the exile Tibetan MP Geshe Monlam Tharchin. The report said that the protesters, all Tibetans, were apparently not locals. They suddenly appeared when the musical event was going on, shouting anti-China slogans, with one of them climbing a tree and tying a Tibetan national flag there before taking off on a waiting motorbike. The other protester ran into the huge crowd of audience and mingled with it. The police cordoned off the area and it was not clear whether any arrests were made. The whereabouts of the four children are reportedly unknown.
19. Sep 2009
India downplays border incidents
(IANS) Following Prime Minister Manmohan Singh downplaying reports of increasing Chinese military incursions, top Indian officials and the army chief have warned that media "hype" could lead to "unwarranted incident or accident" with Beijing and stressed that the two countries are trying to resolve bilateral issues through dialogue. Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao said there was no plan for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to meet Chinese President Hu Jintao on the sidelines of G-20 Summit in the US. Rao also stressed that there was "no significant increase" in incursions across all sections of the over 4,000 km border between the two countries. "There is no meeting that has been planned between Singh and the leader of the Chinese delegation to the G20 Summit in Pittsburgh", Rao told reporters when asked if Manmohan Singh will take up the issue of incursions with Hu. "Contrary to popular perception, the situation along the border has remained peaceful for decades", she said. "That's because there is no mutually agreed or delineated border. This is not a new phenomenon. It has been going on for years".
22. Sep 2009
Contradictory reports on Tibet ban for foreigners
(AFP; AP) AP reported that China has closed Tibet to foreign tourists as part of a raft of stringent security measures ahead of the 60th anniversary of the People's Republic of China (PRC). As in the wake of rioting in March 2008, foreign tourists have been banned from Tibet, according to local officials and people working in the travel industry. Su Tingrui, a salesman with Tibet China Travel Service, said that the company's general manager was called to a meeting by authorities in Lhasa. He said the ban was not issued in writing but conveyed during the meeting and will extend to 08 October. Other agents in Beijing and Lhasa said that the government had stopped giving out special permits needed to visit the region to foreigners. AFP, however, later reported (24 September) that Liao Lisheng, spokesman for the TAR tourism bureau, has denied that any notice to this effect had been issued. "Those reports were not true. We just told the travel agencies to adjust their arrangements in order to avoid too many people coming at the same time. (...) But we never said that we would suspend issuing passes to foreign travellers", he said.
23. Sep 2009
Jinshan to acquire Gyama mineral property
(TibetInfoNet) Jinshan Gold Mines Inc. has announced that it has executed a memorandum of understanding with China National Gold Corporation "and another partner" to acquire a 100% interest in the Gyama (Chin: Jiama) mining property. Gyama, which is situated in Gyama township in Maldrogongkar (Chin: Mozhugongka) county in Lhasa Municipality, is currently in the development stage, and it is planned to be an underground mining operation with a production capacity of 6,000 tonnes per day. The operation will produce a copper concentrate with gold and silver and a molybdenum concentrate. A protest occurred at Gyama on 20 June 2009 during which three Tibetans were injured. The authorities reportedly refused to intervene to settle the dispute, claiming that China National Gold should find a way to accommodate locals concerns. Jinshan is a Chinese mining company operating from Canada. China National Gold Corporation is a Chinese state-owned enterprise and China's largest gold producer; it owns approximately 41% of Jinshan's shares.
24. Sep 2009
Dalai Lama receives US civil rights award
(AP) After praying at the motel where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968, the Dalai Lama said: The "civil rights movement led by King gives us conviction today the struggle for justice, against inequality, discrimination (...) despite many difficulties and obstacles, can be won". The Dalai Lama was in Memphis to receive the International Freedom Award from the National Civil Rights Museum, which incorporates the site of the Lorraine Motel. The Dalai Lama toured the museum prior to the award ceremony. Later, he accepted the 2009 International Freedom Award from the National Civil Rights Museum, showing his appreciation by donating his $50,000 honorarium to the museum.
