The dialogue offered by Beijing "is only worthless bait"
Dharamsala (AsiaNews) - The Chinese offer to reopen a channel of dialogue with the Dalai Lama in order to stop the protests of the Tibetan community "has a single aim: to push through the Olympics without any more violence, which draws criticisms from the international community. In other regards, nothing will change". This is the opinion of various Indian and Nepalese analysts, who view Beijing's proposal as "worthless bait".
Last April 24, the Chinese government proposed to the Buddhist leader a meeting to "calm the situation". For his part, the Dalai Lama accepted the offer but emphasised that he wants "a serious meeting". Brahma Chellaney, an analyst for the Centre for Strategic Studies in New Delhi, explains: "The Chinese haven't made any concession. Their primary interest is to see the Olympics conclude. Besides, six talks between the parties have taken place since 2002, without bringing any results. This will not be any different".
The same opinion is expressed by Srikanth Kondapalli, associate professor of Chinese Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University: "The Chinese government is not sincere, and has never been so on the Tibetan question. The latest offer of talks is nothing new. What is new is the pressure mounted on China with Tibetan protests, which have unnerved them. The Olympics were supposed to be a coming out party for China, but now they are truly at risk".
Samdhong Rinpoche, prime minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile, is less pessimistic, writing in a statement: "The Dalai Lama has always offered his help to stop the protests, and has repeatedly emphasised his support for the Olympics. We hope that these talks will be productive, and will help to normalise the situation. Nonetheless, the Chinese government must stop its smear campaign against our leader".
This request seems to have been ignored, since yesterday the People's Daily - an official instrument of the Chinese government - wrote: "The Dalai clique has always been proficient in playing with words. But there is only one key word behind them: Tibetan independence. Tibet has been an inseparable part of China since ancient times. Any attempt to seek Tibet independence is not permissible".
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