Groups of Tibetan people have been staging protests against the Chinese occupation since the beginning of March. What started as peaceful demonstrations by monks has spiralled into violent confrontations with Chinese troops.
The Dalai Lama has threatened to stand down if the violence continues. Michael van Walt van Praag does not think this will change the situation. The Dutch citizen is one of the Buddhist leader's legal advisors.
 Michael van Walt van Praag, legal advisor of the Dalai Lama (Photo by Klaas den Trek) |
The mountainous region has been able to reckon on sympathy since China's 1950 invasion. However, Mr van Walt van Praag believes very few countries are willing to seek confrontation with China for fear of compromising their economic interests. The West is putting steady pressure on China though to reach a settlement.
Young Tibetans
The unrest in Tibet seems to show that young people especially are no longer willing to wait. The younger generation of Tibetans in exile have also had enough. The group, Young Tibetans, is the main voice of the dissatisfaction. It says the peaceful path chosen by the Dalai Lama is not working. "It isn't the first time this sort of criticism has been levelled at him. Especially by youth organisations which are unwilling to give up the dream of independence. They have always been critical of his abandoning independence. They also believe that a tougher stance is more likely to lead to movement on the Chinese side than the softly-softly approach adopted by the Dalai Lama."
Stronger leader
However, it is a fact that Tibetans do not want to loose their leader and still respect his way of peace. That is why there should be someone else as well. "There are calls for a stronger political leader who could be more radical. But this doesn't mean that people are saying they don't want the Dalai Lama to play a role anymore."
It is not clear who this second person should be. The present prime minister is Samdhong Rinpoche. Mr van Walt van Praag thinks that any other leader should be chosen via the ballot box.
The Dalai Lama says international support, clear positions and a realistic solution to the dispute in the long term make more sense than violence. Not just for the Chinese leadership, but for the Chinese people. Because who has real objections to the region gaining autonomy?
* RNW translation (mw)
Tags: autonomy, China, Dalai Lama, independence, politics, protests, Tibet, violence