By Thuy Ong
SYDNEY, June 13 (Reuters) – Tibetans setting themselves on
fire to protest against Chinese rule are having little effect on
Beijing’s policies, exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai
Lama said on Thursday, while urging China to look harder at the
reasons behind the incidents.
At least 117 Tibetans have set themselves alight in protest
against Chinese rule since 2009, mostly in heavily Tibetan areas
of Sichuan, Gansu and Qinghai provinces rather than in what
China terms the Tibet Autonomous Region. Most have died.
“It’s a sad thing that happens. Of course it’s very very
sad. In the meantime, I express I doubt how much effect (there
is) from such drastic actions,” the Dalai Lama told reporters
during a visit to Australia.
A Chinese official in March accused the Dalai Lama of
providing money to encourage people to set themselves on fire,
and said there was evidence to prove the Nobel Peace Prize
laureate was orchestrating the self-immolations.
The Dalai Lama, 77, has called the acts “understandable,”
but says he does not encourage them.
Several Tibet scholars have criticized his stance, saying
his reluctance to tell his people to stop has strengthened their
resolve to continue the fiery protests.
Beijing considers the Dalai Lama, who fled from China in
1959 after an abortive uprising against Chinese rule, a violent
separatist. The Dalai Lama says he is merely seeking greater
autonomy for his Himalayan homeland.
The Dalai Lama said the immolations were a sensitive
political issue, but said Tibetans were not sacrificing their
lives because of simple social or family grievances.
“I express this as a symptom of some causes of Chinese
officials. They must investigate what is the cause of this
symptom, of these events. It’s not the solution just to blame
someone, including the Dalai Lama,” he said.
China has tightened already strict controls in Tibet since
the self-immolations began two years and has all but banned
visits by foreign journalists.
Tibet has also been a cause of diplomatic friction,
especially with the United States, where meetings between the
Dalai Lama and U.S. presidents have infuriated China.
The U.S. State Department has urged China to allow Tibetans
to “express grievances freely”, while calling on Tibetans to
“end self-immolations”.
The Dalai Lama said Tibetans could “easily hurt other
people”, but instead were choosing “to sacrifice their own
lives, not hurting others”.
China has defended its iron-fisted rule in Tibet, saying the
mountainous region suffered from dire poverty and brutal
exploitation until 1950, when Communist troops “peacefully
liberated” it.
(Writing by Rob Taylor; Editing by Robert Birsel)
