His Holiness the Dalai Lama Condemns Myanmar Junta, Offers to Make Tibetan Leadership More Democratic

by Danny Fisher

While he’s at the Elijah Interfaith Summit in northern India, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet is making quite a splash. First, there are his comments about the future of the institution of the Dalai Lama:

    Talking to reporters in the northern Indian city of Amritsar, he emphasised his desire to make the Tibetan leadership more democratic.

    “As early as 1969 I made clear the very institution of the Dalai Lama is up to the Tibetan people,” he said.

    He outlined other methods to appoint his successor as well, such as one similar to electing the Pope where senior lamas would choose the next Dalai Lama.

    The Tibetan spiritual leader also raised the possibility of himself naming a new Dalai Lama while he is still alive, a proposal he outlined in Japan last week.

As the B.B.C. notes, this is by no means the first time His Holiness has made radical proposals, observations, or predictions about the institution of the Dalai Lama. It does represent a “stepping up” of his rhetoric, however.

    Ten years ago he announced that if Tibet was still occupied when he died then his reincarnation would not be born under Chinese control but in the free world.

    But with monasteries in Tibet under increasing pressure, his rhetoric appears to be strengthening.

In addition to his comments about the future of Tibetan leadership, His Holiness also strongly condemned the Myanmar junta for its actions against the nonviolent demonstrations led by Buddhist monks earlier this fall.

    “When I saw pictures of people beating monks I was immediately reminded of inside Tibet, in our own case, where just a few days ago monks were beaten by Chinese forces,” the Dalai Lama said.

    “I am fully committed and I have full support and sympathy for the demonstrators”…

    [...]

    The Dalai Lama urged the military junta in Myanmar–a staunchly Buddhist country–to heed the Buddha’s teachings.

    “They should be Buddhists. Please act according to Buddha’s message of compassion,” he said.

[Thanks go once again to my pal Phil, this time for sending me the latter piece.]