Tibetan leaders to gather in Dharamsala from July 2, two days before Dalai Lama’s birthday

Tibetan Buddhist leaders will gather for a conference in Dharamsala from July 2 to 4 two days ahead of the 90th birthday of the Dalai Lama on July 6. Sources say that the Dalai Lama may address the conference, which is being held amid growing concerns among the Tibetan community over his succession. The Tibetan government-in-exile has been expressing concerns that the Chinese government may interfere in the process for deciding the successor of the Dalai lama.

Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) president Sikyong Penpa Tsering has said that as a devout Buddhist, he will never accept the Chinese governments interference in choosing the successor of the Dalai Lama. “The system of reincarnation is a unique Tibetan Buddhism tradition. It was the right of the Dalai Lama to decide where he would be born and the Communist government should not interfere in it,: the Sikyong has said.

The Buddhist conference scheduled just two days before the 90th birthday of the Dalai Lama is being seen as important due to his statement issued in September 2011 that he would consult with senior Tibetan Buddhist figures upon reaching the age of 90 to assess the future of his lineage.

The Dalai Lama due to growing concerns among his followers over his heath has repeatedly said that he will in good health and will live up to 110 years. In his latest book “Voice of the Voiceless”, the Dalai Lama had stated that due to the prevailing situation in Tibet, he may reincarnate outside Tibet.

Though the Tibetan authorities here are not sure that the decision regarding the succession of the Dalai Lama will be taken in the forthcoming Buddhist conference, they maintain that the issue may come up for discussion in the meeting.

The Sikyong, who was on a visit to the US, held a series of high-level meetings with senior lawmakers in Washington He lobbied to reinforce bipartisan support for the Tibetan cause and to press for the prompt appointment of a US Special Coordinator for Tibetan issues, a diplomatic role that has remained vacant under the current administration.

According to the official CTA spokesperson, the Sikyong drew the attention of the US lawmakers to the impact of the recent US funding cuts on Tibetan resilience programmes. He confirmed that the annual US dollar 12 million US dollar grant from the USAID had ceased under President Donald Trump. Out of the said funding, US dollar 7 million were used to support the Tibetan Resilience Programme focused on education, healthcare and rehabilitation of Tibetan exiles, US dollar 3 million was dedicated to building the CTA institutional capacity and US dollar 2 million funded the digitisation of Tibetan scriptures. While visiting the US, the CTA leader said that he was lobbying with congressional and administration officials to restore the funding.

The CTA spokesperson said that the key focus of the discussions of the Sikyong with the US lawmakers was the vacant position of the US Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues at the State Department.

PenpaTsering also raised concerns about ongoing challenges faced by Tibetan language services of Radio Free Asia (RFA), Voice of America (VOA), and the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), organisations he described as vital for amplifying Tibetan voices on the global stage. The Trump administration has cut funding for the said US based media organisations.