The Dalai Lama question will be a problem for China
In the post-14th Dalai Lama phase, Beijing may try and promote division within the exiled Tibetan community.
Updated At : 05:54 AM Jul 19, 2025 IST
Unequivocal: The 14th Dalai Lama has declared that he will not be reborn under an authoritarian regime, thus ruling out the possibility of his being reincarnated in China. Reuters
ON the issue of the continuation of the institution of the Dalai Lama and the 14th Dalai Lama's reincarnation, both sides — the Dalai Lama and the Chinese — have drawn unambiguous lines in the sand. The 14th Dalai Lama has unequivocally declared that he will not be reborn under an authoritarian regime, thus ruling out the possibility of his being reincarnated inside the People's Republic of China. With this, it is certain that the Chinese, notwithstanding the irony of the situation, will contest the "genuineness" of the 14th Dalai Lama's reincarnation and announce a candidate of their own. This piquant situation will affect the approximately seven million Tibetans inside China and also the wider Tibetan diaspora.
