Nottingham: His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who is currently visiting Britain, on Sunday expressed his appreciation for Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda’s series of remarks on Tibet, in an exclusive interview with The Yomiuri Shimbun. “We very much appreciate them,” His Holiness the Dalai Lama said in the interview in this city in central England.
His Holiness said: “Now [the] Tibet issue, essentially, [has to do] with peace and Tibetans, our sort of way of approach [in our] struggle [is] strictly [one of] nonviolence–that means promotion of peace. And so supporting the Tibetan struggle, the nonviolent struggle, actually [means] helping promote peaceful ways and means to achieve or solve problems. Then, [regarding the] Tibetan culture, our basic aim of the struggle is preservation of Tibetan Buddhist culture, that is [a] peaceful culture.”
His Holiness said the time has come for Japan, as a close friend of China, as Tibetans see it, to make clear your friend’s mistake.
“I think the Chinese people, and also the Chinese government always say [China is a] peace-loving nation. [For] a genuine peace-loving nation, in order to be a peace-loving nation, just words [are] not sufficient,” His Holiness added.
His Holiness said: “Actions should prove that they are peace-loving nation. Some of [the Chinese] government’s policy [that is] ruthless and repressive is actually bad for China, [if it wants] to be a superpower. More…respect from the rest of the world is essential. For that reason, some Chinese policy needs correction.
“He [Yasuo Fuduka] expressed his concerns about the Tibet crisis. Even I heard [that the fact that] the prime minister mentioned the Tibet issue [is] now already becoming [an] international issue. It’s fact, reality, now make it clear, express the reality–I think it is good,” His Holiness said.
“So the Japanese prime minister’s [comments were] helpful to make clear some mistakes, [some] wrong policy carried out by the Chinese government, [which is] in the long run harmful for the image of China,” His Holiness added.
When Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi visited Japan in April, Fukuda reportedly told Yang that China has to “squarely face the reality that the situation in Tibet has become an international issue.”
During his 5-day state visit to Japan earlier this month, Chinese President Hu Jintao said Chinese government’s next contact with the Dalai Lama is likely to be conducted at an appropriate time. Hu made the remarks at a joint press briefing with Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda following their official talks on 7 May.
The official Xinhua news agency’s report quoted President Hu saying “Chinese government’s attitude toward contacts and consultation with the Dalai Lama is serious,” adding “We hope the contact to yield positive results.”