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Lama's planned visit riles Beijing
21 Oct 2009
BEIJING: China said on Tuesday it was “firmly opposed” to a planned visit by Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama to Arunachal Pradesh, the northeastern state, which is at the centre of a border dispute with China.
“China’s position on so-called Arunachal Pradesh is consistent and clear and we firmly oppose the Dalai Lama’s visit to the region,” said foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu. “China is greatly concerned over the news. We believe this further exposes the Dalai Lama’s nature of anti-China separatism, as is known to all,” he added.
India’s foreign secretary Nirupama Rao last week reaffirmed the right of the India-based Dalai Lama to visit the region, despite previous strong objections from China.
India says China occupies 38,000 sq km of its Himalayan territory, while Beijing claims all of Arunachal Pradesh, which covers 90,000 sq km.
“The Dalai Lama is a religious figure and he does not indulge in political activities,” Rao was quoted saying on Friday by The Indian Express newspaper.
The Dalai Lama, who fled to India in 1959 after China crushed an anti-Chinese uprising in Tibet, is denounced by Beijing as a “splittist” despite his calls for autonomy rather than full independence for his homeland.Agence Frace Presse |
