Chinese government has 'final say' in Dalai Lama reincarnation, Tibetan official says
China considers the Nobel laureate Dalai Lama a separatist and wants to bring Tibetan Buddhismunder its control,, opens new tab but the Dalai Lama and his huge following have been obstacles to that ambition.
At his 90th birthday celebration last month, he assured followers that he would be reincarnated, and a non-profit institution he has set up will have the sole authority to identify his reincarnation.
But Gama Cedain, the deputy secretary of the Chinese Communist Party committee in Tibet, said the Dalai Lama's reincarnation would be found using a domestic search and approval by the central government.
"The central government has the indisputable final say in the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama," he told reporters at a press conference about the socioeconomic development in Tibet.
He said that was the creed devotees adhered to, and the government's process follows the strict religious rituals and historical customs of the reincarnation of living Buddhas.
"The reincarnation has never been decided by the Dalai Lama himself," he said.
The current Dalai Lama, 14th in the line of spiritual leaders for Tibetan Buddhism, has said his reincarnation will be born outside China and ruled out Beijing's role in choosing his successor.
China installed a Tibetan Buddhist monk picked by Beijing as the faith's No. 2 leader, the Panchen Lama, three decades ago after a six-year-old chosen by the Dalai Lama for the position disappeared in 1995.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Times
an hour ago
- Times
Angela Rayner orders China to explain redacted mega-embassy plans
The deputy prime minister has told China that it must explain why parts of the plans for its new mega-embassy in London have been redacted as she prepares to rule on whether it can go ahead. Angela Rayner, who is also the minister in charge of planning, has given Beijing two weeks to justify why several areas are blacked out in drawings of its proposed redevelopment of the former home of the Royal Mint. In a letter from her department, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, it was revealed that a decision will be taken on the giant embassy on or before September 9. The department said that while 'no view has yet been formed', Rayner had been made aware of 'concerns' over redacted parts of the plans. It told Beijing that it must provide unredacted versions of the plans or 'identify precisely and comprehensively' the plans that have been redacted and to 'explain the rationale and justification'. The letter also said the Home Office had pointed out that a 'hard perimeter' would be needed around the embassy but that this may need a new planning application. Luke de Pulford, executive director of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, which revealed the letter, told The Times: 'There's such hubris in Beijing that they think they can get away with simply hiding swathes of their mega-embassy from legitimate scrutiny. 'They also think they can bluntly refuse the very modest conditions placed upon their disastrous development by the foreign and home secretaries, and have their plan get the green light regardless. 'The government should stand firm by their conditions, because China won't meet them in time. This letter could be the beginning of the end for this ruinous plan.' The letter from Rayner's department suggested she would need to be persuaded that she could make a 'lawful determination' on the plans if they remained redacted. Beijing plans to move its diplomatic mission in the UK to Royal Mint Court, a 5.5-acre site in East Smithfield on the east side of the City of London. It was home to the Royal Mint until 1967. It would be the largest Chinese embassy in Europe. The 20,000 sq m plot would be transformed into an enormous complex designed by Sir David Chipperfield, the prizewinning architect behind the Neues Museum in Berlin and the Turner Contemporary in Margate. The planning decision for the embassy was called in by Rayner, the housing secretary, last year. The plan was initially refused by Tower Hamlets council in 2022. Sir Keir Starmer's government has attempted to improve relations with China since last year's general election but he has been urged by the United States to block Beijing's plans. The Chinese embassy in London was contacted for comment.
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Trump taking on Modi risks worst of both worlds
Secondary tariffs on countries buying Russian oil were meant to be the bunker buster in Washington's sanctions armoury, a weapon so devastating it would cripple Moscow's economy. Yet by appearing to punish India alone, Donald Trump risks squandering its impact. He may end up with the worst of all worlds: dropping a bomb too small to do significant damage to Russia while alienating a vital ally and counterweight to China. After months of resolutely refusing to punish Russia, the US president has changed tack. Convinced that Vladimir Putin has no interest in ending the war in Ukraine, Mr Trump has concluded that targeting Russia's energy sector – which generates a third of government revenue – is the key pressure point. 'If energy goes down, Putin is going to stop killing people,' he said this week. India has undeniably helped prop up the Kremlin's war machine, buying £42bn of Russian oil last year. But other nations have also helped fund Putin's invasion. China buys more than India, while Turkey, Brazil, the United Arab Emirates and even some European Union states are significant consumers. It is possible that Mr Trump may widen his net in the coming days. He has given Putin until Friday to agree to a ceasefire or face consequences. Until now, Russia has faced a 10 per cent tariff, the lowest level Mr Trump applies. That figure is almost certain to rise, but with bilateral trade at £3.9bn last year, such a move will barely trouble the Kremlin. More direct sanctions on Russia's banks or its shadow tanker fleet could follow, but these too seem unlikely to force a change of course. Secondary tariffs on countries buying Russian oil could, in theory, bite harder. Yet, by singling out India with a 25 per cent penalty, the weapon has been fired half-cocked. Analysts speculate that Mr Trump may extend the measures to other countries. If that is his intent, it is curious he would shame India rather than wait 48 hours to announce a broader policy. The strategy risks misfiring. Narendra Modi, India's prime minister, has endured repeated humiliations from a man he once called a friend. Yet in recent months Mr Trump has imposed higher tariffs on India than on most of its Asian competitors and caused anguish by courting Pakistan, which is closely aligned with China. With public anger in India growing over Washington's perceived high-handedness, Mr Modi would find it politically tricky to halt all Russian oil purchases, even if he wished to. Given the importance of the US market for Indian exports, he may have to find a fudge. Any concession, however, will come at a cost. Analysts say India is now likely to edge closer to China and Russia, weakening one of Washington's most valuable relationships in Asia. Even if India reduces imports, it is unclear whether losing a single buyer – even one as important as Delhi – will seriously dent Russia's war economy. A policy that leaves Putin undeterred while estranging India is hardly a triumph of statecraft – though final judgment must wait until Mr Trump reveals the rest of his plan.
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
India-US spat over trade and oil threatens wider fallout
NEW DELHI/WASHINGTON, Aug 6 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's tirade against India over trade and Russian oil purchases threatens to undo two decades of diplomatic progress, analysts and officials say, and could derail other areas of cooperation as domestic political pressures drive both sides to harden their stances. India's opposition parties and the general public have urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to stand up to what they call bullying by Trump, who on Wednesday signed an executive order subjecting Indian imports to an additional 25% in duties on top of an existing 25% tariff, due to its big purchases of Russian oil. While India has emerged in recent years as a key partner for Washington in its strategic rivalry with China, its large U.S. trade surplus and close relations with Russia - which Trump is seeking to pressure into agreeing to a peace agreement with Ukraine - have made it a prime target in the Republican president's global tariff offensive. Trump's taunt that India could buy oil from arch enemy Pakistan has also not gone down well in New Delhi, said two Indian government sources. India has also rejected repeated claims by Trump that he used trade as a lever to end a recent military conflict between India and Pakistan. In an unusually sharp statement this week, India accused the U.S. of double standards in singling it out for Russian oil imports while continuing to buy Russian uranium hexafluoride, palladium and fertiliser. On Wednesday, it called the tariffs "unfair, unjustified and unreasonable," vowing to "take all actions necessary to protect its national interests." But New Delhi knows that any further escalation will hurt it in matters beyond trade, said the sources. Unlike China, India does not have leverage like supplies of rare earths to force Trump's hand to improve the terms of any trade deal, they said. In recent years, successive U.S. administrations, including Trump's first, carefully cultivated relations with India with an eye on it as a vital partner in long-term efforts to counter the growing might of China. But analysts say Trump's recent moves have plunged the relationship back to possibly its worst phase since the U.S. imposed sanctions on India for nuclear tests in 1998. "India is now in a trap: because of Trump's pressure, Modi will reduce India's oil purchases from Russia, but he cannot publicly admit to doing so for fear of looking like he's surrendering to Trump's blackmail," said Ashley Tellis at Washington's Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "We could be heading into a needless crisis that unravels a quarter century of hard-won gains with India." Indian state refiners have in recent days stopped buying Russian oil as discounts narrowed and pressure from Trump rose, Reuters has reported. A more pressing challenge for India, analysts say, is the stark divergence between its priorities and Trump's political base on key issues such as work visas for tech professionals and offshoring of services. India has long been a major beneficiary of U.S. work visa programs and the outsourcing of software and business services, a sore point for Americans who have lost jobs to cheaper workers in India. Relations with India risk becoming a "football in American domestic politics," warned Evan Feigenbaum, a former senior State Department official under the Republican presidency of George W. Bush. "Issues that directly touch India are among the most partisan and explosive in Washington, including immigration and deportation, H1B visas for tech workers, offshoring and overseas manufacturing by U.S. companies, and technology sharing and co-innovation with foreigners," he wrote in a LinkedIn post. Since a 2008 deal to cooperate on civilian nuclear technology, the two countries have deepened intelligence sharing and defence cooperation and expanded interactions with Australia and Japan through the Quad grouping aimed at containing China's dominance in the Indo-Pacific. But fractures have appeared, despite Modi's rapport with Trump in his first term and then former President Joe Biden. Images in February of Indians deported by the U.S. on military planes, their hands and legs shackled, horrified the country just days before Modi went to see Trump seeking to stave off high tariffs. The relationship was also seriously tested in late 2023 when the U.S. said it had foiled a plot with Indian links to kill a Sikh separatist leader on U.S. soil. New Delhi has denied any official connection to the plot. "The Modi regime's credibility in the U.S. has gone down," said Sukh Deo Muni, a former Indian diplomat and a professor emeritus at New Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University. "And maybe there are people who think that India or Modi had to be brought back on track, if not taught a lesson. And if that trend continues, I'm quite worried that the challenge is quite powerful and strong for India to navigate." One Indian government source said India needs to gradually repair ties with the U.S. while engaging more with other nations that have faced the brunt of Trump tariffs and aid cuts, including the African Union and the BRICS bloc that includes Brazil, Russia, China and South Africa. India is already making some moves with Russia and China. Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to visit New Delhi this year and on Tuesday, Russia said the two countries had discussed further strengthening defence cooperation "in the form of a particularly privileged strategic partnership." India has also boosted engagement with China, a change after years of tensions following a deadly border clash in 2020. Modi is set to visit China soon for the first time since 2018. "Russia will attempt to exploit the rift between the U.S. and India by proposing the restoration of the Russia-India-China trilateral and new projects in defence," said analyst Aleksei Zakharov at the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi. "India will undoubtedly be mindful of structural factors such as sanctions against Russia and will seek to find a compromise with the Trump administration."
