Dalai Lama turns 90 and vows to keep defying China for years
DHARAMSHALA, (India): The spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, the Dalai Lama, turns 90 on Sunday (July 6) after a week of celebrations by followers during which he riled China again and spoke about his hope to live beyond 130 and reincarnate after dying.
The Nobel laureate is regarded as one of the world's most influential religious leaders, with a following that extends well beyond Buddhism, but not by Beijing which calls him a separatist and has sought to bring the faith under its control.
Fleeing his native Tibet in 1959 in the wake of a failed uprising against Chinese rule, the 14th Dalai Lama along with hundreds of thousands of Tibetans took shelter in India and has since advocated for a peaceful "Middle Way" to seek autonomy and religious freedom for Tibetan people.
Thousands of followers from around the world, celebrities, and officials from the United States and India, will attend his birthday celebrations in Dharamshala, the small Indian town in the foothills of the Himalayas where the Dalai Lama lives.
During the celebrations, which will include cultural performances and remarks by long-time follower and Hollywood star Richard Gere as well as federal Indian ministers, the Dalai Lama is scheduled to deliver a speech.
The preceding week of celebrations was particularly important for Tibetan Buddhists as the Dalai Lama had previously mentioned that he would speak about his succession at his 90th birthday.
On Wednesday, he allayed their concerns about the future of the institution of the Dalai Lama by saying that he would reincarnate as the leader of the faith upon his death and that his non-profit institution, the Gaden Phodrang Trust, had the sole authority to recognise his successor.
China has said that the succession will have to be approved by its leaders.
The United States, which is seeking to counter the rise of China, has called on Beijing to cease what it describes as interference in the succession of the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan Buddhist lamas. - Reuters
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
X suspends Reuters account in India after 'legal demand', government denies making request
FILE PHOTO: A 3D-printed miniature model of Elon Musk and the X logo are seen in this illustration taken January 23, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo NEW DELHI (Reuters) -The Reuters News account on X has been inaccessible to users in India since Saturday, when the social media platform suspended it in response to what it described as a "legal demand". A spokesperson for the Indian government's Press Information Bureau, however, told Reuters there was no requirement from any agency in the government of India to "withhold the Reuters handle. We are continuously working with X to resolve the problem". Reuters could not immediately determine what specific content the demand referred to, why its removal was sought or the entity that had lodged the complaint. Representatives for X did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A Reuters spokesperson said in a statement, "We are working with X to resolve this matter and get Reuters account reinstated in India as soon as possible." Reuters World, another X account operated by the news agency, has also been blocked in India. The main Reuters account, followed by more than 25 million users globally, has been blocked in India since Saturday night. A note tells X users that "@Reuters has been withheld in IN (India) in response to a legal demand". In an email to the Reuters social media team on May 16, X said: "It is our policy to notify account holders if we receive a legal request from an authorized entity (such as law enforcement or a government agency) to remove content from their account." "In order to comply with X obligations under India's local laws, we have withheld your X account in India under the country's Information Technology Act, 2000; the content remains available elsewhere". Reuters could not ascertain if the May 16 email was linked to Saturday's account suspension. While the email did not specify which entity had made the request or what content they sought to remove, it said X had been advised that in a case of this sort, a user could contact the secretary of India's Information and Broadcasting Ministry. The secretary, Sanjay Jaju, did not immediately respond to requests seeking comment. The 2000 law allows designated government officials to demand takedown of content from social media platforms they deem to violatelocallaws, including on the grounds of national security or if a post threatens public order. X has long been at odds with India's government over content-removal requests. The company sued the federal government in March over a new government website the company says expands takedown powers to "countless" government officials. The case is continuing. India has said X wrongly labelled an official website a "censorship portal", as the website only allows tech companies to be notified about harmful online content. (Reporting by Aftab Ahmed in New Delhi and Munsif Vengattil in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya Kalra and William Mallard)
The Star
4 hours ago
- The Star
Dalai Lama turns 90 and vows to keep defying China for years
Thousands of followers from around the world, celebrities, and officials from the United States and India, will attend his birthday celebrations in Dharamshala. - Photo: Reuters DHARAMSHALA, (India): The spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, the Dalai Lama, turns 90 on Sunday (July 6) after a week of celebrations by followers during which he riled China again and spoke about his hope to live beyond 130 and reincarnate after dying. The Nobel laureate is regarded as one of the world's most influential religious leaders, with a following that extends well beyond Buddhism, but not by Beijing which calls him a separatist and has sought to bring the faith under its control. Fleeing his native Tibet in 1959 in the wake of a failed uprising against Chinese rule, the 14th Dalai Lama along with hundreds of thousands of Tibetans took shelter in India and has since advocated for a peaceful "Middle Way" to seek autonomy and religious freedom for Tibetan people. Thousands of followers from around the world, celebrities, and officials from the United States and India, will attend his birthday celebrations in Dharamshala, the small Indian town in the foothills of the Himalayas where the Dalai Lama lives. During the celebrations, which will include cultural performances and remarks by long-time follower and Hollywood star Richard Gere as well as federal Indian ministers, the Dalai Lama is scheduled to deliver a speech. The preceding week of celebrations was particularly important for Tibetan Buddhists as the Dalai Lama had previously mentioned that he would speak about his succession at his 90th birthday. On Wednesday, he allayed their concerns about the future of the institution of the Dalai Lama by saying that he would reincarnate as the leader of the faith upon his death and that his non-profit institution, the Gaden Phodrang Trust, had the sole authority to recognise his successor. China has said that the succession will have to be approved by its leaders. The United States, which is seeking to counter the rise of China, has called on Beijing to cease what it describes as interference in the succession of the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan Buddhist lamas. - Reuters
The Star
4 hours ago
- The Star
Brazil opens BRICS summit in Rio, leaders of growing bloc, however, gather, without Xi or Putin
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (right) holding an empty box representing Vietnamese fish, and Vietnam's Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, holding an empty box representing Brazilian beef, pose for photos after signing a bilateral trade agreement, ahead of the upcoming 17th annual BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro, Saturday, July 5, 2025. - AP Photo/Bruna Prado RIO DE JANEIRO (dpa): Leaders of the BRICS group of major emerging economies are meeting in the Brazilian metropolis of Rio de Janeiro on Sunday for a two-day summit. The BRICS acronym is derived from the initial letters of the founding member countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. In early 2024, Iran, Ethiopia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates joined the group, while Indonesia entered in January. Chaired by Brazil, the summit plans to address health policy, artificial intelligence (AI) and climate change. But for the first time, Chinese President Xi Jinping will not be attending in person for the first time, sending Prime Minister Li Qiang in his place. Nor will Russian President Vladimir Putin be attending as he is wanted by the International Criminal Court for his role in the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, launched in 2022. Brazil, as a signatory to the Rome Statute, would be required to enforce the arrest warrant. The BRICS countries say they represent around 48.5% of the world's population, 36% of global land area and 24% of global economic output. The countries see themselves as a forum for cooperation between countries of the Global South. The group aims to act as a counterweight to the Group of Seven (G7) of leading Western economic powers. - dpa
