A delegation headed by the President of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) of the European Union, Henri Malosse visited Dharamsala and interacted with the Central Tibetan Administration- in- exile on the 55th anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising Day.
The Prime Minister- in-exile, Lobsang Sangay, expressed his gratitude and said that such leaders visiting the Tibetan government -in- exile signifies that Tibet has friends around the world.
"To have a person of your status and stature, to come to Dharamsala to partake on the 55th anniversary of National Uprising Day sends a message to the international community that freedom is universal and it sends a message of hope to Tibetans inside Tibet that we have friends around the world who hear them and who support them as well," Sangay said.
Protesting against the forced annexation of Tibet in 1959 by the Chinese government, hundreds of Tibetans living in exile in India on Monday marched in different parts of the country on the 55th Tibetan National Uprising Day and demanded better human rights and justice.
On this day in 1959, thousands of Tibetans risked their lives and poured into the streets of Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, and demanded freedom. Hundreds were killed as the Chinese government stamped the rebellion.
Sangay acknowledged Malosse's visit despite pressure from the Chinese government as well his support of the Middle Way Approach proposed by His Holiness the Dalai Lama for the peaceful resolution of the Tibetan issue, as the realistic way forward which should be considered by the Chinese government to resolve the Tibet issue through dialogue.
The delegation acknowledged the work being done for the Tibetan refugees by the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), which is over 50 years old now.
Malosse clarified that the question of Tibet is not an 'interference' into the Chinese affairs but rather a question of human rights which needs to be addressed.
"The question of Tibet is a global universal question and as the Chinese governance, the Chinese leadership is interfering in a lot of other questions, you can see the dispute with Japan and border region, we are concerned by the question which is linked with the European Union values, and as we have a partnership with China, the issue of human rights, the issue of the rights of nations like the Tibetan nation, is part of the dialogue with the Chinese. It is not interference," he said.
There have also been talks of Tibet having a special EU coordinator.
Human rights groups say China tramples on the rights of Tibetans and enforces its rule using brutal methods. More than 120 Tibetans have set themselves on fire since 2009 in protest against China and many have died as well.
