Interviews with Dalai Lama

Tibetan spirit, very much link with Buddhist faith. Like Polish spirit – you see, they [had] different difficult circumstances during Nazi occupation and during Soviet occupation, a lot of difficulties. But, during these periods, the Polish national spirit and Catholic faith combine, keep their spirit. In many case exactly the same. National interest and Buddhist faith combine.

Then one advantage here: now in China proper, the number of Buddhists rapidly increasing. Many of these Chinese Buddhists are also showing interest about Tibetan Buddhism. Now, for example, in India and some other different places, the Chinese – mainly Chinese – Buddhists from Mainland China always coming to see me. Came to see me. Even with difficulties, they are very, very eager come outside and to see me.

That is part of the process of democratization, you know? If I carry this main responsibility, then sometimes I feel it might be hindrance the people, free expression or criticism, because, you see, I not only political leader but also spiritual leader. And then, also, I always have this sort of strong view. The political institution and religious institution must be separate. I always was telling other people.

So while I’m telling other people the political institution, the spiritual institution be separate, then I myself combined. So my expression looks not very sincere or hypocrisy. So therefore, after 10 years now, elected political leadership already there. My position, semi-retired position. Then, I thought, now right time.

Sooner or later, there will be a day without a Dalai Lama, actually. That, sooner or later, will come. So the people must prepare. So much better while I alive. They carry full responsibility. In case my help needed, I’m available.

And then, also, the four-century-old, this tradition actually out of date, must change. They change due to some other pressure, and that’s not good. I think change – this four-century-old tradition must end. This is old fashioned, must end. So it is much better that this change by Dalai Lama himself voluntarily, happily, proudly end that. I feel that is anyway serving two previous Dalai Lamas and Dalai Lama institution itself. I feel like that.

So now I return there only for spiritual field. So of course, there’s no point to resign from Dalai Lama. This is not elected, but through – through – mysteriously, I become Dalai Lama. So until my death, I am the Dalai Lama. So okay.

His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, is the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism and, for a time, led the government of Tibet in exile.

His Holiness was born July 6, 1935, to a farming family in northeastern Tibet. He was identified as the reincarnation of the 13th Dalai Lama, Thubten Gyatso, when he was three years old and was raised in Lhasa, Tibet, where he was educated in topics such as Buddhist philosophy, logic, Tibetan art and culture, and medicine in preparation for his responsibilities as the Dalai Lama.

In 1949, at age 15, His Holiness assumed responsibility as the political leader of Tibet. Later that year, the People’s Republic of China invaded Tibet. In 1959, as Chinese troops suppressed a Tibetan uprising in Lhasa, His Holiness was forced into exile and has since lived in Dharamsala, India, the seat of the Tibetan political administration in exile.

His Holiness has worked to establish a democratic government in exile. The Charter of Tibetans in Exile grants freedom of speech, belief, and assembly. In 2001, His Holiness ceded his absolute power over the government to an elected parliament. He has recently ceded any role in the government because of his view that spiritual and political authorities should be divided.

In 1989 His Holiness was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. In announcing the award, the Nobel Committee recognized that “the Dalai Lama . . . consistently has opposed the use of violence. He has instead advocated peaceful solutions based upon tolerance and mutual respect in order to preserve the historical and cultural heritage of his people.”

The People’s Republic of China was founded in 1949, after a decades-long civil war between communist and nationalist forces. The communist victory drove the nationalist government to the island of Taiwan. While tensions have eased in recent years, both the nationalist and communist forces still claim to rule all of China. China ranks as the world’s third largest country by area, and the largest by population, with over 1.3 billion people.

Since 1949, China has been ruled by the Chinese Communist Party. Revolutionary leader Mao Zedong led the country until his death in 1976. Mao’s era was marked by dramatic swings in policy, massive crackdowns on perceived opponents of the regime, and harsh repression. Since 1976, the Chinese government has broken with Marxist economic orthodoxy by instituting limited market-based reforms, but the party has retained its monopoly on political power.

Freedom of expression, association, peaceful assembly, and religion are severely restricted, and the people of China are denied the right to change their government. The courts are controlled by the Communist Party and do not provide due process of law. Government control extends into every aspect of people’s lives, most notably in the one-child policy in which unauthorized pregnancies often result in forced abortion and sterilization. While technology has spread quickly in recent years, Freedom House ranks China as one of the three most repressive governments in the world in terms of Internet freedom.

While the rapid expansion of the private sector has dramatically changed the Chinese economy, fundamental principles of free market systems are lacking, including property rights and independent labor unions. Official corruption remains a major obstacle to developing a fully free economy.

In 1989, 100,000 people gathered in a peaceful demonstration in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square to protest human rights violations and demand democratic reforms. The protest lasted several weeks and inspired similar nonviolent demonstrations in other cities throughout China. On June 4, 1989, the People’s Liberation Army converged on the area with troops, tanks, and other advanced military weapons. Estimates of the death toll ranged from several hundred to several thousand. The army used similar tactics to suppress demonstrations in other cities and subsequently rounded up and imprisoned many thousands of protestors. The government vigorously defended these actions and instituted a campaign to purge those who had sympathized with protestors from the party and the government.

Although the Tiananmen Square massacre put an end to hopes for a speedy transition to democracy, courageous Chinese citizens have continued to risk imprisonment and worse to demand freedom. These human rights activists have included students, workers, lawyers, artists, and writers; Tibetan Buddhists and Uyghur Muslims who demand respect for their cultures, traditions, and religious practices; members of the spiritual discipline known as Falun Gong; Catholics who insist that their church is headed by the Pope rather than by government-appointed religious officials; and members of the “house church” movement, representing millions of Protestant Christians who are forced to worship in secret because their churches are not authorized by the government. China’s many prisoners of conscience include members of each of these groups.

In 2010, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to imprisoned Chinese writer Liu Xiaobo. His wife was arrested in order to prevent her from attending the award ceremony, and the government employed a range of coercive techniques to prevent other human rights activists from attending. China’s leading human rights lawyer, Gao Zhisheng, disappeared in early 2009 and is presumed to be in government custody.

The most recent Freedom in the World report from Freedom House gave China scores of 6 for civil liberties and 7 for political rights, where 1 is the highest and 7 the lowest possible score. Freedom House categorizes China as a “Not Free” country.