'China's stance on Dalai Lama to exacerbate anger'

The Tibetan government-in-exile based here expressed concern Monday over China's plan to reinforce information blackout in Tibet for events relating to the Dalai Lama.

"Such counter-productive measures by the Chinese government to stifle free flow of information in Tibet will only further exacerbate the resentment of Tibetans inside Tibet," Dicki Chhoyang, information and international relations minister, said in a statement.

Dicki Chhoyang said such measures would give Chinese authorities free hand to intensify crackdown on Tibetans.

In an article published in China's Communist Party's journal Qiushi Nov 1, Chen Quanguo, the party secretary of the Tibet autonomous region, openly stated plans to reinforce information blackout about the Dalai Lama in Tibet by censoring television, radio broadcast and closely monitoring internet and telephone communications.

As China seeks to defend its human rights record, such statement clearly contradicts the spirit of the UN Human Rights Council for which China is seeking membership, Dicki Chhoyang said.

She said the Dalai Lama has been a staunch supporter of the 'middle-way' approach, which seeks to resolve the long-standing problems in Tibet by remaining a part of China.

"This position is also shared by the Central Tibetan Administration based in India," she added.

The Dalai Lama, along with many of his supporters, fled Tibet and took refuge in India when Chinese troops moved in and took control of Lhasa in 1959.

India is home to around 100,000 Tibetans and the Tibetan government-in-exile, which has never won recognition from any country.