Tibetans to resolve issue with China through dialogue

A two-day meeting of the Tibetan task force on negotiations ended here Tuesday with a commitment for peaceful resolution of the Tibetan issue through dialogue with China.

Tibetan prime minister-in-exile Lobsang Sangay chaired the meeting that had in-depth discussions on the political developments in China, on issues relating to the future of dialogue with the Chinese leadership and on developments in the international political landscape, a Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) statement said.

It said the meeting also discussed the 135 Tibetan self-immolations in protest against the ongoing repression in Tibet.

Sangay reiterated the Tibetan leadership's commitment for peaceful resolution of the Tibetan issue through dialogue between envoys of the Dalai Lama and representatives of the Chinese leadership.

"The Tibetan leadership remains firmly committed to non-violence and the 'middle-way approach' and strongly believes that the only way to resolve the issue of Tibet is through dialogue," it said.

The Task Force on Sino-Tibetan Negotiations was constituted to help recommend policy matters and strategies to find a peaceful and mutually acceptable negotiated resolution to the issue of Tibet.

The task force was set up by the government-in-exile in 1999 to assist envoys of the Dalai Lama to hold talks with the Chinese leadership.

China and the Dalai Lama's envoys have held nine rounds of talks since 2002 to resolve the Tibetan issue.

In the last round of talks - the ninth - held in Beijing in January 2010, the government-in-exile submitted an "explanatory" note to the Chinese leadership to clarify its stand on genuine autonomy for the Tibetan people.

On the conclusion of that round, the statement issued by the Chinese side said the two sides had "sharply divided views, as usual".

The Tibetan administration in exile is based in this hill town in Himachal Pradesh.