US Works for China-Dalai Lama Talks

(WASHINGTON, July 31 - AP)

While President Clinton openly presses China to talk with the Dalai Lama about Tibet's future, U.S. officials are working quietly behind the scenes in hopes of making sure it happens.

It is stealth diplomacy aimed at not upsetting Beijing. Gregory Craig, who for nearly nine months has been the Clinton administration's U.S. coordinator to Tibet, has yet to visit the mountainous region. But American officials fear that if Craig, also head of policy and planning for Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, went to Tibet - or talked about it in public - that would anger China and dash chances for any movement when the door to dialogue may be reopening.

Behind closed doors, meanwhile, the issue of possible autonomy for Tibet is being brought up in nearly every U.S. contact with the Chinese, U.S. officials say. Clinton pressed the matter with President Jiang Zemin in June, publicly and privately, during their summit in Beijing.

``We put a good deal of emphasis on the issue quietly'' with the Chinese, said a senior White House official who spoke on condition of anonymity. ``And we have contacts with Tibetans in exile. So we have a good sense to evaluate what's going on.''

Informal contacts between Beijing and Tibet's exiled government in India have increased greatly as the two sides move toward restarting talks that were disrupted in 1995, U.S. and Tibetan officials say.

``This is an interesting time. We are being very careful,'' said Lodi Gyari, special envoy to the Dalai Lama. ``For the first time after so many years we do believe there is positive movement in Beijing.''

Relations between Beijing and Dharamsala, the seat of the Dalai Lama's government-in-exile, plummeted in 1995 when China tried to choose the next reincarnation of the Tibetan religious figure, the Panchen Lama.

The Dalai Lama, a revered spiritual leader both in his Himalayan homeland and in Western nations, fled Tibet in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese military rule, which began in 1950.

In 1979, Chinese Premier Deng Xiaoping invited Tibet's exiled government to negotiate all issues, except for total independence, and opened talks that have made no progress over the past two decades.

Meanwhile, the unique Buddhist religious and spiritual character of Tibet has been smashed under Chinese rule, with temples ruined, monks and nuns murdered and dissenters jailed, according to human rights critics.

While the Dalai Lama, 63, has sought self rule through nonviolent means, some younger exiles have become more radical, holding hunger strikes recently and calling for action to shake off Chinese rule.

``The Chinese have become progressively alarmed that they could face far worse problems than talking with the Dalai Lama,'' said David Lampton, director of China studies at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. ``If the Dalai Lama dies, the movement can fracture and there could be guerrilla and terrorist groups.''

Beijing's growing concern could have been behind Jiang's startling comments at his post-summit news conference with Clinton, broadcast live on Chinese television. He offered fresh talks with the Dalai Lama if he agrees to accept Tibet and Taiwan as both part of China.

``The door to negotiation is open,'' Jiang declared.

It was the first time a Chinese leader has spoken publicly about the Dalai Lama without calling him a ``splitist'' intent on independence. Clinton encouraged the contact, telling Jiang that many Tibetans ``revere the Dalai Lama and view him as their spiritual leader.''

The next move is up to the Dalai Lama, now consulting with advisers at Dharamsala. Gyari, his U.S. envoy, said the spiritual leader will prepare a response to Jiang over the next few weeks.

``We have a number of mutual friends who have been taking messages back and forth to clarify exactly what President Jiang Zemin has in mind and in what manner he wishes us to restate our position,'' Gyari said.

The statement would likely say, ``His holiness is not seeking independence, that he is committed and is willing to walk together with China's leaders for prosperity and the stability of China,'' he said.

The Dalai Lama has said he seeks autonomy within China rather than independence for Tibet, but he also insists that Beijing acknowledge that Tibet once was free.

As for Taiwan, the Dalai Lama canceled a visit for this fall, indicating he may already be turning away from Taipei.

Tibet also could be on the agenda when Chinese leaders take their summer retreat at Beidaihe, 175 miles east of Beijing.

``For China this is a difficult situation,'' Gyari said. ``Tibetans have suffered immensely too. The fact is, almost half a century of problems exist between the Chinese government and Tibetan people.

``We need to rebuild confidence and trust. It would be difficult in a few days or a few months to forget those things. It will take time.''

Still, Gyari already is envisioning what many Tibetans and Chinese probably never thought possible in their lifetimes.

``I can think of no better image for China than President Jiang Zemin standing side by side with the Dalai Lama,'' Gyari said. ``That would be more powerful than maybe even the summit with Clinton.''