Published by: World Tibet Network News, Wednesday, Jun 19, 1996

By Dan Hodel, Tibetan Rights Campaign

BONN, Germany (June 15, 1996) -- His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama gave an inspirational and frank address to the 250 delegates attending the first full day of the Second International Conference of Tibet Support Groups today, saying his personal, immediate goal was "meaningful negotiation with China."

Calling on the delegates to renew their efforts because of the "very difficult period" inside Tibet, the Dalai Lama said that no matter what happened to him "future generations will carry on the work started in 1959."

The three-day conference was mobbed by members of the media following the embarrassing move by the German government, responding to pressure from China, to withdraw funding for the sponsor of the conference, the Friedrich-Naumann Foundation.

The Foundation, which is officially associated with the Liberal Party, lost $190,000 it was expecting from the government and is now faced with closure of its office in Beijing because it refused a demand from Beijing to cancel the conference.

"We are proud, knowing that we have not succumbed to any pressure," said Dr. Otto Count Lambsdorff, a German MP who is also chairman of the foundation. "This means standing by our principles of supporting and promoting democracy as well as the basic freedoms of the people not only in Tibet but throughout the world."

In his address, the Dalai Lama outlined the history of attempts to negotiate with the People's Republic of China, maintaining his commitment to "the middle path" and nonviolence. He said he thought that "genuine self-rule" could be sought, sighting the model of the European Union, whose members maintain significant sovereignty. He also acknowledged that much of the TSG movement would continue to work for Tibet's complete freedom.

The conference also heard from Parliamentarians from Sweden, Japan and Italy, as well as Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche, Chairman of the the Assembly of Tibetan People's Deputies, and Kalon Tashdi Wangdi, minister of the Department of Information and International Relations.

Following an eight-hour plenary session, the conference broke up into six working groups which spent the evening working on subjects that included government and parliamentary initiatives, increasing support from developing countries, Tibet Support Group networking, economic development initiatives and new campaigns. Their work will go on through Monday.

The 250 delegates, who represent 100 different organizations, are the most ever gathered for an international Tibet conference. They represent five continents and enjoyed the services of simultaneous translators who delivered all of the addresses in English, French, German, Spanish and Russian.

The conference is being held in the German government's official parliamentary facilities.