World Tibet Network News Wednesday, Aug 19, 1998

BEIJING, Aug 19 (AFP) - Supporters of Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama are free to return to China if they give up a fight for independence, a senior official said in reports Wednesday. "The door remains open to the Dalai Lama clique if they abandon their stance advocating the independence of Tibet and attempts to split China," said Pu Qung, vice-chairman of the standing committee of the Tibet Autonomous Regional People's Congress. Pu said from Lhasa that the regional and national authorities "would like to see the Dalai Lama return to Tibet and contribute to the well-being of the Tibetans." But "the Dalai Lama continues to court the support of hostile Western forces and has exhibited an unwillingness to abandon his stance," he was quoted by the China Daily as saying. The "vast majority" of Tibetans living outside China were not involved in the independence movement, Pu said. "They are welcome to return to Tibet at any time, and Tibetan governments at all levels will help them solve problems arising f

rom resettlement."

He added that the Chinese leadership guaranteed religious freedom but convents and monasteries were barred from recruiting people under the age of 18. China, which claims its sovereignty over Tibet dates back to the 13th century, "liberated" the region in 1951. The Dalai Lama fled Tibet in 1959 when Chinese troops brutally suppressed an anti-Chinese uprising and has lived in exile since in northern India. In late June US President Bill Clinton urged his Chinese counterpart Jiang Zemin to meet the Dalai Lama to try to resolve the Tibetan issue. The Dalai Lama, revered as a god-king by Tibetans, has repeatedly said he is not seeking independence for Tibet but autonomy.

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