New Delhi — The Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile sent a delegation to New Delhi, who met with 38 members of Indian Parliament over ten days, solidifying support for the Tibetan cause.
Arriving on July 31st, the delegation, led by Deputy Speaker Ven Acharya Yeshi Phuntsok and parliamentarian Ven Tenpa Yarphel, met with Indian parliamentarians from both houses during the monsoon session of Parliament, and discussed the urgent situation inside Tibet and succeeded in garnering more support for the overall cause of Tibet.
The Indian parliamentarians confirmed that they keep regular tabs on the issues of Tibet due to its significance in India. They also commented that the Chinese government not only oppresses Tibet, but also intimidates India by engaging in altercations at the borders, which makes understanding the Tibet issue indispensable to them. They pledged to raise the issues of Tibet in the parliamentary proceedings as well as during meetings among the various political parties of India.
Indian MPs from more than 15 different states of India stated that when it comes to the issue of Tibet, they will always render their support, and suggested that meetings with Tibetan parliamentarians should be continued in the future as well.
During the final leg of the delegation's trip, on August 8th, the Tibetan delegation attended a meeting of the All Parties Indian Parliamentarians’ Forum for Tibet (APIPFT), which was held at the Constitution Club of India. The meeting was attended by 15 Indian parliamentarians, belonging to 8 different political parties, and the 2 member team of the Tibetan Parliamentary delegation led by Deputy Speaker Ven Acharya Yeshi Phunstok and Mr. Tsewang Gyalpo Arya, Secretary of Bureau of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
During the meeting, Deputy Speaker Ven Acharya Yeshi Phuntsok updated the members on the implementation of the resolution adopted during the last meeting, which was held on December 2016, as well as the current situations inside Tibet. He also mentioned their support from the parliamentarians of various countries, for Tibet’s cause.
The meeting concluded with the adoption of a resolutions for the cause of Tibet.
Upon the conclusion of the delegation on August 10th, they met a total of 38 members of houses of Indian Parliament, belonging to 15 different political party, an independent politician and 2 nominated members of parliament by the delegation. 17 of the members are from Rajya Sabha while the rest are from Lok Sabha, all belonging to different political parties including the Bharata Janata Party, Indian National Congress, Janata Dal (United), Rastriya Lok Samata Party, All India Trinamool Congress. They also met intellectuals including Prof. Vijay Kumar Manotra, a former member of parliament, and Shri Ram Bahadur Rai, President of Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts.
The Tibetan Parliamentary delegation is returning to Dharamshala today, August 10th.
