Dharamshala — When the bipartisan delegation from the US Congress came to meet His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, said, “The Resolve Tibet Act says to the Chinese government things have changed now, get ready for that. Holiness the Dalai Lama with his message of knowledge, tradition and compassion, purity of soul and love, he will live a long time and his legacy will live forever, but you President of China, you will be gone and nobody will give you credit for anything”.
The bipartisan US Congressional delegation, led by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, visited Dharamshala from June 18 to 19, 2024 and met with His Holiness the Dalai Lama and top officials of Central Tibetan Administration. The delegation includes Speaker Emerita of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Gregory W. Meeks (D-NY), Ranking Member of the House Rules Committee Jim McGovern (D-MA), Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Indo-Pacific Ami Bera (D-CA), and Representatives Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA) and Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY).
The delegation attended a public felicitation ceremony (Central Tibetan Administration honors high level US Congressional Delegation) organised by the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) in the Tibetan Main Temple, Mcleod Ganj, Dharamshala, HP, India, on June 19, 2024.
While addressing the gathering at the public felicitation ceremony, Speaker Emerita of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi said," Indeed, this Resolve Tibet Act is a message to the Chinese government to show that we are clear in our thinking and understanding of the Tibet issue.”
The Speaker Emerita explained: "At one moment, when the current Chinese President (Xi Jinping) visited Washington DC, they officially addressed us, Dianne Feinstein, and I told him personally, we are objecting to what you are doing to Tibetan culture. He replied: "You don't know what you are talking about; you should go and see for yourself all the improvements that China is making in Tibet". I said thank you because I have been trying for 25 years to get a visa to go to Tibet, but you have never given it to me and now I suppose you have. So we went, Mr McGovern and his wife Lisa, and other members of the strong delegation went to the palace (Potala), we saw the room where His Holiness grew up, his bedroom, that's where he has to come back. They (the Chinese government) are trying to erase the culture by reducing the use of the language, Hans is interfering with the (Tibetan) population there, and we can't let them do that".
The Speaker Emerita of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, said: "The spirit of His Holiness the Dalai Lama is precious to the Chinese people. I don't know if they are ready to do it, but we know the Chinese government is, and we know they need to get the message. This bill (The Resolve Tibet Act) sends that message. It has passed both the House and the Senate and will soon be signed by Joe Biden, the President of the United States.
Referring to the speeches made by the members of the delegations, she said: "Everyone has talked about the children and it is really our mission to see these beautiful children performing Tibetan art, our aim is really to give them a better future. When we see in Tibet, the Chinese government is trying to send Tibetan children to school (in Chinese boarding schools), to educate them in the Chinese way, to reduce their knowledge of the Tibetan language, or to have surveillance everything that they do and what their families do, in these way, Chinese government doesn't respect their (Tibetans) dignity and their value, we simply can't let that happen".
Speaking about the famous actor Richard Gere, a long-time supporter of Tibet and friend of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, she said: "I had a phone call with Richard Gere and he told me to convey his respect and best wishes to you. There is no better friend in the outside world, outside the government, than Richard Gere. I mentioned him because it's about you, we are able with our internal manoeuvres to move legislation forward, we are able with your external mobilisation to get the votes to pass the bill, and I know your power in this area".
Representative Nancy Pelosi spoke of the contribution of Tibetans in the United States and around the world to the Resolve Tibet Act and said, “making this bill as the policy of the United States of America, which says to the Chinese government things have changed now, get ready for that and also understand Holiness the Dalai Lama with his message of knowledge, tradition and compassion, purity of soul and love, he will live a long time and his legacy will live forever, but you president of China, you will be gone and nobody will give you credit for anything”.
“The change is on the way, as our colleagues have said. Hope, spirit, faith of the Tibetan people in the goodness of others is what it's going to make all the difference and then we can say freely say Tashi Delek in the Lhasa (Capital of Tibet) and every other place in the world,” said Nancy Pelosi, in her concluding speech.
