World Parliamentarian Convention on Tibet
November 19, 2005
We, the 133 delegates to the IVth World Parliamentarian's Convention on Tibet, held in Edinburgh, Scotland, on 18 and 19 November 2005, members of 30 parliaments and associates from countries spanning all the world's continents, on behalf of ourselves and our respective parliamentary groups, have gathered to review and discuss the developments with respect to Tibet since the 3rd World Parliamentarians' Conference on Tibet (WPCT) (Washington D.C. 1997).
The Convention thanks the people of Scotland and the Scottish Parliament's Cross-Party Group on Tibet and the UK All Party Parliamentary Group for Tibet as well as the City of Edinburgh for their hospitality in hosting this convention. It notes the appropriateness of holding this meeting in Scotland, given the many similarities between the genuine autonomy Tibet seeks within the People's Republic of China and the autonomous status Scotland has achieved within the United Kingdom and the UK's current Presidency of the European Union.
The Convention recalls the urgent call by the IIIrd WPCT for negotiations between the government of the People's Republic of China (PRC), on the one hand and His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government in exile, on the other, as the Dalai Lama has proposed for decades. We reiterate our strong support for the Dalai Lama's Middle Way approach to resolve the issue through negotiations in the spirit of non-violence and reconciliation. We commend the Chinese government for heeding this call by inviting the Dalai Lama's special envoys for four rounds of high-level meetings in Beijing and Berne between September 2002 and June 2005. This is a very important, encouraging and necessary development for the resolution of the question of Tibet.
However, the Convention is surprised that these meetings have been so infrequent and is concerned that the dialogue has not been accompanied by any positive changes in China's governance in Tibet, nor by any discernible improvement in the human rights conditions of Tibetans. This is especially disturbing in view of the Tibetan government's considerable efforts to persuade Tibetans and their supporters to exercise extreme restraint in order to create a conducive atmosphere for talks. In this context, we especially deplore the continued suppression of freedom of expression, culture, religious belief and practice, and the marginalization of the Tibetan language.
The Convention deplores the refusal of the Chinese government to release political prisoners, in particular the Panchen Lama, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, who has been held in a secret location since 1995, when he was only 6 years old.
The Convention is seriously concerned about the continued influx of Chinese settlers into Tibet, which threatens the identity of the Tibetan people.
The Convention is deeply concerned at China's persistence in implementing the so called 'Western Development Plan', in total disregard of the wishes and concerns of the Tibetan people and despite the obvious damage this is causing to them and their environment and the clear threat its continuation poses for the survival of the distinct culture and way of life of Tibetans, including their language and religion.
The Convention is also concerned at the degradation of the natural environment of the Tibetan plateau, including the Himalayan region, exacerbated by the said development policies of China in the region.
The Convention supports the creation of a zone of ahimsa (peace and non-violence) throughout the Tibetan plateau and is convinced this would provide an important example to the rest of the world.
