Dharamshala Ceremony: Exile Government Marks Dalai Lama's Nobel Amid Calls for China Dialogue

International delegations from the Czech Republic, Australia, France, Chile, New Zealand, and Fiji also join the ceremony and address the gathering here today. All the delegates expressed their support and solidarity for the cause of Tibet and ask China to resume the dialogue.

About two thousand Tibetans including officials of exile Tibetan government, members of Tibetan parliament in-exile, monks, nuns and school students gather at the main Tibetan temple, Thekchen Choeling Tsuglakhang, here at the North Indian hill town Dharamshala.

The foreign delegates and Tibetan elected leaders deliver official statements. Meanwhile the Tibetan artists also perform cultural activities here.

While delivering an official statement of the Kashag (The Tibetan Secretariat), Sikyong Penpa Tsering the head of the Tibetan government in exile said, "Today marks the 36th anniversary of the conferment of the Nobel Peace prize upon His Holiness the Great Fourteenth Dalai Lama of Tibet--the apostle of peace and the supreme leader of the Tibetan people, the International Human Rights Day and the Year of Compassion. The Kashag, on this convergence of the three momentous occasions, offers its deepest obeisance in body, speech, and mind, along with heartfelt greetings to His Holiness the Great Fourteenth Dalai Lama. We also extend our warmest felicitations to the honourable distinguished guests, dear friends and supporters of Tibet across the world."

"And especially to our Tibetan brothers and sisters, both inside and outside Tibet... Today also marks International Human Rights Day. We express our solidarity with all those around the world who are denied their basic human rights and extend our hope that those who oppress these rights will gain a sense of right and wrong. Through the understanding of compassion, may they come to respect every human life, listen to every human voice, and honour every human aspiration," he added.

He further hoped that China embraces compassion with regards to Tibetan identity.

"In particular, we hope that the Government of the People's Republic of China, driven as it is by hatred, greed, and ignorance in its pursuit of eradicating Tibetan national identity and destroying Tibet's environment, will soon encounter the companionship of compassion, kindness, and wisdom. Consequently, may it cease these destructive policies and turn instead toward a peaceful resolution of the Sino-Tibetan conflict through the mutually beneficial Middle Way Policy," he said.

"In conclusion, we earnestly pray for the long life of His Holiness the Great Fourteenth Dalai Lama and the flourishing of his enlightened activities for world peace, human solidarity, and the resolution of the just cause of Tibet. We also pray that His Holiness's teaching of compassion becomes the spiritual foundation and the essence of practice for all humanity," he said.

- ANI