Bush and Dalai Lama meet despite China's anger

WASHINGTON: President George W. Bush met privately with the Dalai Lama at the White House, as tensions escalated between the United States and China over Congress's awarding its highest civilian honor to the exiled leader.

The 30-minute meeting Tuesday, which the Dalai Lama said included a discussion of Tibet and Myanmar, was fraught with symbolism and cloaked in secrecy, an effort by the White House to avoid further angering the Chinese.

The session was held upstairs in the Yellow Oval Room of the White House residence, not the Oval Office, to send a message that Bush was receiving a spiritual leader, not a political one.

Aides to Bush declined to disclose details, and the White House would not release a photograph of the two together, as it has during previous visits.

"We in no way want to stir the pot and make China feel that we are poking a stick in their eye," Dana Perino, the White House press secretary, said, adding, "We understand the Chinese have very strong feelings about this."
The Dalai Lama, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has lived in exile in India since the Chinese army crushed an uprising in his homeland in 1959, and is revered as the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists. He has been pressing, without success, to return to China to advocate for greater cultural and religious freedoms for his followers.

The Dalai Lama's envoy, Lodi Gyari, who attended the meeting, said Bush described his efforts with China's president, Hu Jintao, on the Dalai Lama's behalf: "The president said he has been telling the Chinese president that you need to meet with this man, you should trust the Dalai Lama, I know this man and I trust him and you must not hesitate to meet with his holiness."

At the end of the meeting, Gyari said, the Dalai Lama closed his eyes, as if in prayer, and then offered gifts to the president and first lady: white silk ceremonial shawls, which he draped around each of their necks.

The Dalai Lama is in Washington for a week of festivities, including receiving the Congressional Gold Medal in a ceremony Wednesday at the Capitol and to delivering a speech on the Capitol lawn. Bush said he would participate in the award ceremony in his first public appearance with the Dalai Lama during this visit.

Joseph Kahn contributed reporting from Beijing.

Category:

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• BUSH
• DALAI
• LAMA
• CHINA
• USA
• FREEDOM
• HUMAN
• RIGHTS
• BEIJING
• WASHINGTON

[dorje168]

Unfortunately TIBET is in THE IRON GRIP OF the ruthless Fascist CCP Regime

The Myth that Tibet was a theocratic feudal serfdom headed by The Dalai Lama and his upper class clique is Incredibly Absurd and Naive. Even a moron does not believe this. This is the fundamental argument that the China has, and will ever have, to assert its claims over Tibet and to justify its Violent Occupation.

[dorje168]

“The spirit of Tibetans living inside Tibet is very strong.

The Tibetans in exile have put in place a healthy democratic institution in both temporal and spiritual fields. So we are very much prepared.

• The actual problem comes from the Chinese government and not its people. Within the Chinese government there are different sorts of opinions.

• If the Hardliners' way of thinking changes,

• Tibet's problem will find a solution within a few days.”

• Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama.

• CNN, 23-11-1

[Jvizzlezz]

Why should the anti-christ himself meet up with someone as holy as the Dalai Lama?

[fychinesemusic]

@jewishwarrior666 its funny that usa acts like the good guy in everything when usa is always minding other people's business. i think isntead of focusing on free tibet, freaking government should worry about the soldiers! ==

[fychinesemusic]

@genxdarkangel i would like to know more about this please.

[ttinsley23]

Jeb Bush for President in 2014!  Long live George W. Bush!

[ttinsley23]

@jewishwarrior666 LOL... become a barking slumdog? Nice insult bozo. Bush was a glorious president compared to the idiot in office now. Obama has no backbone. He is bad for the United States...

[genxdarkangel]

Dalai lama is a puppet to the US. He was the one who enslaved the tibetans, until his exile from Tibet by the Chinese. He was then paid by the US CIA 650k per year and pursuaded India to take Dalai Lama in. He is not a religious leader. He is a political puppet. If he really is a religious leader in buddhism, he should know that a monk should just focus on self-enlightenment instead of self-greediness or corruption.