Tibetans living outside their China-ruled homeland are set to hold a vote on Jan. 3 to seat a new political leader, or Sikyong, for their Dharamsala, India-based government-in-exile as the current officeholder\u2019s five-year term in office nears its end.<\/p>\n
Lobsang Sangay, a Harvard-trained scholar of law, has now served two consecutive five-year terms as Sikyong of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) since 2011 and will leave that post when his present term ends in May 2021.<\/p>\n
The Jan. 3 vote for Sikyong and for members of the 17th<\/sup> Tibetan parliament in exile will be followed by a second, and final, round of voting on April 11, the CTA\u2019s Chief Election Commission says.<\/p>\n The Tibetan diaspora is estimated to include about 150,000 people living in 40 countries. Among these, 82,818 registered to vote in the 2011 election, of whom 48,482 voted, and 90,877 registered for the election in 2016, of whom 59,853 turned out to vote.<\/p>\n The number of Tibetan exiles registering to vote has climbed in recent years, but some have voiced concern over the possible impact of COVID-19 related restrictions on public balloting held in the many countries in Europe, North America, India, and elsewhere in Asia where Tibetans have made their home after fleeing China\u2019s rule.<\/p>\n Formed in 1959, Tibet\u2019s government in exile\u2014now called the Central Tibetan Administration\u2014has executive, judiciary, and legislative branches, with candidates for the office of Sikyong, or president, elected since 2011 by popular vote.<\/p>\n CTA leaders, formerly called Kalon Tripa, were previously appointed by Tibet\u2019s exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.<\/p>\n The Tibetan Policy and Support Act 2020, passed in the U.S. Congress on Monday and now waiting to be signed into law by President Donald Trump, commends Tibetan exile communities around the world for adopting through the CTA \u201ca system of self-governance with democratic institutions.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201c[But] the Dalai Lama has said that the CTA will cease to exist once a negotiated settlement [with China] has been achieved that allows Tibetans to freely enjoy their culture, religion, and language in Tibet,\u201d the Act points out.<\/p>\n ‘Significant signal to Beijing’<\/strong><\/p>\n Reached for comment on Monday, current CTA president Sikyong Lobsang Sangay welcomed U.S. acknowledgement of the Central Tibetan Administration and its leaders, calling the move a \u201csignificant signal to Beijing,\u201d which had strongly objected to a Nov. 20 visit by Sangay to the White House to meet with administration officials.<\/p>\n Formerly an independent nation, Tibet was invaded and incorporated into China by force nearly 70 years ago, following which the Dalai Lama and thousands of his followers fled into exile in in India and other countries around the world.<\/p>\n Divisions persist in the Tibetan exile community over how best to advance the rights and freedoms of Tibetans living in China, with some calling for a restoration of the independence lost when Chinese troops marched into Tibet in 1950.<\/p>\n The CTA and Tibet\u2019s spiritual leader the Dalai Lama have instead adopted a policy approach called the Middle Way, which accepts Tibet\u2019s present status as a part of China but urges greater cultural and religious freedoms, including strengthened language rights, for Tibetans living under Beijing\u2019s rule.<\/p>\n Nine rounds of talks on greater autonomy in Tibetan areas of China were held between high-level Chinese officials and envoys of the Dalai Lama beginning in 2002, but stalled in 2010 and were never resumed.<\/p>\n Candidates support Middle Way<\/strong><\/p>\n Speaking in interviews with RFA in November and December, six candidates for the office of Sikyong in this year\u2019s vote affirmed their support for the Middle Way, with one\u2014Acharya Yeshi Phuntsok, now the deputy speaker of Tibet\u2019s exile parliament\u2014saying the collapse of talks with China has left a \u201cgap that must be filled.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn order to revive the engagement process with the Chinese government, we must involve individuals and governments that are trusted both by China and Tibet,\u201d Phuntsok said. \u201cFor instance, there are many Indians I have met during my years of service who are considered reliable by both the Chinese government and the Tibetan [exile] administration.\u201d<\/p>\n Dongchung Ngodup Tsering, another candidate and currently the Dalai Lama\u2019s representative in the Indian capital New Delhi, said that the Dalai Lama\u2019s Middle Way policy seeking greater autonomy for the Tibetan people doesn\u2019t violate guarantees provided to ethnic minority groups by China\u2019s own constitution \u201cand doesn\u2019t threaten China\u2019s national interest.\u201d<\/p>\n Though official talks with China have stalled, \u201cback channel discussions with China have been taking place, and we must work hard to revive the dialogue process,\u201d said Kelsang Dorjee Aukatsang, a former representative of the Dalai Lama to North America also running for the post of Sikyong.<\/p>\n \u201cTherefore we must use the freedoms that we have in the Free World to pressure the Chinese government by exploring connections with all kinds of other movements and campaigns to help further our cause,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Gyari Dolma, a former CTA Home Minister, former deputy speaker of Tibet\u2019s exile parliament, and first woman to run as a candidate for Sikyong, also voiced her firm commitment to the Middle Way, saying that her Kashag, or cabinet, will \u201cvigorously pursue the revival of the engagement process\u201d if she is elected.<\/p>\n \u201c[But] I anticipate an inevitable rethinking of the Middle Way approach if Beijing continues to dismiss the administration\u2019s efforts to resume Sino-Tibetan dialogue,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cThere will be many ways to communicate with the Chinese government,\u201d said candidate Lobsang Nyandak, a former representative of the Dalai Lama to North America and currently president of the New York-based Tibet Fund, adding that \u201cinternational experts\u201d and persons representing diverse political ideologies could be asked to join a task force in support.<\/p>\n \u201cWe must stick to the Middle Way approach proposed by His Holiness the Dalai Lama to peacefully resolve the issue of Tibet and bring about stability and co-existence between the Tibetan and Chinese peoples based on equality and mutual cooperation,\u201d Nyandak said.<\/p>\n Penpa Tsering, a former speaker of Tibet\u2019s exile parliament now running for office as Sikyong, added that to advance the cause of talks, Tibetan exile representatives should now reach out to Chinese officials who have voiced support for resolving the Tibet issue, and to Chinese businessmen with connections to the Chinese government.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to make the best use of the channels that have already been created and be open to creating new avenues of approach in the times to come,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n No alternative policies proposed<\/strong><\/p>\n None of the six candidates interviewed proposed alternative policies for what they might do if talks with China continue to stall.<\/p>\n Gonpo Dhondup\u2014president of the exile Tibetan Young Congress, which advocates for Tibet\u2019s independence\u2014told RFA in an earlier report that debates and discussions around the issue of Tibet\u2019s status constantly take place in Tibetan exile communities, \u201cas would happen in any other democratic country.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201dThere are some people who do challenge the Middle Way policy, and they are then attacked by certain other people for appearing to oppose His Holiness [the Dalai Lama], as if they lacked faith in His Holiness.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut I don\u2019t think they lack faith in His Holiness. They just don\u2019t trust the Chinese government,\u201d Dhondup said.<\/p>\n Reported by Kalden Lodoe, Palden Gyal, Dorjee Damdul, and Tashi Wangchuk for RFA\u2019s Tibetan Service. Translated by Tenzin Dickyi. Written in English by Richard Finney.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n