The U.S. State Department announced Wednesday that it will keep pressing China to resume talks with the Dalai Lama, following the death of a Tibetan man who set himself ablaze near the United Nations headquarters in New York last week.
The man succumbed to severe burns approximately one week after the incident near the UN building. Tibetan exile activists and a media organization called Voice of Tibet identified him as Lobga Rangzen. According to Voice of Tibet, he “self-immolated outside the U.N. headquarters in New York after a live appeal for Tibetan independence and unity.”
In an official statement, a State Department spokesperson declared: “The United States is committed to supporting the unalienable human rights and aspirations of Tibetans to celebrate and preserve their unique culture, language, and religion without fear of interference.”
The spokesperson went on to say, “The United States will continue to call on China to return to direct dialogue, without pre-conditions, with the Dalai Lama and his representatives, and with the democratically elected Tibetan leaders, to resolve differences and achieve meaningful autonomy for Tibetans.”
Support for Tibetan human rights has been a consistent position of the U.S. government, maintained through both Republican and Democratic administrations over the years.
China pushed back on the American statement. At a regular news conference on Thursday, Mao Ning, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry, said: “We urge the U.S. side to honor its commitments to recognize Tibet as a part of China and not support Tibet independence, and to stop using Tibet-related issues to interfere in China’s internal affairs.”
Following the man’s death, China reiterated that Tibet has been an inseparable part of its territory since ancient times and indicated that it expects “relevant countries will handle the matter in accordance with domestic laws.” Beijing has previously stated that Washington is in “no position” to criticize China on matters related to Tibet.
China, which is working to strengthen its grip on Tibet, considers the Dalai Lama a separatist figure and insists it holds the authority to choose his successor, pointing to a centuries-old tradition. The Dalai Lama — the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate — has told his followers to reject any successor selected by Beijing.
China took control of Tibet in 1950, describing the takeover as a “peaceful liberation” from feudalistic serfdom. Human rights organizations and Tibetan exiles have long condemned what they characterize as oppressive Chinese rule in Tibetan regions, a characterization China firmly denies.
Ethnic minority issues remain a deeply sensitive subject within China, where Tibetans and other minority groups face heavy surveillance over any perceived signs of “separatism.”
The International Campaign for Tibet reports that 159 Tibetans inside Tibet have set themselves on fire since 2009. The organization’s data also shows that 11 such incidents have taken place among Tibetans living in exile.
