India should clarify position on reincarnation of Dalai Lama

Penpa Tsering, sikyong (president) of the Dharamshala-based Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), has plans to expose the growing Chinese belligerence along the Indian border. The hawkish leader of the Tibetan government-in-exile has ordered his ministry of state security to prepare a report on the activities of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in the Tibetan plateau, which he plans to present to the Chinese embassy in Delhi.

- NAMRATA BIJI AHUJA

At the same time, Tsering wants the Indian government to have a structured policy for Tibetans living on the frontline in the Himalayas. He wants them to be settled in the empty stretches in the far-flung areas, which he says can help detect and prevent PLA intrusions like the one that happened in the Galwan valley.

Speaking exclusively to THE WEEK, Tsering, who was born and raised in a Tibetan settlement in Bylakuppe in Karnataka, said his first task as sikyong was to restart the Sino-Tibetan dialogue.

Excerpts from the interview:

Q/ How true are the reports about China inducting Tibetans into the PLA to fight the Indian Army on the Himalayas?

A/ First of all, [China needs to] trust the Tibetans to put weapons in their hands. If there is no trust, they can also fight back. I know of earlier attempts to recruit people from the Qinghai province to serve in the military in East Turkestan (Xinjiang). But I don’t trust the Chinese to recruit Tibetans to their army and send them to the Indian border, because Tibetans have too much respect for India.

India is the land of Aryabhata and we have a guru-chela (teacher-disciple) relationship. Tibetans feel they are an extension of Indian culture. It is only the food and clothing that come from China; the inner peace and spirit is derived from India.

So, I believe it is Chinese propaganda. As the Special Frontier Force (SFF, consisting of Tibetan soldiers) is on the Indian side, the Chinese are trying to send a message that Tibetans will be fighting each other, which is absolutely false.

Q/ How do you see the role of Tibetans as the first line of defence on the border?