What happened to Tibet could happen to Europe says President Sangay at Forum 2000
DHARAMSALA, Oct 10: The President of the Central Tibetan Administration(CTA) Dr Lobsang Sangay has said the what happened to Tibet in the last 60 years could happen to Europe at the Forum 2000, being held in Prague, the Czech Republic on Monday.
“What happened to us could happen to you. It is already happening and the Chinese government is already here in Europe. So it is for you to choose whether you want to be like Tibet and its people or not. I hope not. I hope what happened to Tibet does not happen in Europe and I came to remind you of that,” President Sangay said according to a report on CTA’s official webpage Tibet.net.
The political head of the Tibetan people made the remarks referring to the massive Chinese infrastructure program Belt and Road Initiative(BRI) while addressing the plenary discussion titled ‘The Global Challenge of China?’ along with Theresa Fallon, Director, Centre for Russia Europe Asia studies which was moderated by Toms Pojar, Vice president for international relations, CEVRO Institute, the Czech Republic
President Sangay further stated that the Chinese regime under Xi Jinping is adamant on continuing ‘Socialism with Chinese characteristics’ despite Chinese people wanting democracy while basic human rights, freedom of speech and freedom of religion are non-existent in China as well as in Tibet.
President Sangay also remarked that the situation inside Tibet under the Chinese rule has gone from bad to worse and likened it to the revival of Cultural Revolution which has resulted in 152 self-immolations inside Tibet resenting the Chinese rule.
Speaking on the global warming and ecosystem in the Tibet, President Sangay has described Tibet as both the driver and amplifier of global warming and stated that the ill-advised developmental projects being carried out in Tibet by the Chinese regime at the cost of the fragile Tibetan environment not just creates environmental crisis in Tibet but also contributes to global warming and climate change across Asia.
President Sangay is currently on a 12-day three-nation tour in Europe with his next destination being Slovakia and Finland after completing his engagements in the Czech Republic.
The annual three-day conference, now in its 22nd year, is hosting a wide range of politicians, philosophers, authors, activists, entrepreneurs, artists and thinkers and was held over October 7 – 9, 2018 in Prague.
Forum 2000 is a foundation and conference of the same name held in Prague, Czech Republic. The Forum 2000 Foundation was founded in 1996 as a joint initiative of the Czech President Václav Havel, Japanese philanthropist Yohei Sasakawa, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Elie Wiesel.
The main objective of the Forum 2000 Conferences is “to identify the key issues facing civilization and to explore ways to prevent the escalation of conflicts that have religion, culture or ethnicity as their primary components.”
