Moving forward

The first shot in the battle for the control of Tibetan politics and Himalayan Buddhism after the Dalai Lama has been fired. The pre-emptive salvo came from none other than the Dalai Lama himself when he announced on Thursday his decision to step down as the political head of the Tibetan government-in-exile. For some time now,the Dalai Lama has been hinting at his political retirement. Reincarnated as the 14th Dalai Lama,Tenzin Gyatso is both the temporal and spiritual head of the Tibetan people. Exiled in India for more than 50 years he fled Chinese repression in 1959 he has sustained the Tibetan struggle for its just rights in China,protected its culture and given it a credible international voice. While the Tibetan parliament meeting shortly might want to reject his decision,the Dalai Lama appears to have made up his mind,in the long-term interests of his people.

At 76,the Dalai Lama knows he has only a few active years left. In calling for an elected political leader,the Dalai Lama hopes to lay a strong democratic foundation for the movement so that it can survive internal division and external manipulation after his departure. Beijing has been waiting patiently for the death of the Dalai Lama to strike at the roots of the Tibetan movement. Organising an orderly political transition might be a lot easier for the Dalai Lama than ensuring there is no chaos in choosing his spiritual successor,the 15th Dalai Lama,which is traditionally done through a discovery of the reincarnation. Beijing will undoubtedly organise its own reincarnation. It has insisted that the Dalai Lama cant choose his successor.

As the prolonged conflict between the Tibetan people and China enters a critical phase,India will be sucked into the vortex. For Tibet is at the very heart of the tensions between China and India since the late 1950s. Beijing must be expected to mount relentless pressure on New Delhi to shut down Tibetan activities after the Dalai Lamas death. Meanwhile,the democratisation of the Tibetan movement will bring multiple voices to the fore. To respond effectively,Delhi must end the kind of incompetence it demonstrated in handling the Karmapa,who heads another branch of Tibetan Buddhism,in recent weeks. Delhi needs to strengthen the interaction with the headquarters of the Tibetan movement in Dharamsala,better equip the state governments of Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka that host a large number of Tibetan refugees,improve the coordination between different Central and state agencies,and provide a higher political direction to the management of Tibetan affairs in India.