Tibetans not to protest against Chinese presence at G20 summit

Srinagar: Tibetans in exile will not hold any protest against the Chinese here during a G20 Summit scheduled to be held later this week as Chinese President Xi Jinping will not be attending the meeting, a Tibetan delegate said.

"We wanted to do some movement during the G20 meeting if Xi Jinping were to attend the summit. Now we have heard that he is not coming," Dawa Tsering, a member of the Tibetan Parliament in Exile, said.

Tsering said since Xi Jinping came to power, he has been provoking the Indian government and the Indian people.

"He (Xi) is torturing the Tibetan people and he did not allow small children to study their own language. If my son wants to become a monk, he does not allow it. It is a cultural genocide. He is worse than Mao Zedong," he said.

Asked if the Tibetans would protest against the presence of a Chinese representative at the summit, Tsering said the protest would have taken place only if Xi Jinping had come to attend the meet.

"We expect the Indian government to stand strongly against the Chinese expansionist policy that it adopts not only towards India but all South Asian countries. At the G20 meeting, the delegations from South Asian countries should stand against this Chinese policy," he said.

The Indians should also boycott goods from the Communist country, he said.

"We should all boycott Chinese goods. That is the first step we can take. We have everything in India, what is lacking here? There can be slight differences in appearance but otherwise, we have everything here. We can buy Indian products, British, American or Singaporean products. Why do we have to buy Chinese?" he asked.

Asked if he would advocate a government ban on Chinese products in India, Tsering said it would be tricky for the government to do that.

"It is a little tricky for the government as there are diplomatic relations. This kind of movement should start with individuals. I started this movement in the 1980s. I personally never ever buy Chinese. Even if some of my friends bring me Chinese gifts, I refuse.

"This has to start from the individual, then the family, then the community and then society. We should not wait for the government for everything," he said.

On The Dalai Lama's statement that Tibetans want autonomy within China, Tsering said the primary concern of the people of Tibet is to preserve their culture and identity.

"There is not a single country which recognises Tibet. Tibet was an independent country. We have to preserve our culture. If we lose our culture and identity and then get an independent land, we will be finished and it will be empty land to us. That's why we want autonomy within the Chinese constitution. That is our government policy," he added.