Chinese Leadership to Meet with Dalai Lama Envoy

It might seem a little unbelievable considering the recent headlines of Olympic torch relays and pro-Tibet/pro-China clashes, but according to state-run Xinhua News, Chinese leaders will meet with a Dalai Lama envoy.

At this point, the details of this meeting remain uncertain, but should take place "in the coming days,"  according to a quoted unnamed official.  The official says the meeting will take place "in view of the requests repeatedly made by the Dalai side for resuming talks," and he emphasized that "the door of dialogue" between China and the Dalai Lama has remained open.

Many disagree on the Chinese government's policy towards Tibet, as we've seen from the recent boycotts and protests worldwide.  Despite pressure from western leaders, including President Bush, for China to meet with the Dalai Lama, I don't really know what will come of these talks, other than positive public relations for both sides.

They can't even agree on how many people were killed during the protests and turmoil after March 14.  Chinese say 22. Tibetans say many more.

This meeting won't be the first time a representative from the Tibetan government in exile has met with Chinese leadership. Between 2002 and 2007, the two sides held six rounds of talks, but were unable to reach a consensus on what exactly constitutes the autonomous region of Tibet.  China has refused to meet directly with the Dalai Lama until he meets several preconditions.

One of the biggest sticking points is that he won't seek independence for Tibet, which isn't one of the things the Dalai Lama has advocated.  He has repeatedly said that he wants autonomy, not independence, but hasn't had the best luck convincing Chinese of this distinction. 

Many Chinese leaders consider him to be full of lies, and "a wolf in monk's clothes," among other things, but if Chinese leadership won't believe the Dalai Lama, how could he ever possibly meet the preconditions?  Furthermore, there is such strong anti-Dalai Lama sentiment in China, meeting with him directly could potentially cause the Chinese government to lose credibility internally.  

It would be wonderful if China and Tibet could have a peaceful resolution, where all citizens could enjoy the highest level of human rights, and achieve a mutually beneficial political arrangement.  Perhaps one day that will happen, but I highly doubt these talks will be a major catalyst towards this ideal.