MEPs laud the Tibetan elections and call for EU and other International actors’ support to the newly elected representatives of the CTA
Brussels, March 23 : Tibetan exiles in Belgium and elsewhere in the free world on Sunday went to polls to elect the new Kalon Tripa (Chief of Cabinet) and also new Members of their Parliament in exile. Mr. Edward McMillan-Scott (UK), Vice-President of the European Parliament and Ms. Heidi Hautala (Finland), Chair of the Human Rights Subcommittee in the European Parliament, two of the few other MEPs who sent their representatives on Election Observation Mission in India and other parts of the world issued statements shortly after the elections. McMillan-Scott, who visited Tibet in 1996 while writing a report on EU-China relations praised the peaceful election and said the Chinese government could learn from this democratic process. “Since the establishment of the Tibetan Government in Exile in September 1960, the Tibetans, unlike their Chinese counterparts, have been free to elect their parliamentarians. This benchmark of fairness and transparency is a model for a future democratic China” said Mr. McMillant-Scott in a press release issued on the 21st of March 2011. “The now elected Prime Minister will have to fill the role of the full political leader of Tibetans. EU and other international actors should support the newly elected representatives in this. Maybe it will be now easier for the governments to meet officially both His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the new Prime Minister, as their roles will be clearly separated?” said Ms. Hautala. She further said “I am deeply concerned about the unfortunate situation in Nepal. It seems that 10.000 Tibetans were not allowed to vote in Kathmandu. This shows a worrying trend for democracy in Nepal and consenting to the Chinese pressure. I urge the Nepalese government to fulfil its obligations to international human rights standards and not to hinder the development of the Tibetan democracy”. Ms. Hautala also signed an appeal to the Nepalese government almost one month prior to the election date, to provide full cooperation in the Tibetan elections. The complete texts of the statements are available on the following links; http://www.heidihautala.fi/2011/03/democracy-for-tibet/ http://www.alde.eu/event-seminar/events-details/article/tibetan-uprising-52-years-37278/
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