Trump signs for Tibet’s freedom from China, supports Tibet’s right to select new Dalai Lama
In a move that was expected, US President Donald Trump who will exit office on 20 January 2020, has signed the Tibetan Policy and Support Act of 2020, giving US’ Tibet policy a final push and reiterating America’s commitment to supporting the cause of Tibet and the Tibetan government in exile (Central Tibetan Administration, CTA).
After signing The TPSA any decisions regarding the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama are exclusively within the authority of the current Dalai Lama, Tibetan Buddhist leaders and the Tibetan people and China cannot make any interference.
Reacting to the move, Dr Lobsang Sangay, President of CTA, called it a historic moment and in a tweet said, History made again! President Trump signs the Omnibus bill, which means the Tibetan Policy and Support Act of 2020 is now LAW!,”.
Welcoming the legislation Dr Lobsang Sangay said, “This legislation sends a powerful message of hope and justice to the Tibetans inside Tibet and bolsters US support for the protection of Tibetan people’s religious freedom, human rights, environmental rights and exile Tibetan democracy like never before.”
“On behalf of the CTA and 6 million Tibetans, I extend deepest gratitude to President Trump for signing the profoundly historic bill. I would also like thank once again the US Congress for passing the bill, especially the bill sponsors Senators Marco Rubio and Ben Cardin; and Congressmen Jim McGovern and Chris Smith for introducing in the House and Senate. Thanks to everyone who contributed to making this a reality,” he said.
The new law also formally recognizes the CTA as the legitimate representative of the Tibetan people and the Dr Lobsang Sange (the Sikyong) as the President of the CTA. Also, the TPSA will provide a safe environment of Tibet, which stands at peril because of the actions of the Chinese government.
China over the decades has built many dams that are detrimental to the environment and not much thought is given to by the Communist regime with regards to environmental safety regulations.
This law will give protection to the local environment and water resources on the Tibetan plateau which includes River Brahmaputra and it also calls for greater international cooperation to monitor the environment on the Tibetan plateau.
“With Trump signing the omnibus Bill, Tibet Support and Policy Act is now law. It’s time for India to also follow suit. Declare reincarnation of Lamas is for Tibetans to decide, blacklist companies engaged in environmental damage through indiscriminate mining and river water diversion,” retired Indian official Amitabh Mathur said.
Before Trump leaves office, he can under the powers of executive orders, subject sanctions on China. He has already put sanctions on Chinese state-owned companies, restrictions on “dual-use” civilian-military exports, banning more Chinese apps, blocking all semiconductor sales to Huawei Technologies beyond those for 5G networks.
Trump holds China responsible for the Covid-19 pandemic that has led to massive economic losses to the United States. However, the worst fear for China after Tibet is the possibility of being declared as a currency manipulator during the period of transfer of power.
This new law would give India a lot of relief as China which controls Tibet has announced that it will construct a ‘super dam‘ on the Brahmaputra river which would create a serious problem for India.
The Brahmaputra River originates from the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) and it flows into Arunachal Pradesh where it is called Siang and then enters the Indian state of Assam where it is called the Brahmaputra.
