New Delhi: Holding China responsible for the demonstrations against the Olympic torch relay, the Tibetan government-in-exile today said the protests were a direct response to Beijing's "obsession" with the mega event.

Backing China's right to host the Olympics, Lodi Gyari, Special Envoy of the Dalai Lama, said China was sending its security teams across the world for the Olympic flame as it is "their torch".

"The protests were a response to the Chinese reaction. They are guarding the torch as their own. China is too much obsessed with Olympics. It is an international event and so this kind of reaction," Gyari told reporters here. The Dalai Lama's position on the Olympics and the torch relay was "very clear" and the Tibetan leadership does not want disruption of the events, he said.

"The Dalai Lama is well aware that Olympics can create a profound impact on China. It will bring to focus the lack of freedom and human rights violation in China into international focus," he noted. Emphasising the need for an independent international probe into the recent incidents, Gyari said, the Tibetan authorities may constitute a probe panel comprising well-known persons to investigate the Chinese crackdown in Lhasa and Beijing's allegations against the Dalai Lama.

"This is not to counter or contradict the allegations against the Dalai Lama that he has instigated the violence during the ongoing protests," he said. Gyari said the Tibetan administration holds China "fully responsible" for the violence in Tibet and if they continue to persuade the current policies, it will "push Tibet to the limits".

"We have asked the Chinese not to waste their time on levelling baseless allegations against Tibetans and spend their time in really finding out the root cause of the problem," Gyari said, emphasising the need for a review of China's Tibet policy. The Dalai Lama has given unwavering and unconditional support to the middle path, non-violence and policy of engagement, he said.

 

Source : PTI