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WASHINGTON - The Dalai Lama has written a letter to China's President Hu Jintao offering to send emissaries to Tibet to calm down tensions following Beijing's crackdown, his special envoy said Wednesday.
"His Holiness expressed his deepest concerns about the situation (in Tibet) and offered to send his emissaries to help calm the situation and explain to Tibetans, but that specific offer so far went answered," envoy Lodi Gyari told reporters.
The letter, sent on March 19, was part of efforts "to begin a discussion on a peaceful way forward" following the Chinese crackdown on pro-Tibetan protests, said Gyari, who testified earlier at a US Senate hearing on the turmoil in Tibet.
Gyari pointed out that Beijing had replied to the letter but did not specifically respond to the Dalai Lama's offer.
Asked for details of Beijing's reply, he said, "There was nothing concrete, just rhetoric. Just leave it like that."
Some media reports that the Dalai Lama's side was at present in discussions with the Chinese government was "unfortunately an overstatement of fact," he said.
The 72-year-old Dalai Lama, who has lived in northern India since fleeing Tibet after a failed uprising in 1959, is campaigning for "meaningful autonomy" for his homeland, currently largely under Chinese rule.
Exiled Tibetan leaders say China's clampdown last month left more than 150 dead, while Beijing says "rioters" killed 20.
The incident has overshadowed China's hosting of the Beijing Olympics in August, with protests marring international legs of the ceremonial torch relay. - AFP/ir
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