Janet Rice (Victoria, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I begin this debate by acknowledging that we're on the stolen lands of the Ngunnawal people and by noting the parallels of invasion and occupation of the lands of our First Peoples with the violent invasion and occupation of Tibet by the Chinese government 60 years ago. I acknowledge Sikyong Penpa Tsering, the chief minister of the Central Tibetan Administration, the democratically-elected government of Tibetan people living in exile. The Sikyong is visiting our parliament today. He is going to join us in the gallery, hopefully, within a number of minutes.

I want to deeply thank the Sikyong and all of the Central Tibetan Administration for their hospitality in April when members of the All-Parliamentary Group for Tibet visited Dharamsala in India, where the CTA headquarters are located. I found our visit to Dharamsala to be deeply moving. I, the Deputy Speaker of the House, the member for Macquarie and the member for Mackellar met with a huge range of Tibetan leaders and had the privilege of having an audience with His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who, as the motion we are debating today notes, is a leader of peace, compassion and nonviolence in Australia and the world.

I acknowledge the Sikyong now and all of the Tibetan delegation. Thank you, Sikyong, for visiting Australia. It's important you do, and it's a privilege to be debating this matter of public importance while you are in our parliament. I also acknowledge Karma Singey, who is the Australian representative of the Central Tibetan Administration.

There are many in this parliament, including all members of the Greens, who are very concerned at the actions of the Chinese government that have violated religious freedom in Tibet. As part of that approach the Chinese government have committed a prolonged attack on the Dalai Lama and have done everything they can to diminish his power. Tibetans inside and outside of Tibet continue to be persecuted by Chinese authorities for their culture and their beliefs and have become a minority in their own country.

Particularly worrying is that the Chinese government have made it very clear that they intend to interfere with the succession of the Dalai Lama. It is enshrined now in Chinese law that the Chinese government must approve all reincarnations of senior Buddhist Lamas, including the Dalai Lama. The Chinese government have form in this regard. Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the Panchen Lama, the second most senior figure in Tibetan Buddhism, was taken by the Chinese government 28 years ago, at only six years old. Many human rights organisations call him the youngest political prisoner in the world. His whereabouts are still unknown. I've consistently noted my concerns about the disappearance of the Panchen Lama. I will continue to push for the Australian parliament to only recognise a Dalai Lama appointed by Tibetan Buddhist traditions and practices without interference by the Chinese government.

We believe that universal human rights are fundamental and must be respected for all peoples and in all countries. As the 10th Panchen Lama, Choekyi Gyaltsen noted:

Once a nationality's language, costume, customs and other important characteristics have disappeared, then the nationality itself has disappeared too—that is to say, it has turned into another nationality …

Tibetan sovereignty has never been ceded. I call upon the Chinese government to immediately cease its human rights violations and the prolonged attack on religious freedom and to respect the human rights of Tibetan people. We specifically call upon the Chinese government for the resumption of talks with the Dalai Lama or his representatives to resolve the ongoing Sino-Tibet conflict.

We urge the Australian government to oppose any effort to interfere with the practices of Tibetan Buddhism and to raise these human rights violations directly with their counterparts at every level. We call upon the Australian government to specifically put a policy in place and to advocate for the Chinese to protect the succession of the 14th Dalai Lama without any interference from the Chinese government.

Despite the dark history of Tibet and the countless callous attacks on the Tibetan people, I'm constantly amazed by the light, the warmth and the resilience of the Tibetan people and the community. I want those listening, including our special representatives in the gallery, to know that the Greens and I are committed to keep working side by side with you and with our allies around the world until we achieve justice and freedom for all Tibetan people.