Brown to meet Dalai Lama

Wednesday, 19 March 2008 12:00 AM

Gordon Brown will meet with the Dalai Lama when he visits London later this year.

It had been expected the prime minister would not receive the exiled Tibetan leader when he visits Britain in May.

But Mr Brown told MPs today he would meet with the Dalai Lama, saying it was "important that we all facilitate discussions".

He also assured the Commons that he had spoken to Chinese premier Wen Jiabao and had been "absolutely clear" there had to be an end to violence in Tibet.

During prime minister's questions, Mr Brown had been challenged by David Cameron to be "absolutely clear" in telling China the ongoing violence was unacceptable.

Mr Brown said this was the case, adding "I also called for constraint and I called for an end to the violence by dialogue between the different parties."

He said Mr Wen had renounced the violence although continued not to support Tibetan independence.

The prime minister confirmed: "I will meet the Dalai Lama when he is in London."

He said it was "important that we all facilitate discussions but the must important thing at the moment is to bring about an end to the violence".

Mr Cameron congratulated Mr Brown on making "absolutely" the right decision.

China has accused the Dalai Lama of being responsible for the unrest in Tibet, when protests began on March 10th to mark the anniversary of the 1959 uprising against Chinese rule.

Downing Street has previously denied Britain's business links with China resulted in a muted reaction, compared to the response to the Burmese protests last autumn.

The Dalai Lama met with Tony Blair when he last visited in 1999 and Mr Brown has been under pressure to receive him again in May. The former foreign secretary Malcolm Rifkind has described him as the "Nelson Mandela of Tibet".

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