Dharamshala: Smt. Rinchen Lhamo, Hon’ble Member of the National Commission for Minorities (NCM), Govt. of India, accompanied by District Social Welfare Officer (Kangra) and other officials paid a visit to the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile on 9th Feb 2023. The visiting guests were received by Deputy Speaker Dolma Tsering Teykhang with Tibetan ceremonial scarves (Khatak) at the Parliamentary Secretariat.

They were taken on a guided tour of the parliament hall by the Deputy Speaker and briefed on the evolution of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile under the visionary leadership of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the support of the Indian government.

While explaining the process of adopting the Charter of Tibetans in exile, the Deputy Speaker spoke about His Holiness’s paramount contribution to empowering Tibetan women including reserving women’s representation in the Tibetan parliament.

Thereafter, Smt. Rinchen Lhamo led officials met with the members of the Standing Committee and the Public Accounts Committee at the Standing Committee’s hall where each of the members introduced themself.

Welcoming the delegation, Deputy Speaker Dolma Tsering Teykhang expressed the honor and privilege of hosting them at the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile and thanked India for its long-standing support in providing assistance to Tibetans in exile.

With alarming basic human rights violations happening in Tibet under China’s occupation including restriction of religious freedom, cultural genocide, arbitrary detentions, and others, the Deputy Speaker urged India’s continued support to Tibet and to raise its voice against the atrocities happening inside of the Chinese-occupied Tibet.

Smt. Rinchen Lhamo, in her address, paid her deep reverence to His Holiness the Dalai Lama and expressed gratitude for the warm hospitality at the Tibetan Parliament. She noted that change in the stand of the Indian government in dealing with China has been apparent in recent years and she assured that India’s support will always be in favor of Tibet.

The NCM member also provided a brief account of the recently held conference of Bharat Tibbat Sahyog Manch which was attended by the NCM member and shared the enthusiasm of the participants of the conference from all across India witnessed by her.

Smt. Rinchen Lhamo concluded her address by saying she is hopeful that Tibet’s issue will be resolved in the lifetime of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Smt. Rinchen Lhamo was presented with a Thangka of Tara and the District Social Welfare Officer was presented with a souvenir by the Deputy Speaker before heading to visit the Tibetan Supreme Justice Commission (TSJC), nearby monasteries, the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives (LTWA), the Tibet Museum, the Upper Tibetan Children Village, the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (TIPA) and others.

Accompanied by Deputy Speaker Dolma Tsering Teykhang and parliamentarian Tsering Yangchen, the delegation also visited Kashag Secretariat of the Central Tibetan Administration and met with Kalon Norzin Dolma of the Department of Information and International Relations (DIIR), the officiating Sikyong.