[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 123 (Thursday, September 13, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6345-S6346]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 557--HONORING THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF LODI GYALTSEN 
GYARI AS SPECIAL ENVOY OF HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA AND IN PROMOTING 
      THE LEGITIMATE RIGHTS AND ASPRIATIONS OF THE TIBETAN PEOPLE

  Mr. KERRY (for himself, Mr. Lugar, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Leahy, Mr. 
Udall of Colorado, Mr. Lieberman, Mr. Kirk, Mr. McCain, and Mrs. Boxer) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 557

       Whereas Lodi Gyaltsen Gyari, who was born in Nyarong, Kham 
     in 1949, was recognized according to Tibetan Buddhist 
     tradition as a reincarnate lama and began his monastic 
     studies at 4 years of age in Lhumorhab Monastery, which was 
     located in what is now Kardze Prefecture, Sichuan Province;
       Whereas, in 1958, 9-year-old Lodi Gyari fled Nyarong with 
     his family to avoid pursuit by the Chinese People's 
     Liberation Army and was said to have led his group to safety 
     in India through prayer and divinations;
       Whereas Lodi Gyari, as a young man in India, began a 
     career-long commitment to the Tibetan struggle against 
     Chinese oppression in Tibet, becoming editor for the Tibetan 
     Freedom Press, founder of the Tibetan Review, the first 
     English language journal published by Tibetans in exile, and 
     a founding member of the Tibetan Youth Congress;
       Whereas Lodi Gyari served as a civil servant in the Central 
     Tibetan Administration of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, as 
     Chairman of the Tibetan Parliament in exile, and as a Deputy 
     Cabinet Minister for the Departments of Religious Affairs and 
     Health and Cabinet Minister for the Department of Information 
     and International Relations;
       Whereas, in 1991, Lodi Gyari moved to the United States in 
     the capacity of Special Envoy of His Holiness the Dalai Lama 
     and was soon after selected to be President of the 
     International Campaign for Tibet;
       Whereas, for 3 decades Lodi Gyari has met with leaders and 
     diplomats of governments around the world and with Members of 
     the United States Congress and parliaments of other nations--
       (1) to explain the Tibetan position with regard to 
     engagement with China;
       (2) to urge supportive strategies and policies from 
     governments;
       (3) to explain the Dalai Lama's ``Middle Way'' philosophy 
     of seeking genuine autonomy for Tibet within the People's 
     Republic of China that contributes to harmony between the 
     Tibetan and Chinese peoples; and
       (4) to promote Tibetan statecraft as the Dalai Lama's 
     senior ambassador-at-large;
       Whereas, during his time as Special Envoy based in 
     Washington, D.C., Congress approved many policy and 
     programmatic measures on Tibet, which served to 
     institutionalize the Tibet issue within the Government of the 
     United States, most notably the establishment of a Special 
     Coordinator on Tibetan Issues within the Department of State 
     and support for Tibetan refugees;
       Whereas, in 1999, Lodi Gyari became a United States 
     citizen;
       Whereas in May 1998, His Holiness the Dalai Lama authorized 
     Special Envoy Lodi Gyari to be the principal person to 
     reestablish contact with the Chinese government on the 
     Tibetan issue;
       Whereas, between September 2002 and January 2010, Lodi 
     Gyari led the Dalai Lama's negotiating team in 9 formal 
     rounds of meetings with Chinese officials with tireless drive 
     and immense skill, winning the respect of the international 
     community;
       Whereas Lodi Gyari presented the Chinese government with 
     the Memorandum on Genuine Autonomy for the Tibetan People and 
     its accompanying Note, thus detailing the Tibetan side's 
     vision for a political solution for Tibet consistent within 
     the framework of the Chinese constitutional and laws on 
     autonomy;
       Whereas Lodi Gyari, in service to the Dalai Lama, came to 
     represent in national capitals around the world, the great 
     hope and conviction that the rights of Tibetans could be 
     protected and their repression could be ended.
       Whereas, in the personally and professionally difficult 
     task of representing Tibetan interests in dialogue with the 
     People's Republic of China, Lodi Gyari demonstrated spirit, 
     intelligence, and extraordinary tact, and brought civility, 
     reason and a measure of mutual understanding to the Tibetan-
     Chinese relationship;
       Whereas Lodi Gyari has credited the far-sighted wisdom of 
     His Holiness the Dalai Lama in empowering the Tibetan people 
     by his devolution of his political authority to an elected 
     Tibetan leadership; and
       Whereas, Lodi Gyari resigned his position, effective June 
     1, 2012, in the context of the deteriorating situation inside 
     Tibet, including increasing incidents of Tibetan self-
     immolations, and expressing deep frustration over the lack of 
     positive response from the Chinese side in their nearly 10-
     year dialogue, and in respect for the process of the 
     devolution of political power to the elected Tibetan leaders.
       Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) honors the service of Lodi Gyaltsen Gyari as Special 
     Envoy of His Holiness the Dalai Lama;
       (2) commends the achievements of Lodi Gyaltsen Gyari in 
     building an international coalition of support for Tibet that 
     recognizes--
       (A) the imperative to preserve the distinct culture and 
     religious traditions of Tibet; and

[[Page S6346]]

       (B) that the Tibetan people are entitled under 
     international law to their own identity and dignity and 
     genuine autonomy within the People's Republic of China that 
     fully preserves the rights and dignity of the Tibetan people;
       (3) acknowledges the role of Lodi Gyaltsen Gyari, as a 
     naturalized United States citizen, to promoting understanding 
     in the United States of the Tibetan people, their culture and 
     religion, and their struggle for genuine autonomy, human 
     rights, dignity, and the preservation of unique linguistic, 
     cultural, and religious traditions; and
       (4) strongly supports a political solution for Tibet within 
     the People's Republic of China that satisfies the legitimate 
     grievances and aspirations of the Tibetan people.

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