TOKYO (AFP) — The Dalai Lama said Monday that the drive for greater autonomy for Tibet has ended in failure, urging Tibetans to be open to all options in negotiations with Beijing over the region's future.
The exiled leader is on a week-long visit to Japan for talks on spirituality as the latest negotiations between his envoys and Chinese officials were due to begin in Beijing.
He also hinted at his retirement and said he would ask Tibetans whether to continue the ancient tradition of appointing his successor by recognising his reincarnation.
"My trust in the Chinese government has become thinner, thinner, thinner. Suppression (in Tibet) is increasing and I cannot pretend that everything is OK," the Dalai Lama told a press conference here.
"I have to accept failure. Meantime among Tibetans in recent years, our approach failed to bring positive change inside Tibet, so criticism has also increased. So there is no other alternative than to ask people," he added.
The Dalai Lama is calling a meeting later this month among Tibetans to decide on a future strategy towards the Chinese government, which accuses him of instigating unrest and secessionist ambitions in Tibet.
The first meeting in Dharamshala on November 17 will involve exiled Tibetan communities followed by another in New Delhi that will convene international supporters including lawmakers and former foreign ministers.
The meetings could mark a sea-change in the strategy for dealing with Beijing, which has ruled the Himalayan region since the early 1950s.
The Dalai Lama has long championed a "middle path" policy with China which espouses "meaningful autonomy" for Tibet, rather than the full independence that many younger, more radical activists demand.
"I don't know what will happen," he said, refusing to state his own position.
"Their minds should be open to explore all different options... and not fixated on one issue," he said, noting that youth groups supported seeking independence rather than autonomy.
"Hopefully their discussions will not be emotional, but intelligent and carefully thought-out," he added.
The 73-year-old Nobel peace laureate also spoke of his retirement and said he will ask Tibetans whether the centuries-old reincarnation succession method should end.
"My position is semi-retired. I look forward to complete retirement. My retirement is also my human right," he said smiled, in apparent good health less than a month after he underwent surgery to remove gallstones.
"Since I was 16 years old, I have carried responsibilities, and throughout Tibet's darkest history. There should be a a limit. There is already an eligible leadership and many young, healthy, promising people," he added.
During his stay, the Dalai Lama is scheduled to give speeches arranged by a Japanese Buddhist group and Tibetan supporters. He will also visit children and monks.
He is due to travel to the southwestern city of Fukuoka to deliver an address on compassion and happiness and to speak in Tokyo about the nature of the mind, organisers said.
The Dalai Lama, who has lived in India since fleeing Tibet in 1959, is a frequent visitor to Japan, where he enjoys an active following.
But unlike many Western nations, Japan, which has an uncomfortable relationship with China, has almost always refused high-level contacts and no officials are scheduled to meet him on the current trip.
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