The speaker of Legislative Yuan of Taiwan has extended his warm welcome to the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, His Holiness the Dalai Lama on Tuesday following the New Power Party (NPP) Legislator Freddy Lim on his trip to the seat of Tibetan exile and asked the Dalai Lama to speak at their Legislature. This invitation from the speaker of Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan comes when His Holiness expressed enthusiasm to visit Taiwan when the legislator requested him.
Legislative Speaker Su Jia-chyuan said that the Legislative Yuan extends warmest welcome to people from any country who is willing to help promote Democracy and Freedom.
“The Legislative Yuan very much welcomes those who facilitate the promotion of democracy and freedom,” said Su Tuesday, when asked about a lawmaker’s invitation for the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader to visit Taiwan and deliver a speech at the Legislature.
The Taiwanese parliamentary delegation who visited the Central Tibetan Administration in Dharamshala on Monday also announced that they would be forming “All party parliamentary group for Tibet” in the Taiwan Parliament and various startup projects with Tibetan settlement offices in India.
The Dalai Lama’s last trip to Taiwan was in 2009 and since then he has not been able to fulfill the request of his Taiwanese followers to visit it due to visa issues from the government.
“According to Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Kolas Yotaka, who also visited the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan government-in-exile’s prime minister, Lobsang Sangay, said that many Taiwanese Buddhist groups had tried to arrange for the Dalai Lama to visit Taiwan, but the administration of former president Ma Ying-jeou refused to issue him a visa.” said a report in Taipei Times.
“The people of Taiwan have always been concerned with human rights violations in Tibet, the Taiwanese government has remained silent in recent years, despite the Chinese oppression of human rights”, Lim who is also black metal musician said. “Now that the younger generation is on the rise, it is a key moment for Taiwan to start reinforcing its presence within the international human-rights community”, he said, adding that “building trust and friendship with the people of Tibet is a key moment.”