Canberra — Australian Senator Janet Rice raised concerns about the Chinese government's interference in the reincarnation of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet and human rights issues in Tibet, including forced labour and Chinese colonial-style boarding schools for more than a million Tibetan children, as well as the forced separation of children from their parents and families, which aims to eliminate Tibetan identity.
Senator Rice asked Foreign Minister Penny Wong at a Senate question session on September 5, 2023, what steps she would take in her conversations with Chinese government officials to ensure that traditional religious practices such as the selection, education, and veneration of Tibetan Buddhist religious leaders are protected in Tibet and to ensure that the Chinese government plays no role in the selection of the next Dalai Lama.
In her response, Foreign Minister Wong said that she had raised her concerns about the erosion of rights and freedoms in Tibet with her Chinese counterparts in meetings at multiple levels, in particular the assimilation of Tibetan children in Chinese colonial boarding schools, the detention of Tibetans for peacefully expressing their political views and the repression of Tibetan religious expression.
Senator Rice's second question to Foreign Minister Wong concerned forced labour in Tibet and the possibility of Australia banning the import of goods produced by forced labour. Foreign Minister Wong replied that the Australian government, through its Modern Slavery Act, had carried out a study on the basis of which, she said, the government would formulate its response.
Janet Rice is a member of the Australian Greens and a senator for the state of Victoria in south-east Australia. She is one of Australia's most ardent defenders of human rights and justice, including human rights in Tibet. She is also co-chair of the Australian All-Party Parliamentary Group for Tibet (AAPPGT).
Senator Rice, MP Susan Templeman and Senator Dean Smith met with Tibetan delegates from communities across Australia in Canberra on September 4, 2023. They raised awareness of human rights abuses and the deteriorating human rights situation in Tibet. The Senators and MP called on China to end forced labour, the stolen Tibetan children and human rights violations in Tibet.
Tibet Lobby Day is currently taking place in Canberra, Tibetan delegates from communities across Australia will speak to Australian parliamentarians about human rights issues in Tibet, forced labour in Tibet, the separation of Tibetan children from their families in Chinese government-run boarding schools, which aims to eliminate Tibetan identity, the detention of Tibetans for peacefully expressing political views, the suppression of Tibetan religious expression, excessive security measures, mass surveillance and travel restrictions, China's policies on Tibetan cultural and Tibetan heritage, as well as the Chinese government's interference in the reincarnation of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet
The Tibetan delegates also urge the Australian Prime Minister to take the lead on this issue at the G20 summit to be held in India in September, 2023.
