TAIPEI - China on Friday accused the Dalai Lama of colluding with separatists in rival Taiwan on the eve of a trip to the island by Tibet's exiled spiritual leader even as he tried to play down the visit's political significance.
The Dalai Lama's March 31 to April 9 visit to Taiwan was "a further step made by the Taiwan authorities and the Dalai Lama clique to divide the motherland by colluding with each other," the overseas edition of the People's Daily said in a commentary.
"The collusion between the two parties has not been an accidental event, but was decided by the nature of their stances of 'Tibet independence' and 'Taiwan independence'," the flagship newspaper of the Communist Party said.
"Their attempts to split the motherland are doomed to fail."
The Dalai Lama has tried to play down the political significance of his visit, apparently to avoid antagonising Beijing, which rules Tibet and claims sovereignty over Taiwan.
"My main goal is to meet the Buddhist community there and explain about Tibetan Buddhism," the Nobel Peace Prize laureate told reporters on Wednesday in the northern Indian town of Dharamshala, the seat of his government-in-exile.
"If they know the reality and look at my activities from a wider perspective then I don't see any reason for them to be concerned," he said, referring to the Chinese authorities.
POLITICAL TONE
But the Dalai Lama's visit will inevitably take on a political tone when he meets Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian of the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party next Thursday.
The People's Daily did not mention Chen by name, but said he and the Dalai Lama were united in opposing China's reunification.
"No matter what excuses the Taiwan authorities use to invite the Dalai Lama, or whatever the form or status of the Dalai Lama's visit to Taiwan, they cannot cover up their political motives to deepen their collusion," it said.
The globetrotting Buddhist monk has dismissed Chinese accusations that he wants to split Tibet from China while Chen has mellowed his pro-independence stand.
But Beijing, which has threatened to attack Taiwan if it declared independence or dragged its feet on unification talks, harbours deep suspicion of both men.
Earlier this month, one of China's top Taiwan policymakers, Sun Ya-fu, warned of unspecified "serious consequences" from the Dalai Lama's Taiwan visit.
SENSITIVE PERIOD
Taiwan Vice President Annette Lu said the island's ties with rival China would enter a "sensitive period" due in part to the Tibetan spiritual leader's visit.
During his 10-day visit, the Dalai Lama will also meet former president Lee Teng-hui, who is reviled by Beijing for trying to break Taiwan out of diplomatic isolation during his 12-year rule.
Beijing condemned a meeting of the two when the Dalai Lama first visited in 1997 as a collusion of "splittists."
But for ordinary Taiwanese, the visit of Tibetan Buddhism's top monk is of more religious significance than political.
"We are neither playing the Taiwan independence nor the Tibetan independence card," said Hsu Szu-chien, a China policy adviser to President Chen's Democratic Progressive Party.
"For ordinary people, the Dalai Lama's visit has greater religious significance than political," Hsu said.
The Dalai Lama will hold mass "enlightenment" lectures across the island and Vice President Lu will attend one on Monday.
She will launch a "Send Taiwan's Love to Tibet" drive to raise US$150,000 for a school for the disabled in Dharamshala.
Wealthy but diplomatically isolated Taiwan has about 30,000 followers of Tibetan Buddhism, who showered the Dalai Lama with US$500,000 during his last visit.
The Dalai Lama fled his Himalayan homeland after an abortive uprising against Chinese rule in 1959 and won the Nobel Peace Prize three decades later for his peaceful campaign for autonomy.
He lashed out this month at what he called increased repression in his homeland and called for genuine self-rule to prevent the annihilation of Tibet's culture.
04:37 03-30-01
Copyright 2001 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.