Tibet is today routinely portrayed as a part of China and the language used suggests a fait accompli in this regard. This is detrimental to the prospects of resolving the decades old international conflict that has caused and continues to cause tremendous human suffering. It is also legally incorrect.
Although Tibet was formerly acknowledged to be an occupied country and the Tibetans a people with the right to self-determination, which obliges the international community to address the situation and seek a solution to the Sino-Tibetan conflict, today our governments are by and large acting as if the situation in Tibet were a Chinese internal affair, outside of their purview. This not only negatively affects the Tibetan people; it harms all of us for it undermines the very norms of international law created to prevent war and keep us safe and free.
At the core of this change lie changing power relationships and the increasing buy-in to the PRC narrative that Tibet has always been a part of China. Michael van Walt will demonstrate the fallacy of this claim and the dangers of our willingness to ignore or compromise the truth for political or economic gain.
Dr. Michael van Walt van Praag is the Executive President of KREDDHA, a nonprofit conflict resolution organization (https://www.kreddha.org). He is a professor of international law and legal advisor of the Tibetan government in exile and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. His enduring relationship with Tibet dates back to the early 1970s, from working on international Tibet support in assisting the Central Tibetan Administration in dialogues with China since 1984.
For over 20 years he has advised parties in peace negotiations and mediation and facilitated peace processes in various parts of the world. He served as the General Secretary of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organisation (UNPO) and was the UN Senior Legal Advisor to the Foreign Ministry of Timor Leste during its transition to independence. He has been awarded knighthood by the Dutch government, in recognition of “his life-long dedication and commendable achievements in support of the unrepresented and oppressed nations and peoples of the world.”
He is the author of several books, the most recent of them are the Tibet Brief 20/20 and the award-winning Sacred Mandates: Asian International Relations since Chinggis Khan, both coauthored with Miek Boltjes. He is the author of much acclaimed book called “The Status of Tibet: History, Rights and Prospects in International Law”.
Date and time: 7 November, 2022, 14.00-15.30
Venue: A. Binderis auditorium, Institute of Asian and Transcultural Studies at Vilnius University, Universiteto Str. 5, Vilnius.