Dalai Lama seeks international attention on Tibet's crumbling ecology in message to COP26

Foremost spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism, the 14th Dalai Lama, on Sunday released a message to the ongoing United Nation’s COP 26 climate conference, Glasgow. While urging the world to pay more attention to Tibet's role in ecology, the Dalai Lama emphasised the responsibility of every individual to help protect the earth from threats of global warming and climate change. These messages come in at a crucial time as reports of the Chinese government exploiting Tibetan mineral resources due to lack of communication channels and vulnerability gain traction.

Dalai Lama urges world nations to pay attention to Tibet's ecology

As world leaders converged at the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) taking place in Glasgow, Scotland, the 14th Dalai Lama, through a published message, elucidated the stakes for the most populous continent in an appeal to pay more attention to the Tibetan ecology to further mitigate the threats of the global climate crisis. His message comes in amidst reports of exploitation of Tibet's natural resources and extensive use of the region's population as labour. Subjecting on that the Dalai Lama said, "We should pay more attention to the preservation of Tibet's ecology. This is not only in the interest of 6-7 million Tibetans, but also all the people in the area."

Dalai Lama underlines the importance of the Tibetan plateau

While speaking about the Tibetan plateau that also becomes the source of Asia’s major rivers which helps sustain the livelihood of another two billion people in downstream in Asia, Dalai Lama asserted that Tibet should not only be protected for the present generation, but also for the future ones as well as for the various species that share the planet.

Dalai Lama said, " Tibet is the source of some of the world’s major rivers, among them the Brahmaputra, the Ganges, the Indus, the Mekong, the Salween, the Yellow River and the Yangtze. These rivers are the source of life because they provide drinking water, irrigation for agriculture, and hydropower, for nearly two billion people across Asia."

While urging international attention on these subjects, Dalai Lama mentioned that the melting of numerous glaciers in Tibet, diversion of rivers, widespread deforestation highlighted the consequences of neglection that Tibet had received.

The Chinese Communist party ruled by President Xi Jinping, who currently has its hands on the territories of Tibet, has diluted the decision-making powers of the local Tibetan administration, which prevailed since the Chinese invasion in 1949. Owing to such oppression since long before, Tibet is also ranked as the second least free region in the world. Back in September, during the proceedings of the 48th UN Human Rights Council Session, China was slammed by delegations from the US, Denmark, Germany and European Union over religious, linguistic and cultural restrictions imposed by the Jinping-led government.

Image Credits - AP