Parliamentarians from 25 countries gathered together in the Indian capital, New Delhi, from March 18 to 20, 1994 under the aegis of the All Party Indian Parliamentary Forum for Tibet to discuss the Tibetan issue. They expressed appreciation for the initiative of the All Party Indian Parliamentary Forum for Tibet. They made the following statement to be known as the New Delhi Statement on Tibetan freedom.
- Tibet was a separate independent and sovereign nation prior to its invasion and subsequent occupation by the People's Republic of China.
- The Chinese invasion in 1949 resulted in the distribution of traditional Tibetan society, the destruction of Tibet's unique cultural heritage, amounting, in effect, to a form of cultural genocide, and denial of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the Tibetan people. It reduced Tibet, in effect, to the status of a Chinese colony and an occupied country.
- Following a report of the International Committee of Jurists, which described the grave violation of human rights of the Tibetan people, the United Nations, in a series of resolutions, particularly GA resolution No. 1723 (XVI) of 1961, condemned such violations and called for the withdrawal of Chinese forces. However, the violations continued and the forces remained.
- Chinese policies in Tibet, through official incentives, have encouraged the settlement there of 7.5 million ethnic Chinese designed to marginalise the six million Tibetan people, destroy the traditional Tibetan landscape, and threaten the Tibetan people's distinct national, cultural and religious identity.
- The major areas of eastern Tibet and north-eastern Tibet have already become dominated by ethnic Chinese. The consequences of the massive influx of Chinese people is becoming clear in Central Tibet. For example, out of the 12227 shops in Lhasa (excluding the Barkhor areas) only 300 are now owned by Tibetans.
- Reports by official parliamentary fact-finding delegations from Australia, Austria, the European Parliament and other parliamentarian delegations to Tibet, as well as by independent international human rights organisations, such as Amnesty International and Asia Watch, have confirmed the continued abuse of Tibetan human rights and the denial of fundamental freedoms by the Chinese authorities. This has occurred in contravention of the obligations imposed upon China by international law, including under the various international instruments: the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. These principles have been reaffirmed in the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action adopted by the World Conference on Human Rights held in June 1993.
- His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government-in-Exile have, over the years, proposed constructive initiatives to solve the Tibetan Problem peacefully.
- The determination of Tibetan people for a free Tibet continues to be strong although from 1949 to 1984 an estimated 1.2 million Tibetans have died as a result of Chinese occupation. Since the invasion, very many demonstrations have taken place in which thousands of Tibetans have been imprisoned. In 1993 alone, there have been over 39 known peaceful demonstrations in different parts of Tibet.
- The Permanent Tribunal of People's session on Tibet in 1992, the International Lawyers' Conference on Tibet in 1993 and the Conference of European Parliamentarians on Tibet in 1993, have each confirmed the right to self-determination of the Tibetan people enjoyed by them under international law.
- National Parliaments in a number of countries have passed resolutions expressing their concern at the plight of the Tibetan people. The European Parliament has also done so.
- The Congress of the United States of America passed a resolution on October 28, 1991 recognising that Tibet, consisting of the three traditional areas of Dhotoe (Kham), Dhomey (Amdo) and U-Tsang, is an occupied country.
- China's destruction of the Tibetan environment through indiscriminate deforestation and mining is leading to ecological imbalance with potential consequences affecting nearly half of the world's population.
The participants in this World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet, therefore, resolve that the convention:
- Condemn the continued violation of Tibetan people's human rights by the People's Republic of China, including the ill treatment of nuns and enforced sterilisation of Tibetan women, and the efforts to destroy Tibet's religious and cultural rights. While applauding the courage and determination of the Tibetan people, it calls for the immediate release of all Tibetan political prisoners.
- Express concern at the continued maintenance of Chinese nuclear installations in Tibet and reports of the conduct of the testing of nuclear weapons and the alleged dumping of nuclear wastes.
- Support the non-violent efforts of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan-Government-in-Exile to solve the Tibetan problem, particularly the Dalai Lama's campaign to make Tibet a zone of Ahimsa (non-violence) through demilitarisation, protection of Tibet's natural environment and the commencement of earnest negotiations between Tibetan and Chinese representatives on the future of Tibet.
- Urge the Chinese government to respond positively to the above initiatives of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government-in-Exile for negotiations without preconditions to solve the Tibetan problem.
- Urge our respective governments to support the peaceful endeavours of His Holiness the Dalai Lama by establishing contacts with the Tibetan Government-in-exile based in Dharamsala, India.
- Call on our respective Parliaments to send delegations to Tibet to study the human rights situation, religious freedom, status of women and prison conditions.
- Urge our respective governments, as well as international funding agencies, to see that, development aid for projects in Tibet benefits the Tibetan people and does not encourage the settlement of Chinese civilians in the region and urge our respective governments to respect the guidelines issued by the Tibetan Government-in-Exile regarding developmental assistance to Tibet.
- Urge our respective governments to extend moral and material support to the Tibetan people in their struggle to regain their freedom and the preservation of their heritage.
- Call for the formation of all party parliamentary groups on Tibet in the Parliaments, which currently do not have such groups, as well as in international network of parliamentarians to co-ordinate activities on the Tibetan issue.
- Express concern at the grave risk of unconditional economic assistance to China, which may lead to economic liberalization, which is not accompanied by increased political freedom and democratization and urges the governments of our respective countries to impose conditions to their economic assistance to China.
- Urge the United Nations General Assembly to expand the mandate of the Special Committee on Decolonisation to include Tibet in its mandate and to include a regular review of the situation in Tibet. Urge the UN Human Rights Sub-commission to send fact-finding teams to Tibet and to station permanent representation in Lhasa to monitor the ongoing situation in Tibet, and urge the United Nations High Commission for Refugees to extend all possible assistance to Tibetan refugees.
- Appreciate the active role of the United Nations in international conflict resolution, including in Namibia, Cambodia, etc. and urge the Secretary-General to initiate mediation between the Tibetan and Chinese authorities for a peaceful negotiated settlement to the Tibetan Government-in-Exile led by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
- Support the proposal of the Permanent Tribunal of People's calling for the setting up of an international monitoring authority to determine ways to restore Tibet's ecological balance and to protect its biodiversity.
- Direct that a delegation comprising representatives of the participants in this convention a) Seek the agreement of the People's Republic of China to visit China and Tibet, and b) meet the Secretary-General of the United Nations to take up the Tibetan issue and to further the resolution in this convention.
It is further resolved that the above resolution be forwarded to His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, presiding officers of the two Houses of the Indian Parliament, all Parliaments whose members are participating in this Convention, as well as the Chairman of the Chinese National People's Congress.
New Delhi, March 20 1994
