IANS
Dharamsala, May 9: A US Congressional delegation Tuesday met Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama here on Tuesday and reaffirmed their commitment to the cause of Tibetan people and to address the issue of Tibet through the mutually beneficial policy.The eight-member delegation, led by House of Representatives’ Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, reached here Tuesday on a two-day visit.
“Our delegation visits @DalaiLama in his spirit of faith & peace coming to be inspired & demonstrate our commitment to the Tibetan people,” tweeted the Democrat lawmaker. Besides Pelosi, the delegation includes Jim Sensenbrenner, Eliot Engel, Jim McGovern, Betty McCollum, Judy Chu, Joyce Beatty and Pramila Jayapal.
Pelosi, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, is a long-time supporter of the Tibetan cause and last visited Dharamsala in 2008 to express solidarity for the Tibetan people in the aftermath of unrest in Tibet ahead of the Beijing Olympics.
Congresswoman Jayapal is the first Indian-American woman to be elected to the House of Representatives. The delegation met Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, in a private audience at his residence here.
They also met Central Tibetan Administration (CAT) President and Prime Minister-in-exile Lobsang Sangay. The Tibetan government-in-exile is not recognised by any country. “The CTA is honoured to welcome the second visit by a high-level bipartisan delegation of the US Congress led by leader Nancy Pelosi to Dharamsala after nine years,” Sangay said.
Other day engagements of the delegation include meeting with Tibetan women leaders and visit to Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts. The CTA is organising a public felicitation in honour of the Congressional delegation’s visit. The Dalai Lama will grace the public felicitation on Wednesday at the Tsuglakhang temple, located close to the spiritual leader’s palace. A day earlier the delegation visited a Tibetan settlement in Kathmandu. “It was an honor to observe the 70th anniversary of US-Nepal relations as we met with President (Bidya Devi) Bhandari in Kathmandu this week,” Pelosi said in another tweet.
