(TibetanReview.net, Feb02, 2018) – The President of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) at Dharamshala, India, Sikyong Lobsang Sangay, was reported to have discussed Tibetan and Tibet related issues during a series of meetings in the Swiss city of Geneva over Jan 29-30. The meetings included those with the city mayor Mr Remi Pagani, officials from the Swiss federal government, members of the Swiss Parliamentarian group for Tibet and UN officials, said the CTA’s Tibet.net Feb 1.
He was stated to have urged the Swiss federal government to strengthen its advocacy for human rights in Tibet and also for the environmental health of Tibet. The Tibetan immigration problems and the Swiss government’s decision to recognize Tibetans as Chinese nationals was also said to have been discussed.
The Swiss government has been trying to convince hundreds of Tibetans who have failed to get asylum to return to India, claiming that’s where they were actually from. Switzerland grants asylum only to Tibetans who have come directly from Tibet provided that they have suffered persecution under the Chinese rule there.
The Sikyong was also stated to have briefed his meeting partners about the CTA’s Thank You campaign to mark 2018 as the year of gratitude to countries hosting Tibetan exiles, including Switzerland.
His meeting with officials from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Office was reported to have focused on, among other things, the upcoming Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of China.