(TibetanReview.net, Mar17’20) – The 16th Tibetan Parliament in Exile began and concluded its 9th session Mar 16 by adopting the budget of the Central Tibetan Administration for the financial year Apr 2020 – Mar 2021 and passing resolutions of mourning and solidarity. The brevity of the session was necessitated by the growing Covid-19 global pandemic which first broke out in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year.
The parliament was initially scheduled to be held from Mar 17 to 27. Members of the parliament from abroad could not attend the session due to travel restrictions imposed in the host countries hit by the rampaging pandemic.
The budget was passed with voice votes as there was no time to hold debate.
The parliament passed two official resolutions mourning and condoling the passing away of Tibet self-immolator Yonten and former parliament member Geshe Lharampa Tashi Gyaltsen. An official resolution was also passed, expressing solidarity with the Tibetans in Tibet struggling under Chinese rule.
Dharamshala itself is under an order issued by the district administration under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure which bans gatherings of four or more people. Although meant as a law and order maintenance measure, orders under this section have been passed in several parts of India as a move against the spread of the Covid-19 infection.
The number of confirmed infections in India now totals 126 (as of Mar 17 at 3:07 PM). Three people have died so far while 13 have recovered. The confirmed infection include 39 in Maharashtra, 23 in Kerala, 12 in Uttar Pradesh, 8 in Karnataka, 7 in Delhi, 4 in Ladakh, 3 each in Telangana and Jammu and Kashmir, 3 in Noida, 2 in Rajasthan, and one each in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Odisha and Punjab. The three deaths occurred in the states of Karnataka, Delhi and Maharashtra.
