(TibetanReview.net, Nov13, 2015) – China has allowed a senior US Congressional delegation, which included House Democratic Leader and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, to make an unannounced visit to Tibet, reported Reuters Nov 12. Pelosi is not only a longtime critic of China’s human rights record but a strong supporter of the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan cause.
The report said that at a meeting in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, Zhang Ping, vice chairman of China’s rubberstamp parliament, the National People’s Congress, greeted Pelosi and asked how her trip to Tibet was. It added that Pelosi’s response was not audible to reporters present and there were no other details available immediately.
The trip had not been officially announced ahead of time.
The report said Pelosi made no mention of Tibet in her remarks in front of reporters in the formal part of the meeting. Zhang, also in the formal part of the meeting, noted that the delegation had also been to Hong Kong before going to Tibet.
Pelosi has met Dalai Lama several times, including when she led a delegation to Dharamsala as the House Speaker in 2008. She has often described the tragic situation in Tibet under Chinese rule as a challenge to the conscience of mankind.
Also travelling with Pelosi was Jim McGovern, chair of a Congress Human Rights Commission. The other members of the small group were House Democrats, according to Thehill.com 12 Nov.