(TibetanReview.net, Jul16’25) – The US Senate has on Jul 14 unanimously approved a resolution, declaring the 90th birthday of His Holiness the Dalai Lama as a “Day of Compassion”. A House version of the resolution is expected to come up for vote soon as it continues to gain more co-sponsors, said Washington-based Tibet advocacy group International Campaign for Tibet (ICT, savetibet.org) Jul 15.
The resolution recognizes Jul 6, 2025, as a Day of Compassion in honor of the Dalai Lama’s birthday, affirms the Tibetan people’s human rights and fundamental freedoms, and reiterates that any attempt by the PRC (People’s Republic of China) to interfere in the recognition of a 15th Dalai Lama violates the religious freedom of Tibetan Buddhists.
The resolution notes the history of the Tibet-China conflict and America’s legacy of support for the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan people.
More than 200 Tibetan-Americans and Tibet supporters from across the country had earlier gathered in Washington over Jun 24-25 for a “Tibet Lobby Day” campaign to garner support for Tibet from their Senators and Representatives, with the Dalai Lama-birthday resolution being also on agenda.
Senators Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Todd Young (R-IN) had earlier jointly introduced the resolution in the Senate, followed by 10 additional bipartisan co-sponsors.
In the House, the resolution is being led by Representatives Michael McCaul (R-TX) and Jim McGovern (D-MA).
Expressing “heartfelt gratitude to Tibet’s friends in the Senate,” ICT President Tencho Gyatso has said, “The passage of this resolution is a demonstration of America’s deep and enduring support for the Dalai Lama’s message of compassion and non-violence, and for the human rights and democratic freedoms of the Tibetan people.”
The resolution came on the heels of three pieces of legislation that passed the US Congress with resounding bipartisan support in recent years: the 2018 Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act, the 2020 Tibetan Policy and Support Act, and the 2024 Resolve Tibet Act, ICT has noted.
The Central Tibetan Administration at Dharamshala, India, has declared Jul 2024-2026 as “Year of Compassion” to commemorate the Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday and has launched a series of events and campaigns across the free world for this purpose.
ICT says it has also launched “a Compassion Rising World Tour” campaign to spark a year of global celebration, encouraging people from all walks of life to come together through acts of compassion that amplify and reaffirm His Holiness’s inspirational legacy.”