US Lawmakers Meet Dalai Lama

On June 19th, 2024, a group of U.S. lawmakers met the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama in Dharamshala and said they will not allow China to influence the choice of his successor.

Key points

The US law makers’ bipartisan group of seven was led by Michael McCaul, a Republican representative from Texas, who also chairs the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
The US delegates meeting the Dalai Lama reflects Washington's decade-long support for the Tibetan people's right to practice their religion and culture, which China has suppressed through human rights violations in Tibet.
Tibetan tradition holds that the Dalai Lama is reincarnated after his death, and as per the current leader his successor may be found in India.
As per China the tradition must continue, and the officially atheist Communist leaders have the right to approve the successor, a legacy inherited from China's emperors.
The Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule in Tibet.