Australian Greens Leader Senator Bob Brown and Vice Chairman of All Party Parliamentary Group for Tibet on 15 May, moved the following motion on Tibet in the Australian Senate.
All the political Parties – Labor, Liberal, Greens, Nationals, Democrats and Family First – passed the motion without any dissent.
The motion welcomed the informal talks between the two envoys of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Chinese representatives and the agreement to hold further formal talks.
It encouraged both parties to work sincerely towards peaceful and mutually agreeable resolution on the Tibet issue.
It also praised Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s stand taken on Tibet during his recent visit to Beijing, which calls for a constructive dialogue on Tibet. It calls on the Government to “support and monitor progress.
The full text of the motion is as below:
That the Senate:
a) notes:
(i) the continuing human rights concerns in Tibet,
(ii) the continuing restrictions on entry to Tibetan areas for journalists, international observers, non-government agencies and foreign diplomats;
b) welcomes the informal talks between the Chinese Government and representatives of the 14th Dalai Lama on 4th and 5th of May in Shenzhen, China and the agreement to hold a further round of the China-Tibet dialogue;
c) encourages both parties to work sincerely towards a peaceful and mutually agreeable resolution of the China-Tibet issue;
d) welcomes the Prime Minister’s forthright statements during his recent trip to China, both in public and in private with the Chinese Premier and President, on the need for constructive dialogue;
e) appreciates the Prime Minister’s commitment to being a ‘zhengyou or ‘true friend’ to the Chinese leadership and his willingness to raise challenging issues including Tibet;
f) requests the Government to actively support and monitor progress.