Australian Parliamentarians Warren Entsch and Susan Templeman, the two co-chairs of the Australian All-Party Parliamentary Friendship Group for Tibet, wrote a letter to Under Secretary Uzra Zeya on 10 February. They congratulated her on being appointed as the US Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues by President Biden, and called for joint efforts and collaboration with like-minded partners to resolve the Sino-Tibetan conflict.
In their congratulatory letter, they wrote:
We would like to congratulate you, in our capacity as the Co-Chairs of the Australian All-Party Parliamentary Friendship Group for Tibet, in your new role as the U.S Special Co-ordinator for Tibetan issues.
We welcome your commitment to promote a substantive dialogue between the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and His Holiness the Dalai Lama of Tibet or His representative, without any pre-conditions. We appreciate your interest in working closely with like-minded partners and governments in the international community on policy initiatives pertaining to Tibet, including calling upon the PRC to end interference in the selection and veneration of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Tibetan Buddhist religious leaders.
The Australian All Parliamentary Group for Tibet is fully committed to supporting the non-violent struggle of the Tibetan people for the restoration of their freedoms, protection of their human rights and preservation of their distinct historical, linguistic, religious and cultural heritage.
Today, the situation in Tibet remains grim and it is high time to address the plight of the Tibetan people. Hence, it is vital that all like- minded states and partners should call upon the Chinese leaders to resolve the Tibetan issue through the Middle Way Approach as proposed by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
We should sincerely urge the Chinese leadership to recognise that His Holiness the Dalai Lama is the key to resolving the Sino-Tibetan conflict and should ask them to invite him to Tibet and China on a pilgrimage, since His Holiness has long desired to visit Wutai Shan, a holy Buddhist site in China.
Finally, we wish you every success in your new responsibilities concerning Tibetan issues and in promoting our fundamental shared values of democracy, freedom and human rights.