TIBET:THE DALAI Lama said yesterday he would resign as leader of the Tibetan government-in-exile if violence veers out of control in Tibet and denied accusations from China that he was inciting riots.
"If things become out of control then my only option is to completely resign," the Dalai Lama, Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, told a news conference at his base of Dharamsala in northern India.
The Dalai Lama, who fled into exile in India in 1959, denied Chinese accusations that he was masterminding protests and said he was against violence, whether from Chinese or Tibetans.
"Even if 1,000 Tibetans sacrificed their life, not much help," he told reporters. "Please help stop violence from Chinese side and also from Tibetan side."
The Dalai Lama said he had nothing to hide from the Chinese.
"Investigate thoroughly, so if you want to start investigating from here you are most welcome," he said.
"Check our various offices. They can examine my pulse, my urine, my stool, everything," he said with a laugh, miming as he talked.
The Nobel Peace Prize laureate reaffirmed that he wanted autonomy for Tibet within China but not outright independence.
Asked what the Dalai Lama meant when he talked of resignation, Samdhong Rimpoche, the exiled government's prime minister, said he would still remain as Dalai Lama, if not as leader of his people.
"If the Tibetan people are involved in violence and unable to be in a non-violent way, he would not be in a position to lead the Tibetan people," Mr Rimpoche said.
The Dalai Lama's talk of resignation has surprised some members of the Tibetan parliament-in-exile.
"Tibetan people, inside and outside, will not allow his Holiness to resign, and anyway I think his Holiness has no control over the situation," Youdon Aukatsang, a parliament member said from New Delhi.
She said the Dalai Lama may have been trying to send a message to people in Tibet. "If there's any element of violence in the demonstrations, maybe this is his Holiness's way of dissuading them."
More than 2,000 Tibetans gathered yesterday from all over northeastern India for their biggest rally in the area in years, demanding that the United Nations investigate reports of killings of protesters in China. - (Reuters)