Dalai Lama offers prayers and condolences after deadly Nepal-Tibet floods kill at least 165 people, with more than 1,300 still missing
NEW DELHI: Buddhist spiritual leader the Dalai Lama said Thursday that he was praying for all those killed in devastating floods in Nepal and Tibet.
Flash floods and landslides on Wednesday killed at least 165 people and more than 1,300 remain missing on the Nepal-Tibet border.
“I pray for all those who have lost their lives, and offer my sympathy and heartfelt condolences to the bereaved and to all those affected by this tragedy,” he said in a statement.
The charismatic 91-year-old, who lives in exile in India, is lauded worldwide for his tireless campaign for greater autonomy for his Tibetan homeland, which Beijing says is an integral part of China.
“Since this region has seen calamities in the past as well, these are certainly symptoms of a deeper underlying cause — whether climate change or other factors,” he added.
“I hope that appropriate follow-up measures will be taken, wherever possible, to help ensure that such disasters do not recur.”
The Dalai Lama was just 23 when he fled the Tibetan capital Lhasa in fear for his life after Chinese troops crushed an uprising in 1959. He has never returned. Beijing condemns the Dalai Lama as a rebel and separatist.
On Wednesday, Penpa Tsering, leader of the India-based government of Tibetans in exile — the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) — called the disaster a “catastrophe”.
“The news of casualties and widespread destruction …and of the hundreds still missing, is heartbreaking,” Tsering said.
China calls the exiled Tibetans “nothing but a separatist political group.”
