Mr. Speaker, one year ago this week Canadians were blessed with a visit by His Holiness, the Dalai Lama. Just two weeks ago I had the distinct honour of representing the Canadian Parliamentary Friends of Tibet during a visit to Dharamsala in India, the seat of the Tibetan government in exile. There I met with Tibetan leaders and discussed many issues of mutual interest.
It became clear to me during those discussions that China cannot stop the self-determination aspirations of the Tibetan people. Tibetans have a distinct identity and China's attempt to force Tibet into assimilation will not be accepted by the freedom loving people of the world.
While we welcome the new openness of China, we also hold it accountable for its human rights violations, especially in Tibet. We call on China to immediately begin dialogue with His Holiness to resolve the Tibet issue. Nothing short of this is acceptable to the world community.