October 5, 2011

Anglican bishops in South Africa have charged their government with "bureaucratic obfuscation" for its failure to grant the Dalai Lama a visa in time to attend Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town Desmond Tutu's 80th birthday celebrations.

In an Oct. 5 statement, Bishops Merwyn Castle of False Bay, Garth Counsell of Table Bay and Raphael Hess of Saldanha Bay expressed "dismay" at the South African government's delay in granting a visa for the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan Buddhist leader.

"We are saddened by the bureaucratic obfuscation created by the South African government in justifying this tragic and unacceptable outcome," the bishops said. "We understand the expressions of anger by Archbishop Desmond Tutu and assure him of our continued prayerful support."

Tutu criticized the South African government, saying on a Johannesburg broadcast program: "I have to say that I can't believe this, I really can't believe this."

The Dalai Lama was scheduled to give a speech, titled "Peace and Compassion as a Catalyst for Change," in honor of Tutu's birthday on Oct. 7 and receive the Mahatma Gandhi International Award for Peace and Reconciliation.

Critics said the government of President Jacob Zuma and his African National Congress party were bowing to pressure from China, a close trading partner that has clashed with the Dalai Lama over greater freedoms for Tibet, which has been ruled by China since 1950. The government denied it was under pressure from China to stop the Dalai Lama's visit.

In a message on his website from Dharamsala, India, the Dalai Lama said he called off the planned Oct. 6-14 visit because he does not want to "create any inconvenience to anyone, individual or government."

On Oct. 3, responding to rumors the visa would not be issued, about 300 supporters of the Dalai Lama held a protest outside the South African parliament in Cape Town. The Desmond Tutu Peace Centre issued a petition calling for the Dalai Lama to be allowed into South Africa. Signatories said they were "ashamed and hurt" by the visa delays and that they believed the Dalai Lama was being refused entry "on the basis of political considerations that are inconsistent with our constitution and the values contained in it."

Episcopal News Service