SOUTH AFRICA: University professors and students criticise the South African government over the cancellation of a visit by the Dalai Lama to South Africa

Record ID: 455735

  • Title: SOUTH AFRICA: University professors and students criticise the South African government over the cancellation of a visit by the Dalai Lama to South Africa
  • Date: 6th October 2011
  • Summary: JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA (OCTOBER 5, 2011) (REUTERS) WIDE SHOT OF PROTEST PROTESTERS WITH BANNERS AND POSTERS BANNER "FREE TIBET MY CHINA" (SOUNDBITE) (English) PROFESSOR LOYISO NONGXA, VICE CHANCELLOR FOR UNIVERSITY OF WITWATERSRAND, SAYING: "What we forget is that Archbishop Tutu during that day of apartheid - he stood up for what he believed was right. He pointed out to the people that were exiled, he pointed out to people that were in prisons, and say that we all have to recognise that these are the people who are going to speak on behalf of our people." POSTER "NO PASS LAWS FOR THE DALAI LAMA" CROWD MARCHING CARRYING BANNERS AND POSTERS PROTESTERS FACING THE STREET POSTER WITH PHOTOS OF DALAI LAMA AND ARCHBISHOP DESMOND TUTU (SOUNDBITE) (English) PROFESSOR PATRICK FITZGERALD, PROTESTER, SAYING: "This is very disingenuous of the government. My own belief is the government have decided not to give him a visa for various reasons and my wish and I challenge government to just come out and say honestly - we've decided not to give the Dalai Lama a visa and these are the reasons. And then we can debate those reasons." POSTER "WHY DENY A MAN OF PEACE A VISA" MORE OF PROTESTERS
  • Embargoed: 21st October 2011 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: South Africa, South Africa
  • Country: South Africa
  • Topics: International Relations,Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA8ESIC6N763Z6IKN46O3UOMR49
  • Story Text: Around 300 students and faculty members staged a protest in Johannesburg on Wednesday (October 5) following the cancellation of a visit by the Dalai Lama.
    Angered by the government's denial of a visa to the Tibetan spiritual leader, the protesters marched around the campus holding banners with messages "Free Tibet My China" and "Why deny a man of peace a visa."
    The Dalai Lama's trip had put the government in a bind between its biggest trading partner China and one of its modern heroes, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Desmond Tutu.
    The Dalai Lama's office said on Tuesday (October 4) he cancelled the trip intended for him to attend Archbishop Tutu's 80th birthday celebration because South Africa, which has had his application paperwork for weeks, had not issued him a visa on time.
    South African President Jacob Zuma's African National Congress (ANC) government had come under pressure from China not to issue a visa to the Dalai Lama, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate Beijing sees as a dangerous separatist.
    Tutu said the government's action was a national disgrace and angrily denounced the decision during a news conference on Tuesday, saying the ANC-led government was "worse than the apartheid government."
    Protesters were angered by the government's decision.
    "This is very disingenuous of the government. My own belief is the government have decided not to give him a visa for various reasons and my wish and I challenge govenrment to just come out and say honestly - we've decided not to give the Dalai Lama a visa and these are the reaons. And then we can debate those reasons," said Professor Patrick Fitzgerald, one of those who marched in the University of Witwatersrand campus in Johannesburg.
    Last week, China agreed to $2.5 billion in investment projects with South Africa during a visit by South African Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe to Beijing.
    The ANC said Tutu's comparison of the ruling party with the former white apartheid government was "very unfortunate and totally misplaced".
    The Dalai Lama, once embraced as a beacon of peace in South Africa when apartheid ended, has become a diplomatic headache as its economic fortunes are increasingly linked to China, which had pushed Pretoria to reject a previous visa application.
    Zuma's government has been criticised in local media for not allowing the visit for the birthday of Tutu, a man internationally respected for helping bring down apartheid rule.
    The Dalai Lama came to South Africa in 1996 to visit then President Mandela who told Beijing it was Pretoria's right to decide on whom it allows into the country.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register