The Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, announced that he will retire from political life within days. The Tibetan government in exile is set to change its constitution and elect a Prime Minister who will take over the political offices held by the Dalai Lama.
The 76-year-old Dalai Lama fled Tibet in 1959 and China has taken a strong hold over Tibet.
"My desire to devolve authority has nothing to do with shirking responsibility," the Dalai Lama said. "It is to benefit Tibetans in the long run."
China tries to control Dalai Lama's successor through reincarnation laws.
For hundreds of years, the Dalai Lama has been identified as a reincarnated person, so China last month banned reincarnation unless it followed specific government laws. By March 8, a Chinese official said that the Dalai Lama does not have a right to choose his successor any way he wants and must follow the historical and religious tradition of reincarnation. Reuters reported that,
The Chinese government says it has to approve all reincarnations of living Buddhas, or senior religious figures in Tibetan Buddhism. It also says China has to sign off on the choosing of the next Dalai Lama.
"Tibetan Buddhism has a history of more than 1,000 years, and the reincarnation institutions of the Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama have been carried on for several hundred years," Padma Choling said.
Some worry that once the Dalai Lama dies, China will simply appoint its own successor, raising the possibility of there being two Dalai Lamas -- one recognized by China and the other chosen by exiles or with the blessing of the current Dalai Lama.
The second most important figure in the Tibetan religious and political hierarchy is the Panchen Lama. The current Panchan Lama was taken by Chinese authorities in 1995 when he was a little boy and has not been seen since. China replaced the Panchan Lama with their own political figure.
The monastery of the third most important Tibetan religious and political figure, the Karamapa Lama, of the Black Hat lineage and who lives in exile with the Dalai Lama, was raided by Indian authorities in February this year.
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