Dear Mr/Ms

I am writing to you to express my outrage on the recent change in the government’s policy on Tibet and to urge you to press for Parliamentary scrutiny of the decision.

The Foreign Secretary announced in a Written Statement on 29 October a change in the British government’s position on the status of Tibet, stating, for the first time, that “Tibet is a part of the People’s Republic of China”. The British government has up till now, for 94 years, recognised Chinese “suzerainty” in Tibet but not full Chinese sovereignty, regarding Tibet having a ‘special position’. Britain’s position was based on treaties it signed with the Tibetan government, notably the Simla Accords of 1913. This position was reiterated by the then British Foreign Secretary, Lord Curzon, in 1920 when he also stated that Britain had viewed Tibet as de facto independent since 1912.

Within the same Written Statement the Foreign Secretary has also stated that long term stability in Tibet can be achieved through greater autonomy for Tibet which can only materialise through the Sino-Tibetan dialogue.

The timing of this policy change is extraordinary: The announcement came in the very year that China has committed its worst human rights abuses in Tibet in decades and two days before the eighth round of the Sino-Tibetan dialogue on autonomy was taking place.

Days after the announcement of British policy shift, the Chinese official involved in the Sino-Tibetan dialogue broadcasted on state television that China would “never” accept calls by the Dalai Lama for greater autonomy in Tibet, effectively closing the doors on the Sino-Tibetan talks and proving the complete insincerity of the process.

The change of position has profound implications for the Tibetan people and was made without any form of parliamentary scrutiny. The Foreign Secretary must explain to the Parliament and to the British public the reasons for this policy shift.
Therefore I am asking you as my MP to demand an explanation of the Foreign Secretary’s change of policy; and to urge the Foreign Affairs Select Committee to apply appropriate scrutiny on the change in Britain’s position on the legal status of Tibet.

Specifically the Foreign Secretary must:

1. justify Tibet’s status changing despite Britain’s long standing position
2. clarify what gains the Government aimed to achieve with the shift in policy
3. explain how the British Government will hold the Chinese Government accountable for the worsening human rights violations in Tibet
4. explain the UK’s strategy for securing a just and sustainable resolution to Tibetan governance in Tibet now that the talks have failed.

Yours sincerely,

Your name

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