The 88-year-old Dalai Lama has made the Indian hillside town of Dharamsala his headquarters since fleeing from Tibet after a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959. It was the start of increasingly harsh Chinese rule over the region.
India considers Tibet to be part of China, although it hosts Tibetan exiles.
The Dalai Lama denies China’s claim that he is a separatist and says he only advocates substantial autonomy and protection of Tibet’s native Buddhist culture.
Are China officials aiming to charm the neighbours over next Dalai Lama choice?
Are China officials aiming to charm the neighbours over next Dalai Lama choice?
The Tibetan government-in-exile in India accuses China of denying the most fundamental human rights to people in Tibet and vigorously carrying out the extermination of the Tibetan identity.
The Tibetan Youth Congress, which organised the Delhi protest march on Sunday, said that in 1959, the Chinese Communist regime perpetrated an occupation of Tibet, resulting in Tibetans rising in revolt.
“Since then the Chinese regime has resorted to brutal tactics resulting in the deaths of over a million Tibetans who peacefully protested against oppressive Chinese rule,” it said in a statement.
Tibet was incorporated by China in 1950.
Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning this week said that people in Tibet are “living a happy life”, in response to UN rights chief Volker Turk’s assertion that China was violating fundamental rights.
Tibet enjoys “social stability, economic growth, solidarity among all ethnic groups and harmony among various religious beliefs”, she said.
In August, a group of Chinese scholars called for the official use of “Xizang” as the English name for Tibet, saying it would help “reshape” the region’s image.
Additional reporting by Agence France-Presse