European Union and Tibet
Council of the European Union
The Council of the European Union represents the EU Member States’ positions and interests at EU level.
The main tool through which the Council of the EU can promote the respect for and protection of human rights in China and Tibet is the adoption of conclusions and press statements. Over the years, the Council of the EU has adopted a series of statements on the Sino-Tibetan dialogue, the death penalty and execution of Tibetans and the deportation Tibetan asylum seekers from Nepal to China, amongst others. The Council of the EU is also responsible for adopting the EU’s annual report on human rights and democracy in the world, which provides an overview of the EU’s engagement and actions to promote and protect human rights across the globe; it is accompanied by a "country update" where developments in Tibet are covered.
European External Action Service
The European External Action Service (EEAS) is the European Union’s diplomatic service, supporting the EU’s foreign affairs chief - the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice President of the European Commission (HR/VP), currently Kaja Kallas - in conducting the Union’s Common Foreign and Security Policy. Based in Brussels, it is divided into geographical and thematic directorates and division and relies on over 140 EU Delegations worldwide. It manages the EU’s relations with non-EU countries and also work with international organizations such as the United Nations.
With respect to China and Tibet, the EEAS plays a central role in promoting human rights.It facilitates EU-China dialogues on human rights, raises individual cases, and publicly express the EU's concern about the situation in Tibet - including in international forums such as the UN Human Rights Council.
External ressources:
European External Action Service
Delegation of the European Union to the People’s Republic of China
European Parliament
The European Parliament - the directly elected legislative body of the European Union, representing the interests of over 450 million citizens across EU Member States - has been at the forefront of any EU initiative supporting the Tibetan people within the European Union.
In 1988, it became the first parliament in Europe to host the Dalai Lama for an official address on Tibet , despite strong objections from the Chinese government. Since then, a committed group of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) - initially through a formal “Tibet Intergroup” first established in 1989, and more recently through a more informal grouping, the Tibet Friendship Group - has worked to keep Tibet on the EU’s agenda.
As a result of their efforts, the European Parliament has adopted more than 50 resolutions addressing Tibet directly or in the context of China’s broader human rights abuses. Some of these resolutions have raised concerns about: Human rights situation in Tibet (including restrictions on religious freedom, repression of the 2008 uprising, self-immolations, the undermining of the Tibetan language or more recently opposing China’s interferences in the Dalai Lama’s succession), EU’s policy on Tibet or emblematic individual cases such as the Panchen Lama, Tenzin Delek Rinpoche or Tashi Wangchuk. Continuation - or since 2010 the resumption - of the dialogue between the Chinese government and the representatives of the Dalai Lama.
Although non legally binding on the EU and its Members States, these resolutions send the clear message that the European Parliament — and by extension the European public — continues to stand with the Tibetan people.
Click here to see all European Parliament resolutions on or mentioning Tibet!