Hon. Dana Rohrabacher
Chairman
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
Committee on Foreign Affairs
November 23, 2012

Sir,

With reference to your letter addressed to the democratically elected Sikyong of the Central Tibetan Administration, the Tibetan Parliament in Exile wish to express the following concerns:

1. The United States of America as an advanced democratic nation is someone that all other democratic countries around the world look up to as an example and inspiration for its democratic functioning and practices. Therefore we were deeply saddened by the denigrating and unparliamentary language that a person of your stature has used in the letter.

2. We are also taken aback by your action to publicize the content of the letter, which are clearly based on insinuation and hearsay even before the Sikyong could respond to your allegations. This has caused much speculation amongst Tibetans both within and outside Tibet, and caused unwarranted damages to the integrity and credibility of the Central Tibetan Administration.

3. Concerning the internal matters of Radio Free Asia, we would like to assure you that we have neither in the past nor will we ever in the future interfere in its functioning. However, keeping in view the objective of the Radio service, we have expressed our opinion and concerns in and outside the Tibetan Parliament in Exile regarding contents of some programs of Radio Free Asia in the past and we shall do so in future as well, which we consider is well within our democratic rights. (We will be happy to provide transcript of the debate in the parliament.)

4. Above all we are alarmed at the serious allegations that you have made regarding misuse of US funding assistance for the Tibetans. We wish to state in unequivocal terms that any assistance by US received through the Central Tibetan Administration are accounted and audited through proper democratic mechanisms with full transparency and accountability. We welcome scrutiny by any US agency on this matter.

5. The position of the Central Tibetan Administration in resolving the Tibetan Issue is unanimously approved by the Tibetan Parliament in Exile and US government has stood firmly behind us. We have nothing to say on your personal position on the Tibet Issue.

Your letter coming at a time when we are going through the darkest period of our history in view of the extremely grave situation on Tibet of Tibetans being driven to self immolations, your letter was most unfortunate.

Sincerely,

Speaker
Tibetan Parliament in Exile

(Unanimous decision taken by the Standing Committee of Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile)

Cc: 1. H.E. President of United States of America

2. Hon’ble President of Senate

3. Hon’ble Speaker, House of Representative

4. Respected Members of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs

5. Respected Secretary of the State

6. Special Representative for Tibet

7. Respected Members of Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations

8. Broadcasting Board of Governors

9. Ms. Libby Liu, President of RFA

10. Hon’ble Sikyong, CTA, Dharamsala

11. Office of Tibet, New York