Phayul exclusive with Kalon Tripa Dr Lobsang Sangay

Phayul exclusive with Kalon Tripa Dr Lobsang Sangay

Phayul[Monday, August 22, 2011 22:45] DHARAMSHALA, August 22: In an exclusive interview with Phayul, Kalon Tripa Dr Lobsang Sangay today said that he will introduce changes in the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) including the induction of new members in the task force for the Sino-Tibet dialogue process. Dr Sangay was the first guest on ‘Phayul Open Interviews’, a new series of interactive interviews where Phayul gives an opportunity to the general public to ask their questions. Answering questions sent in by Tibetans the world over, Dr Sangay called himself a “pragmatic person”. "I am pragmatic person and change is a part of the process. I will bring changes to my administration," Dr Sangay told Phayul. In an attempt to have a “professionalised administration”, Dr Sangay proposed to conduct a survey to try and accommodate the interest and knowledge of individual staff. "To retain the experienced and trained staff is my priority,” Dr Sangay said. Answering a question on his hopes for a meaningful dialogue with the fifth generation leaders of China, Dr Sangay said that it was too early to comment. “From his speech that Xi Jinping gave in Lhasa on the 60th anniversary of the “peaceful liberation” he sounded very much a hardliner. So, it seems it might continue that way,” Dr Sangay said. Asked whether he would implement a more co-operative approach to the NGOs within the Tibetan community, Kalon Tripa said that it was in his nature to be “liberal and approachable”. "At a practical local level, for example, I have been to Shichaks (Tibetan settlements) where the father is the head of the local assembly, where the mother is the executive member of the Women’s Association and the son is a member of Regional Tibetan Youth Congress. How can you tell them that you can’t do things together," Dr Sangay questioned. "So, along with my Kashag, I will have to sort this out and arrive to a decision,” Kalon Tripa said. Describing the situation inside Tibet as “tragic”, Dr Sangay while referring to the self immolation of Tsewang Norbu last week said that the sacrifices being made by Tibetans inside Tibet were a source of inspiration. “The courage, the conviction of the Tibetan spirit despite the repression shows that they will not give up for Tibet. That is a source of inspiration for me and I believe for most of the Tibetans,” Dr Sangay said.