iRuler
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Facebook page to go with it: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Julia-Gillard-is-a-Man-Dalai-Lama/232130186797599DALAI LAMA UNFAZED BY PM SNUB
The Dalai Lama gave so little thought to the prospect of a meeting with Australia's prime minister he didn't even know she was a "she".
Asked on Tuesday whether he was disappointed Julia Gillard had followed Labor tradition by declining a meeting, the Tibetan spiritual leader was blunt: "No."
The 75-year-old Buddhist - who recently relinquished control of the Tibetan government in exile - said the goal of his visit was to promote values and religious harmony.
"If your prime minister has some kind of spiritual interest then of course my meeting would be useful," he told reporters at Parliament House in Canberra.
"Otherwise, I have nothing to ask him. Also, you see, there's no point to seek advice from him."
One of the Dalai Lama's aides quietly corrected His Holiness: "Her".
"Oh, from her," he said with a laugh.
Ms Gillard later defended her decision to dodge a meeting.
"The Dalai Lama is a frequent visitor to Australia," she told reporters.
"I think he's been here four times in the last five years. On some occasions he has met with prime minister, on others he hasn't."
Ms Gillard said China played no role in her decision: "I make my own decisions and the government makes its own decisions about meetings that we hold."
The government sent Environment Minister Peter Garrett to meet privately with the Nobel Peace Prize winner in Ms Gillard's stead.
The Dalai Lama also met with Opposition Leader Tony Abbott, Nationals Leader Warren Truss and Australian Greens Leader Bob Brown.
Mr Abbott described it as a "good and constructive meeting".
Asked what he got out of it, Mr Abbott said: "I think an added consciousness of the importance of the spiritual dimension to life and a sense of his commitment to the welfare of the Tibetan people."
The Australia Tibet Council expressed disappointment with Ms Gillard's decision, pointing out no Labor prime minister had met the Dalai Lama since Paul Keating in 1992.
"Strangely, the prime minister can find time to fly to Sydney to meet Oprah Winfrey and meets regularly with Chinese officials and heads of industry, yet cannot find 10 minutes to meet the Dalai Lama in Parliament House," said the council's Paul Bourke.
Labor backbencher Michael Danby, who helped organise the visit, said he had hoped for a warmer welcome from senior government members.
"I hoped in light of recent developments in China, related to the Jasmine Revolution, that at least Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd would seek the Dalai Lama's insights," he said.
John Howard met with the Dalai Lama in 1996 and 2007 but Mr Rudd declined meetings in 2008 and 2009, sparking accusations he was kowtowing to China.
The Dalai Lama's travels often spark tensions between host countries and China, which regards him as a separatist.
http://au.news.yahoo.com/latest/a/-/latest/9636660/dalai-lama-unfazed-by-pm-snub/
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