Dharamshala: As part of the Australia Tibet Council (ATC)’s Little Tibet Tour, a delegation led by ATC Executive Director Dr. Zoe Bedford visited the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile on 30 October 2025.

Deputy Speaker Dolma Tsering Teykhang hosted an hour-and-a-half-long interactive session with the delegation at the Parliament’s Standing Committee Hall. During the meeting, they discussed various issues of mutual interest and exchanged ideas on strengthening the global campaign for Tibet.

The Deputy Speaker expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the ATC delegation for their continued support to Tibet and the Tibetan people, and to the Australian government for its humanitarian program that has welcomed many Tibetan refugees. She also acknowledged the consistent support extended by Australian lawmakers who, across party lines, have raised their voices for Tibet and Tibetans in their Parliament.

The delegation was briefed on the critical situation inside Tibet, including its deteriorating environmental condition given the region’s fragile ecosystem, as well as the plight of Tibetans living under the repressive policies of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Deputy Speaker Teykhang highlighted the existential threat faced by Tibet as a nation under China’s occupation, with policies aimed at Sinicizing Tibet such as colonial-style boarding schools that deprive Tibetan children of their right to learn their language, culture, and religion. She described these measures as part of “a systematic strategy to eradicate Tibetan identity.”

“In Tibet, faith is criminalized, truth is censored, and injustice wears the mask of development,” she said, while also drawing attention to the continuing self-immolations in Tibet as a desperate form of protest against the CCP’s illegal occupation.

The delegation was further briefed on the evolution of Tibetan democracy, the composition and functioning of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, and some of its key initiatives, including the World Parliamentarians’ Convention on Tibet (WPCT). The Deputy Speaker also elaborated on the Declaration and Action Plan adopted at the 9th WPCT, held earlier this year in Tokyo, Japan.

The visit concluded with a guided tour of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile.