Dharamsala: Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile hosted a gala dinner and cultural presentation to the Friedrich Naumann Foundation (FNF) Delegation consisting of Dr. Carsten Klein, Director, South Asia, Mr. Pankaj Kumar, Finance Manager, and Ms. Jacqueline Bakshi, Regional Internal Auditor. The gala dinner and cultural presentation for the FNF delegation were attended by Sikyong Penpa Tsering along with his cabinet Ministers and all the Parliamentarians led by Speaker Khenpo Sonam Tenphel and the Deputy Speaker Dolma Tsering of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile on the 28^th March 2022.

Greeting the FNF delegation members, Sikyong-led Kalons, and Speaker-led Parliament Members, Deputy Speaker Dolma Tsering Teykahng in her welcome address at the auditorium of the Tibetan Institute of Performing Art extended her gratitude to FNF which is one of the oldest partners of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile with joint project of the Tibetan Parliamentary and Policy Research Centre (TPPRC) since 1991. Even after the closure of TPPRC in 2014, the FNF continued supporting the workshops to the Tibetan Local Assemblies to strengthen democracy at the grassroots level.

Likewise, Sikyong Penpa Tsering of the Central Tibetan Administration in his address applauded the significant contribution of FNF to the democratization process of the Tibetan polity by sharing his own experience of working at the TPPRC. He then introduced each of the members of the delegation and expressed his appreciation for their firm commitment to the Tibetan cause.

Thereafter, Director Carsten Klein in his keynote speech shared his profound happiness in visiting Dharamsala and meeting with the leadership of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA). He lauded the excellent spirit of professionalism of the CTA with sustainability, creativity, and innovation and assured everyone present there that they will let the people of the world and especially of Europe have first-hand encounter with the Tibetan settlements and community in India to witness a properly functioning institution with democratic ideology.

Finally, before the presentation of the Tibetan cultural performances, the Director of the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (TIPA) gave a brief introduction of the institute, followed by hosting a gala dinner for the FNF delegation members.

Earlier that day, Dr. Carsten Klein, Director, South Asia FNF visited the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile and observed the ongoing Parliamentary budget session during which he was accorded a warm welcome by the house.

During the FNF Director’s visit to the Parliamentary Secretariat, he was received and briefed on the working of the Parliament at the Parliamentary Secretariat by Deputy Speaker Dolma Tsering Teykhang. The Deputy Speaker extended her heartfelt gratitude to FNF for providing support and assistance to the Tibetan Parliament for a very long time. She briefed the FNF South Asia Director on the critical human rights violations and environmental degradation happening inside Tibet and further shed some light on the recently passed Tibetan Parliamentary resolutions on the critical situations inside Tibet and on the critical environmental exploitation happening inside Tibet.

The Deputy Speaker also spoke on the Parliamentary visitation programs, strategic planning, brainstorming conferences among parliamentarians, capacity building training, and Tibet outreach programs of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile and answered questions asked by Dr. Carsten Klein during their brief meeting at the Deputy Speaker’s office.