Overview

• The three-day Tibetan Religious Conference in Dharamsala will open on July 2 with a video message from the Dalai Lama four days before his 90th birthday.
• He has publicly asserted that only he and traditional Tibetan Buddhist authorities can decide his reincarnation and that any successor must be born outside China’s jurisdiction.
• He plans to consult senior lamas, the wider Tibetan community and followers to decide if and how the Dalai Lama lineage should continue.
• Beijing’s prior abduction of the Panchen Lama and ongoing sinicization policies heighten concerns that the Chinese Communist Party will appoint a rival spiritual leader.
• U.S. legislation such as the 2020 Tibet Policy and Support Act reinforces international opposition to Chinese interference in the Dalai Lama succession process.