Dalai Lama Threatens Retirement

Guide Note: On March 18, 2008 the Dalai Lama threatened to step down and resign as leader of Tibet's government-in-exile if the ongoing violence committed by Tibetans in his homeland continue. The continued rioting prompted Premier Wen Jiabao to denounce the Dalai Lama's supporters as separatists. Jiabao also accused them of instigating the violence in Tibet's capital city of Lhasa.

Fast Facts:

1. The Dalai Lama threated to retire as politcal leader and head of state because he is committed to nonviolence
2. The recent protests began because of the March 10 anniversary of the failed 1959 uprising against Chinese rule
3. U.S. funded Radio Free Asia quoted an unnamed witness as saying authorities in Lhasa had begun arresting hundreds of people on the 18th, but the report couldn't be independently confirmed because of China's tight control over information and ban on trips by foreign reporters