Scholars Urge China to Meet With Dalai Lama

A group of prominent Chinese intellectuals is challenging the government over its response to protests in Tibet, accusing Beijing of inciting ethnic tensions and demanding that it begin talks with the Dalai Lama. A petition signed by 29 writers, journalists and scholars, blasts China’s “one-sided propaganda” war and charges it with “fanning racial hatred,” reports the New York Times.

The intellectuals also urged Beijing to invite the UN to investigate China’s assertion that the Dalai Lama instigated Tibetan protests. The public move undermines Beijing’s effort to present a united front on the unrest. But with the nation's media controls, news of the petition may never reach the Chinese people. (More China stories.)