Himalayan Buddhist Cultural Association organises rally in Siliguri to express solidarity with Dalai Lama

Siliguri (West Bengal) [India], April 20 : The Himalayan Buddhist Cultural Association on Wednesday orgsed a rally in Siliguri's Salugara area to express solidarity with the Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama following the controversy over his viral video for which he has apologised.

The Association claimed the video was a conspiracy to defame Dalai Lama.

After the Dalai Lama's video of purportedly kissing a boy went viral, a group of Tibetan leaders and activists from across the globe, expressed their solidarity and support for him, reported Global Alliance for Tibet and Persecuted Minorities in a statement.

The statement came in the wake of the media coverage around a video clip of Dalai Lama's interaction with a child at an event in February.

The statement said, "Language, culture, and context define how people view any given situation. For Tibetans who see the video clip of the Dalai Lama's interaction with a child at a public event in February, it is clear he is displaying his affection, warmth, and humour. It is through a lifetime of familiarity with the Dalai Lama that we understand his words and actions."

"For some people who don't know the Tibetan context, and especially because so many children suffer serious abuse at the hands of powerful people and religious institutions, the belief and assumption is that the act was malign and the child was harmed. We can say with absolute certainty that this is not what happened," the statement added, as per Global Alliance for Tibet and Persecuted Minorities.

The Global Tibetan leaders and activists said, "It is instructive to hear what the child and his family have said about their time with the Dalai Lama. The mother (seen sitting onstage next to the Dalai Lama) and the child both gave media interviews immediately after the event. While we know this won't satisfy everyone with concerns, we hope their own words will help add some context and clarity to the question of how they feel about what happened."

"What has been most painful for Tibetans and our allies is witnessing the rush to condemn the Dalai Lama. Any attempt to understand Tibetan culture, the full context of the exchange, and this nearly 90-year-old icon of global peace has been shockingly absent from most media coverage and online discourse," the statement said.

The Dalai Lama recently issued an apology expressing his regret after a purported video of him kissing a boy and asking him to "suck his tongue" triggered a social media uproar.

An official statement released by the office of the Dalai Lama stated that the Tibetan spiritual leader "wishes to apologize to the boy and his family, as well as his many friends across the world, for the hurt his words may have caused."