You stay classy, China:

Senior Chinese leaders taunt Tibetan leader, speak of his passing

GEOFFREY YORK

From Tuesday’s Globe and Mail

November 11, 2008 at 5:15 AM EST

BEIJING — After the near-total breakdown of talks between China and the Dalai Lama’s representatives, Beijing has made it bluntly clear that it is looking beyond the Dalai Lama to the era that will follow his death.

The 73-year-old Tibetan leader, who has suffered a bout of ill health and hospital treatment in recent months, has already given up most of his political duties. Now he faces taunting from Chinese officials, who yesterday spoke openly of his “poor health” and his “passing away.”

The Dalai Lama, hugely popular in the West and in the exiled Tibetan community, has been the nemesis of the Chinese government for decades. Beijing accused him yesterday of planning “apartheid and ethnic cleansing” in his Tibetan homeland.

In a report later, China’s state news agency said the government is looking to the “post-Dalai Lama era.” It quoted an official who made repeated references to the advanced age and “poor health condition” of the Tibetan leader.

The remarks are certain to deepen the gulf between Beijing and the Tibetan exiles, who are planning a major summit from Nov. 17 to 22 to decide on a new strategy in the aftermath of the failure of the latest talks between the two sides.

Not really much to add to this other than to say that this is just another reminder that the Chinese government is not a good faith partner in any negotiations with the Tibetan Government in Exile.