WASHINGTON (AP) — How much will
President Barack Obama and the Dalai Lama interact during their first joint
public event at the National Prayer Breakfast? Heaven only knows.
Thursday's event at the Washington
Hilton drew some 3,600 U.S. and international leaders and criticism from China,
which considers the Dalai Lama an anti-Chinese separatist because of his quest
for greater Tibetan autonomy. Outside the hotel, hundreds of protesters
gathered in the predawn darkness waving Tibetan flags.
Obama was seated at the head table
with other speakers for the annual hourlong discussion on faith that brings
together leaders from different parties and religions. The Dalai Lama was
seated in the audience, directly in front of the dais, with actor Richard Gere
and top Obama aide Valerie Jarrett.
With such close proximity, a chance
encounter is possible between Obama and the Dalai Lama, who spoke Wednesday at
a luncheon closed to the media. But the White House downplayed the prospect of
any official engagement, saying there is no specific meeting between the fellow
Nobel Peace Prize winners to announce.
China also protested each of Obama's
three meetings with the Dalai Lama, which were always held privately without
any news coverage because of the sensitivity of the encounter. President George
W. Bush ignored furious Chinese objections when he presented the Dalai Lama
with the Congressional Gold Medal at the Capitol Rotunda in 2007.
Last year at the prayer breakfast,
Obama criticized China for failing to protect religious freedom. When meeting
with Chinese leaders, he said, "I stress that realizing China's potential
rests on upholding universal rights, including for Christians and Tibetan
Buddhists and Uighur Muslims."
