The Dalai Lama has recently received reports that elements in the Chinese government may be training female agents posing as devotees to try to poison him.
The 76-year-old Nobel laureate said he now lives in a high security cordon in his temple palace grounds in Dharamsala, in the Himalayan foothills, on the advice of Indian security officials.
His aides had not been able to confirm the reports, but had recommended his need for high security, the Dalai Lama said.
"We received some sort of information from Tibet," he said. "Some Chinese agents training some Tibetans, especially women, you see, using poison – the hair poisoned, and the scarf poisoned – they were supposed to seek blessing from me, and my hand touch."
It's no secret that relations between the Dalai Lama and Beijing have been downright frigid. But to the point of wanting to have him killed? I'm hoping this is just coming from rogue elements in the Chinese government. It's in the midst of a power transition, and about the last thing they need is a major international incident. Then again, most of us thought the same thing about Tiananmen.