To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the compliance by China, in respect of its occupation of Tibet, with Article 49 paragraph six of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949. (129373)

[holding answer 23 March 2007]: The Government have not made any assessment of the situation in Tibet in relation to paragraph six, Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949. Successive Governments have regarded Tibet as autonomous while recognising the special position of the Chinese authorities there. We encourage the Chinese Government to put history aside and move towards a solution to the present problems in Tibet, doing so most recently at the latest round of the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue in London on 5 February. We continue to urge China to engage in dialogue with representatives of the Dalai Lama, without preconditions.