US gives visa to Tibetan monk China hates

TIBET'S PRAYER: The Karmapa with the Dalai Lama at the Tsuglakhang temple in Dharmsala.

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New Delhi: The United States has for the first time granted visa to exiled Tibetan leader Karmapa Lama, who was groomed by China to be the spiritual head of Tibetans but fled to India in 2000 when he was 14.

Sources told CNN-IBN in New Delhi that the 17th Karmapa Lama, Ogyen Thrinley Dorje, could visit the US for a fortnight.

His visit to America would come at a time when China is facing worldwide condemnation for its crackdown on protesters in Tibet and the torch relay for the Beijing Olympics has been disrupted in London and Paris.

Beijing has repeatedly warned the international community against establishing contact with the Karmapa Lama, whom it accuses of trying to split Tibet from China.

The Communist nation is expected to register its protest with India for clearing his visit to the US. When the Karmapa Lama fled from Tibet in January 2000, China had accused India of facilitating his escape.

The Dalai Lama, last week, had indicated that time had come for a new generation of Tibetans to take over the duty of spiritual leadership. "There are now spiritual leaders who are young, energetic and well educated. They can assume the role of spiritual leadership as political role is played by a democratically elected government," he had said.

The Karmapa Lama is the third in line to succeed the Dalai Lama and heads the heads the Karma Kagyu sect.