Demonize your avowed enemy of state to distract attention from your own shortcomings. Right out of the Republican playbook.
China: Dalai Lama Wants to Sour Olympics
China: Dalai Lama Wants to Sour Olympics
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao accused supporters of the Dalai Lama on Tuesday of organizing violent clashes in Tibet in hopes of sabotaging the Beijing Olympics and bolstering their campaign for independence in the Himalayan territory.
The Dalai Lama urged his followers to remain peaceful, saying he would resign as head of the Tibetan government-in-exile if violence got out of control. But he also suggested China may have fomented unrest in the Tibetan capital of Lhasa and nearby provinces to discredit him.
In striking an uncompromising line, Wen underscored the communist leadership's determination to restore order in Tibet and Tibetan areas of neighboring provinces.
"There is ample fact - and we also have plenty of evidence - proving that this incident was organized, premeditated, masterminded and incited by the Dalai clique," he told reporters at his annual news conference at the end of China's national legislative session.
