Dalai Lama demands probe into alleged hacking of Tibetan websites by China
By ANITuesday, March 31, 2009
NEW DELHI - Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Tuesday called for an investigation into reports of spill of information from the Tibetan website by China.
“Some individuals want to see me and want to correspond with our concerned officials, that information has been reached to Chinese hands. I call for a thorough investigation into reports of spill of information from the Tibetan website by China,” the Dalai Lama told reporters at a press conference here.
A computer located in the private office of the Dalai Lama was infected with a virus. Reportedly, this virus was capable of ‘phoning home’, which means stealing information such as e-mail lists with thousands of names and negotiating position documents from the machine and sending it to those in control of the virus.
On this score, the Dalai Lama also appealed to the Chinese government to allow access to impartial media inside Tibet to ascertain the Chinese propaganda about the scenario of his homeland.
“I take this opportunity to appeal the Chinese government to allow international unbiased media people to visit Tibet. Let them see, if things are good as Chinese propaganda always state. One way so much propaganda and one way including tank. I was told about 50 tanks stations in Lhasa ready to shoot,” he added.
Meanwhile, China rejected the report suggesting it may be involved in using computer networks to spy on Tibetan exiles and foreign governments, accusing its authors of being possessed by ‘the ghost of the Cold War’.
A report from the Toronto-based Munk Center for International Studies in Toronto had noted that at least 1,295 computers in 103 countries were breached by the electronic spying, which it said was based in China but could not be definitively linked to the government.
Among the sites infiltrated from China were embassies, foreign ministries and government offices, especially across southeast and south Asia, and the Dalai Lama’s Tibetan exile centres. These were the observations of the Canadian researchers in a report that was released last week. (ANI)
