News: October 2007 Archives
By Ashleigh Patterson | CTV.ca
28 October 2007
Prime Minister Stephen Harper will host the first-ever formal meeting between a Canadian prime minister and the Dalai Lama -- a controversial move that could signal an unprecedented push for Tibetan autonomy.
The 72-year-old exiled spiritual leader will visit Ottawa today and publicly meet with Harper in the Prime Minister's Office on Monday.
That meeting is expected to go further than former prime minister Paul Martin's informal private talk with the Tibetan leader in 2004 -- the first time the Dalai Lama had ever met with a Canadian prime minister.
"For us, no matter what they talk about in the meeting, the significance is that they are meeting," Norbu Tsering, president of the Canadian Tibetan Association of Ontario, told CTV.ca from Toronto.
October's visit will be the Dalai Lama's sixth trip to Canada and his third to Ottawa since he began travelling to the West in the 1970s:
- The Dalai Lama first visited Canada in 1980 and was met by then-governor general Ed Schreyer.
- In 1990, he visited Ottawa for the first time and met former secretary of state for multiculturalism Gerry Weiner on the government's behalf.
- The Dalai Lama's 1990 visit prompted an amendment to Sino-Canadian diplomatic policy, which was officially established in 1970. Canada continued to recognize the People's Republic of China as the official government but would take no position on territorial claims.
- In 2004, former prime minister Paul Martin courted controversy by becoming the first Canadian leader to meet the Dalai Lama. The one-hour talk on human rights took place at the home of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Ottawa. Martin's predecessor, Jean Chrétien, refused such a meeting.
- The Dalai Lama was personally recognized when he last visited Canada in 2006 and received an honorary Canadian citizenship -- a measure protested by Chinese officials. He joins Holocaust hero Raoul Wallenberg, Nelson Mandela and, most recently, Burmese democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi in receiving the honour.
Currently, Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade recognizes China as the legitimate government of both China and Tibet -- but has "great respect" for the Dalai Lama.
Dermod Travis, executive director of Canada Tibet Committee, says western nations have made a distinct shift in recent years toward a negotiated solution for an autonomous Tibet within China.
By Channel NewsAsia
26 October 2007
The US government on Thursday issued a flurry of product-safety recalls affecting hundreds of thousands of China-made children's toys and jewellery amid fresh concerns about lead paint.
The latest recall notices, issued by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, follow mass recalls of China-made toys earlier this year. The world's biggest toy maker, Mattel, has been particularly hard hit by the recalls.
The government said it was recalling 142,000 toy buckets decorated in a Halloween theme that have been sold by Family Dollar stores across the country.
Officials said paint on the buckets contained excessive levels of lead. The United States banned lead paint from being used to colour toys on health grounds in 1978.
The agency also issued a recall for 80,000 bobble head cake decorations cast as American football figures for numerous teams including the Indianapolis Colts and New York Giants. The bobble heads have been sold in bakeries and ice cream stores nationwide since January, according to the recall notice.
Also affected were 97,000 children's toy gardening tools sold by Jo-Ann Stores. Inc, and 38,000 toy boats made in China for Fisher-Price, which is owned by Mattel.
Traces of excessive levels of lead paint also sparked a recall for 190,000 sets of children's jewellery, including earrings, necklaces and bracelets, made for Greenbrier International, and 110,000 metal jewellery sets produced for WeGlow International.
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The Epoch Times
October 24, 2007
A confronation between monks in Zhaibung Monastery and the police broke out on October 17. Four days after the confrontation, the largest monastery in Lhasa, Tibet is still sealed off with over 1,000 monks and dozens of pilgrims inside. Over 3,000 armed police have surrounded the monastery.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Ends Celebrations for Dalai Lama's Award
According to the Central News Agency's (CAN) report, on October 16, monks in the monastery attempted to celebrate inside the monastery President Bush giving the Dalai Lama a Congressional Gold Medal on the 17th. Authorities put a halt to the celebrations.
On the morning of the 17th, after the monks chanted Buddhist scriptures in the Coqen Hall, they attempted to hold another celebration. A confrontation ensued when armed officers injured a monk in the head trying to stop the celebration. About 900 monks were involved and there were about 350 armed officers inside and about 1,000 outside the monastery at the time. The monks were not allowed to leave the monastery. The military blocked traffic west of Lhasa leading into the downtown to prevent the monks going downtown to protest.
It was reported that there was confrontation between civilians and police in Neqoin Monastery, an affiliate monastery outside the walls of Zhaibung Monastery. Some people said the police shot at people in the street of Lhasa but those in the Temple claimed they didn't hear any gunfire.
By Ben Blanchard | REUTERS | via (uncensored) Yahoo! News
October 24, 2007
China should pay more attention to shoring up its product safety supervision network rather than apportioning blame for recent problems, a senior European Union official said on Wednesday.
The quality of Chinese goods has come under international scrutiny following scandals involving products ranging from toothpaste and pet food to toys and fish.
China insists the issue is limited to a few errant companies and hyped by foreign media as well as being driven by a protectionist agenda in some countries.
Chinese deputy quality watchdog chief Wei Chuanzhong repeated that criticism of the press to European Commission Director General for Enterprise and Industry, Heinz Zourek, but the EU official said he thought action would be better than words.
"I can assure you that the European Union is determined to draw conclusions out of these experiences that we have been witnessing. But we feel that we should concentrate our efforts on how to improve the system rather than blaming anybody," Zourek told Wei at a meeting in Beijing.
"What we must not do is compromise on the safety, whatever the quality level. The products have to be safe," he added. "It is important to undertake measures, but it is equally important to have an efficient communication and alert system in place."
By Stephen Collinson | AFP | via (uncensored) Yahoo! News
October 18, 2007
President George W. Bush Wednesday called for an end to "religious repression" in China as he defiantly became the first US leader to appear in public with the Dalai Lama.
The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader accepted the Congressional Gold Medal, lawmakers' highest civilian honor, in a formal ceremony in the US Capitol's ornate Rotunda -- a move certain to further enrage leaders in Beijing.
Bush praised the 72-year-old Buddhist icon for keeping the "flame" of Tibet's people alive, and called on Beijing to open political talks with him about the region's future.
"They will find this good man to be a man of peace and reconciliation," Bush said in the decorous room beneath the soaring dome of the US Capitol building, watched by lawmakers, Tibetan exiles and Buddhist monks.
"Americans cannot look to the plight of the religiously oppressed and close our eyes or turn away," Bush said.
"That is why I will continue to urge the leaders of China to welcome the Dalai Lama to China," said the president, in a ceremony broadcast live to China by radio, television and the Internet by Voice of America.
The Dalai Lama reiterated that he was not seeking independence from China but wanted greater autonomy, and he said he was sorry that his presence in the United States had ruffled Sino-US relations.
"The consistency of American support for Tibet has not gone unnoticed in China," he said during the ceremony.
"Where this has caused some tension in the US-China relations I feel a sense of regret."
Bush had earlier provoked a fresh outburst of anger from Beijing, for his previous private meeting on Tuesday with the Dalai Lama, a style of encounter preferred by previous US presidents.
The Dalai Lama fled to India following a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959, and currently lives in the northern hill town of Dharamsala, which is also the seat of his government in exile.
China has ruled Tibet since sending troops into the region in 1950, and officially "liberating" it from feudal rule a year later.
Senate Republican minority leader Mitch McConnell praised Bush for appearing at the public event with the Dalai Lama.
"US presidents have met privately with the Dalai Lama for years, but it wasn't until today that any of them had lent the prestige of the office to a public event," McConnell said.
Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi earlier warned that Bush's private meeting with the Dalai Lama and the Congress ceremony represented "a severe violation of the norms of international relations."
He accused the United States of having "severely hurt" China's feelings and interfered in its internal affairs.
By Mark Magnier | Los Angeles Times
October 17, 2007
Beijing says Bush's meeting with the Tibetan will damage relations and calls on the U.S. to cancel plans to grant him a medal.
China lashed out Tuesday at President Bush's White House meeting with the Dalai Lama, arguing that it would seriously damage relations between Washington and Beijing, and called on the U.S. to cancel plans to honor the famous Tibetan figure with a Congressional Gold Medal.
"We solemnly demand that the U.S. cancel the extremely wrong arrangements," Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi told reporters hours before the meeting. "It seriously violates the norm of international relations and seriously wounded the feelings of the Chinese people and interfered with China's internal affairs."
The Dalai Lama, recipient of the 1989 Nobel Peace Prize, has been based in India since fleeing his homeland during a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959. China has condemned him as a "splittist" intent on undermining Chinese sovereignty by working for the independence of Tibet. The Dalai Lama says he is only seeking to expand autonomy, not establish a separate state.
The White House dismissed China's concerns, saying the president has had private meetings with many religious leaders, including the pope.
"The president believes that people all over the world should be able to express their religion and practice their religion in freedom. And that's why the president wants to meet with him," White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said. "He believes he should be honored as a great spiritual leader."
By REUTERS | The New York Times
October 16, 2007
China expressed fury on Tuesday that the United States is to honor the Dalai Lama with an award and warned that the activities of his supporters were increasing in Chinese-controlled Tibet.
The Dalai Lama, who has lived in exile in India since staging a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959, is to receive the U.S. Congressional Gold Medal on Wednesday after being hosted at the White House by President George W. Bush.
"We are furious," Tibet's Communist Party boss, Zhang Qingli, told reporters. "If the Dalai Lama can receive such an award, there must be no justice or good people in the world."
China, which views the Dalai Lama as a separatist and a traitor, pulled out of a meeting this week at which world powers were to discuss Iran in protest at the U.S. plan to honor him.
China has also cancelled an annual human rights dialogue with Germany to show is displeasure over German Chancellor Angela Merkel's September meeting with the Dalai Lama.
Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said China had expressed its "resolute opposition" to the award.
"China has solemnly demanded the United States cancel the above-mentioned and extremely wrongful arrangement," Yang told reporters on the sidelines of the 17th Communist Party Congress.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said that if the decision to honor the Dalai Lama was not reversed it would have an "extremely serious impact" on bilateral relations.
China had pulled out of the meeting on Iran for "technical reasons," he told a news conference.
China's rhetoric against the Dalai Lama, whom Tibetan Buddhists consider their spiritual leader, has been increasing in line with his accolades abroad, even though the government and the Dalai's envoys are engaged in a tentative dialogue process.
By REUTERS | The New York Times
October 11, 2007
U.S. President George W. Bush, risking Chinese anger, will host exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama at the White House next week.
Bush will welcome the Dalai Lama on Tuesday, a day before he accepts the U.S. Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honor Congress can bestow.
The White House had previously announced that Bush and his wife, Laura, would attend the award ceremony on Capitol Hill.
China views the Dalai Lama, who fled his homeland in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese Communist rule, as a separatist.
The Nobel Peace Prize winner says he only wants greater autonomy for the predominantly Buddhist Himalayan region.
China reacted angrily when the U.S. Congress decided to give the Dalai Lama the medal, denouncing the decision as interference in its internal affairs.
"The Chinese government strongly opposes the U.S. Congress giving the Dalai Lama a so-called award," said government spokesman Liu Jianchao.
The award ceremony will be the first time Bush will have appeared in public with the Dalai Lama, who has visited the White House before but always for private meetings.
By David Lague | The New York Times
October 10, 2007
China has promoted at least four senior military officers with experience in planning for war over Taiwan ahead of a major political meeting next week at which the Communist Party has said it will adopt a new strategy to stop the self-governing island moving toward independence.
In a move that was quietly handled even by the standards of China's secretive military, Beijing last month elevated Gen. Chen Bingde of the army to chief of the general staff, a post where he will exercise day-to-day operational command of the country's 2.3 million-strong armed forces.
As General Chen was promoted through the senior ranks in the 1980s and 1990s, he held a series of command posts in the Nanjing Military Region opposite Taiwan, where China has concentrated its preparations for any conflict over the island, according to official biographies and military analysts.
General Chen's previous post was director general of the general armaments department, where he led the rapid modernization of Chinese military hardware and the country's high-profile space program.
Gen. Xu Qiliang, a veteran air force pilot who served in a number of operational and staff posts in the Nanjing military region, was appointed head of the air force last month, state news media reported.
And state news media reported last month that another senior air force officer with command experience in the Nanjing region, Gen. Ma Xiaotian, had been promoted to deputy chief of the general staff.
In the earlier stages of a wider reshuffle of top posts through China's seven military regions, Adm. Wu Shengli was appointed last year to head the navy.
Admiral Wu has also held critical appointments that give him a solid grounding in naval operations in the Taiwan Strait.
Experts say these appointments are not designed specifically to threaten Taiwan but are part of China's overall military development where a top priority is enforcing the mainland's claim of sovereignty over the island if necessary.
"It sends a message more broadly that Beijing is enhancing its military capability to deal with Taiwan in any future conflict," said Andrew Yang, secretary general of the Chinese Council of Advanced Policy Studies, a Taipei-based security policy institute. "There is more emphasis on the quality of the commanders."
By REUTERS | The New York Times
October 09, 2007
China, in its latest tirade against Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, on Tuesday accused the exiled Nobel peace prize laureate of supporting "evil cults" like Falun Gong and Japan's Aum Shinrikyo.
China has ruled the mountainous Himalayan region of Tibet with an iron fist since Chinese troops marched in there in 1950.
The Dalai Lama fled into exile in India after a failed uprising against communist rule in 1959 and is branded by China as a "separatist." He says he only wants greater autonomy for the region.
In a lengthy signed commentary in English carried by the official Xinhua news agency, the piece said the Dalai Lama "not only has no hatred toward evil cults but instead shows a great deal of compassion for them."
The Dalai Lama supported Shoko Asahara and his Aum Shinrikyo cult, who carried out a sarin nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway in 1995 which killed 12 and made thousands sick, Xinhua said, in a piece signed by somebody calling themselves Shi Shan.
"It was the support and connivance of the 14th Dalai Lama who took the foe for his friend that made Asahara feel secure in the knowledge that he had strong backing," Xinhua said, in typically strong language.
"It is the 14th Dalai Lama's own deeds that have step by step betrayed his real intentions and political ambitions put under the guise of Buddhism and peace," it added.
The Dalai Lama also provided succor to the Falun Gong, a spiritual movement banned by China as an "evil cult," and its leader Li Hongzhi, Xinhua said.
"... Even such an evil cult leader who is denounced by many people and had to flee abroad to escape the punishment of laws secured compassion and admiration from the 14th Dalai Lama," it added.
Critics have accused China of repressing religious freedom in Tibet and other parts of the country, but Beijing counters by saying it guarantees religious freedom and invests large amounts of money every year to modernize the underdeveloped Tibetan region.
Last month, China chided German Chancellor Angela Merkel for hosting the Dalai Lama and demanded Berlin take action to repair damage to bilateral ties.
By Lin Yali | The Epoch Times
October 05, 2007
Ultra low wages paid to workers for ultra-low-cost products
The Wang couple from New Jersey decided to purchase a baby crib on September 22, 2007. "Just as we were leaving the house, a friend of ours called saying that he happened to watch the news regarding the recall of over one million infant cribs that were made in China," said Mr. Wang. "With this new information my wife paid special attention to the crib's country of origin that we were planning to purchase."
On September 21, 2007, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a recall of about one million China-made cribs from among 11 styles designed by U.S. crib supplier, Simplicity Incorporated. These cribs have been sold in the U.S. market through both the Target Corporation and the Babies "R" Us Company from January 1998 to May 2007.
The CPSC pointed out that the drop-side of the crib can easily detach creating a dangerous gap that led to two infants suffocating to death. A third similar fatality is still under investigation. The spokesperson for the CPSC added that the recall is due mainly to defects in the design and not with the assembly operations in China.
That same day, the world largest U.S. toy company, Mattel, apologized to China for the recent recall of 21 million Chinese-made toys. Mattel confessed that among the recalled toys, 87 percent were due to design flaws, while 13 percent were due to use of lead paint.
With several months of bad press concerning the safety of products that come out of China, twists to these recent stories suggest that these U.S. companies share a significant portion of the blame. But consider all the incidents involving China's product safety over the past year, and a definite pattern begins to emerge.
Safety Problems with Chinese-made Products in 2007
| Toys | In August, Peru confiscated over 60 tons of Chinese-made toys. | Peruvian authorities believe that toys contain toxic substances including lead. |
| Tires | In June, a U.S. company dealing with imported tires was forced to recall some 500,000 tires made by China's Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Co. Ltd. in the wake of a deadly car accident. | Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Co. Ltd. has failed since 2002 to insert an important gum strip between the steel belts which may result in the tread and/or belts separating from the tire. |
| Toothpaste | In May, a poisonous ingredient known as diethylene glycol was found in Chinese-made toothpaste sold in Panama, Australia, and the U.S. | To cut costs, the ingredients propylene glycol and glycerine were replaced by the much cheaper, but toxic diethylene glycol |
| Cough Syrup | At the end of April, at least 365 Panamanian patients died after consuming cough syrups containing diethylene glycol. 100 of these deaths have been confirmed as poisoning. | The toxic glycerin was found to be manufactured by the Taixing Glycerine Factory in China's Jiangsu Province. |
| Pet Food | Since March, many pets have been poisoned after eating dog and cat food manufactured by the Menu Goods Company. At least 8,000 cats and dogs have become ill and dozens died as a result of eating the contaminated pet food. | Cyanamid dichloride, the poisonous substance found in the pet food's wheat and rice protein powders, were imported by Menu Foods Company from both the Xuzhou Anying Biologic Technology Development Co. Ltd. in Jiangsu Province and the Binzhou Futian Biological Technology Development Company in Shandong Province. |
Ultra Low Prices with Ultra Low Wages
With so many stories concerning the safety of Chinese-made products, many in the West have started to ask, "What has gone wrong with China?" As reporters began to dig into the story, many began to reveal the appallingly low wages earned by Chinese laborers. The article "China, The Violin Prodigy" published on the Los Angeles Times on Jan. 13, 2007, mentioned that the violins made in China are "incredible." A violin maker in Studio City, California is quoted as saying, "They're just gorgeous instruments for the price." But at what cost do we enjoy this low price? The following summary from that article shows the hourly pay of workers in mainland China based on both domestic and overseas media reports.
Wages Paid to Workers in China in 2007
| Position | Wage (US dollars) | |
| Shenzhen Longhua Taiyang Electrical Co., Ltd.(Guangdong Province) | Skilled worker with more than one year experience | $0.47 per hour |
| Taixing Fengling Musical Instrument Co., Ltd. ( Jiangsu Province) | Skilledl worker, violin assembly | $0.50 per hour |
| Dongwan Toy Industry (Guangdong Province) | Ordinary laborers | $0.25-$0.35 per hour |
| Guangzhou Haizhu Garment Industry | Ordinary laborers (working 16 hours a day, with two days off a month) | $0.30 per hour |
| Dongwan Kaiyuan Handbags Manufacturing Industry (Guangdong Province) | Ordinary laborers (working overtime until midnight every day | $93 per month |
| Dongwan Dongcheng Juwang Shoes Factory (Guangdong Province) | Ordinary laborers (working seven days a week, including frequent overtime at night) | $53 per month |
Has Exploitation Reached its Limit?
Cheap labor and poor working conditions have provided China with a competitive advantage in taking the global market by storm, however the products continue to reveal problems with quality. Has the strategy of exploiting low-cost labor to broaden the market share reached the limit?
Toy maker, Chen Dong (alias) in Shantou City, located in China's Guangdong Province, employs more than 200 workers in his factory. For each batch of toys the factory produces, the local authorities will assign two or three inspectors to conduct an on-site examination. Chen says he has to bribe inspectors--otherwise his products would be rejected, labeled "poor quality," and banned from export. Last year, an inspector sneaked into his factory and spotted an underage worker (a month under 16 years old). His factory was fined 40,000 yuan (US$5,329) but Chen bargained with officials and settled the case with 20,000 yuan ($2,665).
Furthermore, world appreciation of Chinese yuan (renminbi) has boosted material costs and squeezed the profit margin. Under such circumstances, the only ways to stay profitable, according to Chen, are (1) sourcing cheaper raw materials; (2) resorting to tax evasion (a method of 70 to 80 percent of Chinese companies) and (3) labor coercion.
"We would like to offer higher wages to the workers, but we simply can't," Chen explained. "The rental expense and labor cost keep increasing, but the selling price keeps falling. It is harder and harder to make money. We do whatever we can do to survive. If we fail, we can't do anything but shut the door."
By AlertNet | Reuters Foundation
October 05, 2007
Beijing police have detained two relatives of a jailed housing rights activist, and prison officials are also mistreating an ethnic Mongolian political prisoner, according to human rights groups.
Ye Mingjun and Ye Guoqiang, son and brother of Ye Guozhu, sentenced for organising protests against forced evictions for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, are being held incommunicado, Amnesty International said in a statement.
Police came for Mingjun at his house on Sept. 29, and later told his family he was being held for "inciting subversion of state power", Amnesty said.
The police had detained Guoqiang earlier in the day for protesting forced evictions, also for the Olympics, in a southern part of Beijing, the group added.
"They are held incommunicado, putting them at high risk of torture or other ill-treatment," said Amnesty, which has previously warned Guozhu has been beaten and tortured with electric shocks in jail.
The government has been cracking down on dissent ahead of a key Communist Party meeting that opens on Oct. 15.
By David Barboza | The New York Times
October 03, 2007
A prominent human rights lawyer in Beijing says he was abducted, beaten and threatened over the weekend by a gang of men who demanded that he and his family leave the city.
The lawyer, Li Heping, has gained renown here for his defense of environmental activists, imprisoned lawyers and church leaders, and has also considered representing a member of Falun Gong, the banned religious sect.
Human rights groups say Chinese lawyers, activists and dissidents are often subjected to harassment, beatings or threats of long jail terms for pressing claims that seem to challenge the government and the nation's legal system.
In a telephone interview on Tuesday, Mr. Li said his abductors did not say why they were beating him.
"I don't know why they did it," Mr. Li said. "They just told me to leave Beijing. They didn't tell me why they did it."
The abduction of Mr. Li, 37, was first reported by Radio Free Asia, a nonprofit group in Washington that broadcasts news to Asian countries in local languages, and that often reports on human rights cases and minority causes in China.
Mr. Li's ordeal began Saturday, on the eve of a national holiday week observing the 58th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and as Shanghai was preparing to play host to the 2007 Special Olympics.
Radio Free Asia officials say they received a tip about the kidnapping that day and then contacted Mr. Li.
In the telephone interview on Tuesday night, Mr. Li said he was followed after leaving his office late Saturday by a group of men who eventually grabbed him, put a bag over his head and drove him to a location where they beat him in a basement, sometimes tormenting him with a high-powered electric rod.
Later, he said, the abductors drove him to another location in the suburbs of Beijing, where they left him and told him that he and his family ought to leave Beijing immediately.
Mr. Li said he later visited a hospital because he was suffering from hearing loss and swelling in his face.
Doctors told him he may have suffered serious head injuries, he said. Mr. Li also said he reported the incident to the police.
After being released by his abductors, Mr. Li said he returned home to discover that some of his personal belongings were missing, including legal files and his license to practice law.
In a statement released to a human rights group, Mr. Li said: "As a lawyer, I had the chance to experience electric punishment and torture. I was rolling on the ground and they continued laughing and beating me. This torture lasted about four or five hours."
Human Rights in China, an organization based in New York, issued a statement by its executive director, Sharon Hom, saying, "As the international community increases its scrutiny of China in the lead-up to the Olympics, it is appalling that this kind of attack on lawyers continue."
The statement went on, "These attacks raise serious concerns about the will and ability of the Chinese government to protect lawyers' personal safety and right to practice law, which are essential elements of a system of rule of law."
By Richard Spencer | Telegraph.co.uk
October 01, 2007
President George W Bush is to become the first American president to hold a public meeting with the Dalai Lama in a gesture of recognition for the religious leader of Tibetan Buddhism that risks infuriating the Chinese government.
Mr Bush will meet the Dalai next month at a ceremony in front of the symbol of American democracy, the Capitol building, where the Tibetan leader will be presented with the Congressional Gold Medal.
The Chinese government reacts with fury to any gesture of recognition given to the Dalai who fled the country into exile in 1959 and whom it regularly accuses of trying to "split" Tibet from the rest of China.
Earlier this week, it lashed out at Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany after she held a private meeting in her office with the Dalai Lama and backed his call for more cultural autonomy for the region.
Mr Bush's meeting will be on a far grander scale. The ceremony will be held on the West Lawn of the Capitol Building, which is also thought to be a first.
It will be open to the public, and supporters of free Tibet groups say they expect thousands to attend in what could become the most important public celebration of his life since he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.
America has always been less sensitive to Chinese warnings against meeting the Dalai Lama, which have discouraged other world leaders from receiving him. Tony Blair never found time to meet him in his ten years as prime minister.
But in recent months public opinion and political changes have caused great concern to Beijing. John Howard, the Australian prime minister, met him in June, while he also visited the Austrian chancellor, Alfred Gusenbauer, on his European tour this month.
The Foreign Office earlier this year also said the Dalai "could" meet the prime minister on a visit to Britain scheduled for 2008.
The award of the Congressional Gold Medal is also a sign of a more anti-Chinese mood in Washington.
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