The only sour note was from the Chinese Embassy, which approached our government after they heard about the visit. Presumably, as they have in the past, they were discouraging any Ministerial meetings with the Dalai Lama.

In Canberra the Dalai Lama will be meeting Green Party leader Bob Brown and Opposition leader Tony Abbott, but the media today says a meeting with Julia Gilliard is “unlikely”. Is Chinese pressure behind this?

When Jeanette won the Coromandel after special votes had been counted National’s Murray McLean and Arthur Anae, Labour’s John Blincoe and Eru George, the Alliance’s Mark Ryan and NZ First’s Ian Walker all lost their places in Parliament.

In other interesting and probably not so well known facts some of our MPs have now met the Dalai Lama at least twice as parliamentary representatives.  Over the weekend Russel, Sue K, Keith and Dave had a very informative 90 minutes with the Dalai Lama. Back in 2007 we actually hosted the Dalai Lama in our caucus rooms.

The Green win ushered in Parliament’s first hemp suit (from memory a rather natty dark blue number). 

At present our 2009 parliamentary intake boasts the highest number of vegetarian MPs. We have a caucus that is 22.2222% vegetarian.

David Clendon’s ascension to being an MP means Kevin Hague will always have someone to chat to over a falafel.

On a more serious note we have achieved some remarkable stuff from pushing forward energy efficiency to keeping kids safe – hip, hip hooray!

The Dalai Lama’s 2007 NZ visit included a trip up to the Green caucus

I was a little disappointed to read Brian Rudman’s column this week in the New Zealand Herald about the upcoming visit of the Dalai Lama.  In Mr Rudman’s opinion our Prime Minister shouldn’t meet with the Dalai Lama when it could upset the Chinese Government.

Cheeking a non-ally like China over an issue as esoteric as Tibet seems suicidal.

We can’t even persuade or bully our tiny near-neighbours like Fiji to restore democracy, or Tonga to institute it, so why risk our livelihood taunting the elephant with genuinely big tusks?

Now earlier this month Tonga did take some very important steps in regard to its progress on the road to democracy so perhaps Brian needs to keep up with the play on this issue.

As to comparing Fiji and China – well neither countries are democracies and both have issues with human rights. 

New Zealand should as a principled independent country do its utmost to advance globally a respect for human rights.  We should surely be engaging in constructive talks with both Fiji and China when the opportunity arises to press for progressive reforms and to raise the plight of human rights.

 It wasn’t just me getting a little peeved by Brian’s miss-directed missive on the Dalai Lama.  Liam Hehir of Palmerston North felt so incensed by the cavalier way Tibet had been reduced to an ‘esoteric issue’ he dropped the Herald a line.  Personally I think Liam hits the nail on the head with his criticism of the basic moral flaw in Brian Rudman’s opinion piece.

If Tibet is an irrelevancy then what are we? We are a small,isolated and weak like Tibet.  Were the same fate to befall us, would our cause perish under Mr Rudman’s calculus?

 Meeting the Dalai Lama may seem a futile gesture, but as the English Philosopher Edmund Burke noted:

 “Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because  he could only do a little.”