Updated on Friday, July 03, 2009, 22:11 IST

Dharamsala, July 03: Asking China to take up "sincere and substantive" discussions with the Dalai Lama side on the Tibet autonomy issue, an Australian parliamentary delegation which met the Tibetan spiritual leader on Friday expressed concern over the "deteriorating" situation in the Himalayan region.

"We support, strongly, the Dalai Lama's middle way proposal for a peaceful negotiated settlement of the Tibetan situation and regret that the Tibet-China dialogue has so far failed to bring genuine progress towards a mutually acceptable resolution," a statement by the six-member delegation led by ruling Labour MP Micheal Danky said.

The meeting with the Dalai Lama at Mcleodganj, about 22 km from here at the headquarters of Tibetan government in-exile, "reflected testimony to the depth and breadth of support in Australia for a peaceful resolution of Tibetan situation", the statement said.

The MPs expressed "deepest concern and sympathy over the enduring situation inside Tibet, in particular the deteriorating conditions of last year".

"Religious repression, patriotic education and undemocratic social-economic reforms, including the forced settlement of nomads have fanned the flames of unrest in Tibet and brought untold suffering to the Tibetan people."

The delegation expressed disappointment at Chinese government's outright rejection last November of the Dalai Lamla's 'memorandum on genuine autonomy for Tibetan people'

"We support the memorandum as a basis for constructive negotiations on Tibet future and will continue to encourage the Chinese government to enter into sincere and substantive discussions with the Dalai Lama or his representatives...," it added.

Peter Slipper, Nick Xenophone, Melirsa Parke, Scott Ludham and Sarah Hanson Young were other members of the delegation.

Earlier, the delegation visited important centres of the Tibetans government-in-exile here.

Bureau Report