Johannesburg: Retired archbishop Desmond Tutu has sharply criticised the South African government after the Dalai Lama did not receive a visa to travel to South Africa.
The Tibetan spiritual leader, labelled a separatist by China, had sought a South African visa so he could attend a meeting of Nobel peace laureates in Cape Town on October 13-15.
Tutu, a friend of the Dalai Lama and a fellow Nobel peace laureate, said this week that it is shameful that the Dalai Lama cannot attend a meeting meant to honour anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela, who died last year.
Tutu says the Dalai Lama was also prevented from travelling to South Africa in 2011 to attend Tutu's 80th birthday party because South Africa did not want to offend China, a close business partner.
