Mumbai (AsiaNews) – The Dalai Lama is serious when he says he wants to retire. But what kind of retirement will it be? “We have to wait till March 2011 when the Parliament is in session to know the ‘nature’ and ‘content’ of what the Dalai Lama will say in his address. Until then, everything is speculation. However, earlier too he had expressed a desire to retire,” Tibetan parliament-in-exile spokesman Penpa Tsering told AsiaNews.

When asked how a spiritual leader could retire, Penpa Tsering said, “The Dalai Lama cannot resign from his spiritual leadership. He will always be our spiritual leader. The Dalai Lama is also head of state and head of government; all important administrative matters are reported to him. His counsel is always sought and adhered to in relation to issues that matter to the Tibetan people. His resignation, as reported in the media, will probably affect only the administration. However, we must wait until March to hear his speech before parliament.”

In the meantime, the Dalai Lama received an honorary degree from an Indian college, Jamia Millia Islamia University. The citation reads, “Jamia Millia Islamia honors His Holiness the Dalai Lama of Tibet, one of the most respected figures and teachers of our times, who stands for rationality, humanism, non-violence, peace and universal benevolence, with the degree of Doctor of Letters.”

In his acceptance speech, the Dalai Lama said, “The 20th century was a century of bloodshed, but nothing was achieved out of that bloodshed. The 21st Century must be a century of peace and you will shape it.” What is more, for the spiritual leader, education should go along with morals and ethics to achieve that aim.

In the meantime, in his Tibetan homeland, protests continue, involving individuals or small groups, swiftly arrested by the Chinese.

In recent days, a report has filtered out, saying that a young Tibetan activist was sentenced to death by a Chinese court with a two-year suspension.

The sentence was passed back in May by the Lhasa Intermediate People's Court but was not known until now.

The activist’s name is Sonam Tsering. He is originally from Derge Palyul County in the Tibetan region of Kham.

He was tried, convicted and sentenced to death for playing a leading role in protests during the visit by the Olympic torch to Lhasa in March 2008.

He was arrested soon after the Lhasa incident after a reward was offered for his capture. He was eventually able to escape but was rearrested in October 2009.

At present, nothing is known about his whereabouts or his state of health.