Beijing, Aug. 7 -- In a display of China's authoritarian grip over Tibet, Beijing has once again claimed total control over the reincarnation process of the Dalai Lama, rejecting the spiritual leader's authority on the matter.

The statement came from Gama Cedain, chairman of the so-called Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), during a news conference in Beijing marking the 60th anniversary of TAR's founding, as reported by Tibetan Review.

Cedain, also the deputy secretary of the Chinese Communist Party's TAR committee, declared that "the central government has the indisputable final say in the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama." He emphasised that the process must be carried out "domestically", through the Communist Party's approved methods, inc...