“Europe belongs to the Europeans.”

We received a few inquiries about a sharepic that is currently circulating on Facebook.

The Dalai Lama can be seen with an alleged quote and the AfD banner:

Screenshot by mimikama.org
Screenshot by mimikama.org

The Dalai Lama is on September 20th.
in Heidelberg! “Europe belongs to the Europeans.”

“Germany must not become Arab.”

The fact check

As colleagues from correctiv report, the 14th Dalai Lama is said to have said “Europe belongs to the Europeans” at a conference in Malmö on September 12th.

On the Dalai Lama's website he now makes it clear: his views have been taken out of context.

Unfortunately, it is unclear what exactly was said as there is no video or audio material from the conference in Sweden.

A report on the conference , which appeared on the Dalai Lama's official website on September 12, states on the subject of refugee policy:

“He repeated what he had previously told members of the press: that it was good to offer short-term help. In the longer term, however, most refugees want to return to the countries from which they fled. What is important is to restore peace there and to give them, especially the youth, training so that they can rebuild their countries.”

On September 16, audience members at a public lecture in Rotterdam, Netherlands, asked the Dalai Lama about his statement in Malmö.

This was followed by a statement on the official website:

“It is wonderful that Germany and other European countries helped the refugees when they came to Europe from other countries. However, I think that most of these refugees consider their own country as home, but right now there is a lot of death, tyranny and suffering there. That's why they fled. In the short term, European countries should therefore offer them refuge and, in particular, give children and young people the opportunity to receive education and training, including technical training. The aim is that they should eventually be able to return to rebuilding their own countries. That was my opinion from the beginning.”

“For example, we Tibetans have found refuge in India, but most Tibetans want to return to Tibet when the situation there has changed. Every country has its own culture, language and way of life, and it is better for people to live in their own country. This is my opinion."

A video of His Holiness's question and answer can be seen here: excerpt in English

“Germany must not become Arabic”

The second statement on the sharepic refers to an interview that appeared in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung on May 31, 2016.

“When we look into the faces of every single refugee, especially the children and women, we feel their suffering. A person who is feeling a little better has a responsibility to help them. On the other hand, there are now too many. Europe, for example Germany, cannot become an Arab country. Germany is Germany.”

Here too, only part of the whole is shown. It is always important to have the full context in order to be able to form your own opinion.

Result:

It is unclear exactly what words were spoken, as no video or audio recordings of the conference in Malmö can be viewed.

However, in a statement, the Dalai Lama explained that his words had been taken out of context.

The Dalai Lama is not known to be affiliated with the AfD.


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Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )