Dalai Lama would go to China for Tibet

BEIJING, March 20 (UPI) -- The Dalai Lama said Thursday he would go to Beijing to meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao if China is interested in talks on Tibet.

Meanwhile, Tibet's government-in-exile Thursday accused China of spreading "lies" regarding the protest as Chinese state media said police shot four demonstrators in "self defense," the Financial Times reported. The exiled Tibetan government also urged pro-Tibet demonstrators to adhere to non-violent confrontations.

Before offering to travel to China, the Dalai Lama called on world leaders to lobby China for talks on Tibet but admitted it may not be practical until protests died down, the Voice of America reported. Peaceful protests in Lhasa by Buddhist monks in Tibet turned violence last week, prompting a crackdown by Chinese authorities.

China's official news agency, Xinhua, said Chinese police wounded four rioters in Aba in Sichuan province, marking the first time the government acknowledged shooting protesters.

Chinese media reported Tibetan monks started the deadly riots. The Tibetan government claimed violent protests were Chinese agents operating in Tibet, the Times said.

The government-in-exile expressed concern "that miscreants and Chinese agents may create problems between us and the police, us and our hosts and within our community."