South Africa drops Dalai Lama visa ban

CAPE TOWN, South Africa, May 15 (UPI) -- In an about-face, South Africa now would welcome a visit by the Dalai Lama any time he wants to come, a top official said.

"The Dalai Lama is more than free, like any other citizen of the globe, who would want to visit our country," said Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, appointed this week to newly elected President Jacob Zuma's Cabinet as international relations minister.

Prior to Nkoana-Mashabane's comments Thursday, the South African government had attracted international criticism for refusing a visa for the Dalai Lama. South Africa had been accused of caving in to Chinese pressure when it said it would not allow the Tibetan spiritual leader to attend a peace conference, linked to the 2010 Football World Cup, which South Africa is hosting, the BBC said Friday.

The government, in refusing the Dalai Lama a visa "between now and the World Cup," said his presence would be too distracting to the international soccer championship, first ever held in Africa.

The visa ban also had prompted Archbishop Desmond Tutu and former South African President FW de Klerk to withdraw from a conference for Nobel laureates, forcing an indefinite postponement.