BEIJING — Chinese President Hu Jintao flew Sunday to the site of last week’s earthquake on the Tibetan plateau, the latest effort to portray a government that is compassionate and competent to a people who have made clear at times they don’t want to be under Chinese rule.
With the death toll rising sharply — at latest count, 1,706 are dead — China’s handling of the disaster relief is under close scrutiny. The pressure on China has been heightened by a request over the weekend by the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s spiritual leader, to visit the area where the earthquake struck and pray for victims. In a letter released Saturday by his office in Dharamsala, India, the Dalai Lama noted he was born in Qinghai, where the quake took place.
“To fulfill the wishes of many of the people there, I am eager to go there myself to offer them comfort,” he said. He also in the letter complimented the Chinese government for its handling of earthquake relief, in particular pointing to an unusually long visit by premier Wen Jiabao on Thursday and Friday.
Beijing has not yet formally responded, but is thought unlikely to approve a visit from a religious leader it has vilified as a separatist.
Over the weekend, Buddhist monks cremated more than 1,000 bodies on a hillside outside the main town of Jiegu.
Hu promised to rebuild quickly during his tour of the region Sunday. According to a report by the Xinhua news agency, he visited a makeshift school in a tent and wrote in chalk on the blackboard, “There will be new schools! There will be new homes!”
