The barring of the visit by the Dalai Lama to attend a peace conference in Johannesburg on Friday has caused an international outcry, the South African government being accused of bowing to pressure from China.  

The conference has been postponed, due to the refusal by Nobel Peace Prize winners FW de Klerk and Archbishop Desmond Tutu to attend if the Dalai Lama may not attend.  

The South African government has justified its decision on the fact that it does not want to detract attention from the country for World Cup 2010, but appears to have achieved exactly the opposite as the story has hit the world media.   President Kgalema Motlanthe’s is to have said:” It would not be in the interests of the country to invite the Dalai Lama to South Africa at this stage, because the attention of the whole world is on us as the host of 2010 Fifa World Cup.   The presence of the Dalai Lama here will divert such attention from us to other issues” reported the Cape Times.

The conference has been organised by the Premier Soccer League, as part of the celebrations leading up to the 2010 World Cup.