By Johnathan Paoli
Police have made no arrests a week after the home and office of Dhundup Gyalpo, the Dalai Lama’s representative for Africa, was attacked with petrol bombs in Centurion.
The 14 October attack caused extensive fire damage to the property and forced Gyalpo to escape through a bedroom window.
“Investigations are ongoing,” Gauteng police spokesperson Brigadier Brenda Muridili told Inside Politics on Wednesday.
Police are investigating a case of arson.
The attack took place at about 11.15pm at the Office of Tibet in Lyttelton Manor, south of Pretoria, where Gyalpo also lives.
Details of the attack were first reported by Daily Maverick on 15 October, following an interview with Gyalpo.
According to the report, it was the second time in just over three months that the property had been targeted.
The first attack occurred on 6 July, coinciding with the Dalai Lama’s 91st birthday. Three petrol bombs were thrown at the property, but only one detonated, causing no significant damage.
Gyalpo subsequently asked that the July incident not be publicised.
The circumstances were different on 14 October, when the attackers allegedly targeted the building’s windows.
Gyalpo told Daily Maverick that he was asleep when breaking glass alerted him to the danger. On opening his bedroom door, he found smoke spreading through the house and realised he could not leave by the usual route.
He escaped by breaking a bedroom window and climbing outside.
Gyalpo suffered minor injuries from broken glass during his escape.
Firefighters extinguished the blaze, but much of the building’s interior was destroyed. Furniture and office records were among the items lost, and the property could no longer be occupied.
Police forensic personnel subsequently examined the scene.
Speaking to Daily Maverick after the attack, Gyalpo questioned whether the perpetrators had intended to frighten him or cause physical harm.
He suggested that the attack might have been politically motivated, pointing to the manner in which the petrol bombs had been directed into the building rather than an attempt to gain entry or steal property.
Gyalpo also raised the possibility that interests beyond South Africa were involved, although he made no accusation against any particular government or individual.
He said he had experienced no hostility from South Africans towards either himself or the Tibetan community.
His responsibilities, he said, centred on communicating the Dalai Lama’s teachings on peace, compassion and non-violence.
Gyalpo said the attack would not deter him from carrying out those responsibilities.
The firebombing has since attracted international attention, with diplomatic representatives and Tibetan advocacy organisations demanding accountability.
On Tuesday, US ambassador to South Africa Leo Brent Bozell III disclosed that he had met Gyalpo to discuss what had happened.
In a statement published on X, Bozell said:
“I met with Dhundup Gyalpo, the Dalai Lama’s representative for Africa, and heard firsthand of the terrible attack against the Office of Tibet on October 14, the second attack in three months.”
Bozell said he condemned the “apparently politically motivated attack, which fits a broader pattern of transnational repression against Tibetans worldwide”.
“I also express my full support to the Office of Tibet and my expectation that the South African authorities expeditiously find, arrest, and hold to account the perpetrators,” Bozell said.
The British High Commission in South Africa issued its own condemnation on Tuesday.
“The UK condemns the recent arson attack targeting the representatives of the Dalai Lama in South Africa. Violence and intimidation are unacceptable. We stand with South Africa in upholding freedom of religion or belief for all,” it said on X.
Tenzin Rabga Tashi, a representative of Free Tibet, called on the South African authorities to protect Gyalpo and those working alongside him.
The Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation urged police to investigate both attacks thoroughly and ensure the safety of people at the Office of Tibet. Desmond Tutu and the Dalai Lama had a friendship that spanned decades.
The foundation called for a public condemnation from the South African government and said the office’s lack of diplomatic recognition should not affect the protection afforded to its occupants.
The International Campaign for Tibet joined the calls for an investigation on Tuesday, specifically asking the authorities to establish whether there had been any involvement by a foreign state.
The organisation expressed concern that the targeting of the office could have implications for Tibetan communities living abroad.
It called for a transparent investigation capable of establishing who carried out the attacks and bringing those responsible to justice.
The Office of Tibet has operated in South Africa since 1997, when it was established with the approval of the government following a request from the Dalai Lama a year earlier.
Although based in South Africa, its work extends across the African continent. It operates as a non-governmental organisation rather than a diplomatic mission.
The office was established shortly before a significant change in South Africa’s foreign relations.
South Africa officially recognises Tibet as part of China under its One China policy, adopted when Pretoria established diplomatic relations with Beijing in 1998. The government has repeatedly reaffirmed this position, including in Parliament, where it explicitly rejected treating Tibet as politically separate from China.
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