Tibet's expatriate government said Tuesday that China has occupied its Himalayan home region for 50 years. The comments come a day after Beijing celebrated the 50^th anniversary of the formation of the Tibet Autonomous Region and after President Xi Jinping vowed to intensify the fight against separatists and maintain national integrity.

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Tibetan Prime Minister-in-exile Lobsang Sangay said Beijing had no right to choose the next Dalai Lama after his Holiness dies.

Sangay was elected in 2011 after the Dalai Lama renounced his political role to focus on being the region's spiritual Buddhist leader. Speaking at Dharamsala, a Himalayan retreat, he said that Tibet had been independent and was never part of China since antiquity - as Beijing claims.

"Tibet was an independent country, and Tibet is under occupation today," Sangay said. "Tibet was an independent country and historians don't dispute that."

He also stressed that if Beijing continues with its plans of choosing the next Dalai Lama, there would be a backlash from millions of Buddhists across the world who support the 80-year-old Dalai Lama.

"The pushback will not only come from the Tibetan people, but from millions of Buddhists who traditionally share Tibet's spiritual heritage and millions more in the rest of the world who have benefited from the teachings of His Holiness the Dalai Lama," he said.

According to Tibetan Buddhists tradition, the Dalai Lama chooses his own successor, who is supposed to be a reincarnation of him. The next Dalai Lama would be the 15^th incarnation in a tradition lasting since the 14 century.

The current Dalai Lama, who Beijing describes as a separatist, fled to India in 1959 following a botched uprising against Chinese rule. He says he may be the last of his line or the next Dalai Lama may even be a woman.

During the 6^th Tibet Work Forum, President Xi Jinping said that the country's Tibetan policy will focus on maintaining national integrity and intensifying the fight against separatism and increasing sustainable growth in the region.

Beijing plans to celebrate the formation of the Tibet Autonomous Region with art exhibitions, a musical featuring the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, along with the release of a documentary.

Sangay also stressed that if Beijing agrees to the "Middle Way", granting Tibet more autonomy would increase China reputation in the eyes of the international community.

"If you find a peaceful solution to the Tibet issue, China's soft power will increase because the international community has increasing skepticism and anxiousness toward the Chinese government," he said.

TagsTibet Autonomous Region, 50th Anniversary of Formation of Tibet, Lobsang Sangay, Dalai Lama