Dalai Lama arrives in Australia

The exiled leader received a warm welcome from supporters when he arrived in Melbourne today. The Dalai Lama will hold a series of public talks around the country which is expected to include flood victims in Queensland.

CALLS FOR GILLARD TO MEET DALAI LAMA

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has said he will meet with the Tibetan spiritual leader in Canberra next Tuesday but the prime minister hasn't said whether she will do the same.

The Australia Tibet Council yesterday said Prime Minister Julia Gillard should commit to meeting with the ageing Buddhist despite the diplomatic tensions that might cause with China.

The not-for-profit advocacy group said the Dalai Lama is a revered religious leader and a champion of human rights.

"Tens of thousands of Australians will see and hear him during this visit," the council's Paul Bourke said.

"A meeting with the prime minister would be a reflection of Australian community expectations."

Since meeting with then-prime minister John Howard in 2007, the Dalai Lama has met two US presidents and the leaders of Canada, Germany, France, the UK and other European powers.

But former prime minister Kevin Rudd failed to meet with him during visits in 2008 and 2009, sparking accusations he was kowtowing to China.

"The question shouldn't be: 'Will Australia's prime minister meet the Dalai Lama?' The question should be: 'Why wouldn't she?'" Mr Bourke said.

Ms Gillard's office this week said the prime minister's diary for next week had not been finalised.

The Dalai Lama will also meet with Australian Greens Leader Bob Brown, and other Liberal and Labor MPs and senators during his brief stay in Canberra.

Mr Abbott previously met the Dalai Lama in December 2009, shortly after taking over the Liberal leadership.

The Dalai Lama's travels often spark tensions between host countries and China, which regards him as a separatist.

The former head of the Tibetan government in exile has long campaigned against China's occupation of his homeland.