Dharamsala, August 5:

Primary polls to nominate candidates for parliament of the Tibetan government-in-exile in this Himachal Pradesh town will be held on September 11. The parliament is called Assembly of the Tibetan People’s Deputies (ATPD) and the polls will be held in McLeodganj here. Election to the post of the Kalon Tripa (prime minister) will be held on December 22, Chief Election Commissioner of Central Tibetan Administration Tashi Phuntsok told the media. The final round of elections for the Kalon Tripa and members of the ATPD will be held March 18, 2006. Currently, the Tibetans in exile are undergoing the process of voter registration. The Election Commission of the Central Tibetan Administration is a two-tier body. The Central Election Commission is the apex body with 65 local election commissions under it in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Europe, North America, Taiwan, Japan and Australia. The Tibetan parliament has 46 members. The three provinces of Tibet elect 10 members each, including two women. Tibet’s

five major religious sects elect two members each. Tibetans in Europe elect two members and those in North America get one. In addition, Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama nominates three members. The ATPD members are elected through two rounds of voting, preliminary and final. The Dalai Lama has been heading the Tibetan government-in-exile in India since 1959.