Tashi Dolma, 21, a college student at an anti-China "Free Tibet" demonstration in New Delhi on Thursday, told AFP he thought the move was part of a long-term plan for democracy and new leadership.

"Being a youngster, I feel that it is the right time for the Dalai Lama to retire," he said. "He has a long-term vision and it is for the young now to take the responsibility and take the movement ahead."

Tenzin Dhondup, a 32-year-old filmmaker in the Dalai Lama's base of Dharamshala, called it a "wake-up call to all Tibetans" that the man considered both a god and a king by his followers would not live forever.

"We want him to stay on forever, but practically speaking that isn't possible," he said. "Some day or other, someone has to step into his shoes. We are being given more responsibility for our nation."

The 75-year-old spiritual leader fled to India from his homeland more than 50 years ago and has since successfully built up a movement in exile in Dharamshala and kept attention focused on Chinese rule in Tibet.

While his demands for autonomy for the mountainous region have gone unheeded, he has cemented his role as a world figure with open access to Western leaders and a passionate following of celebrities and fans.

The Dalai Lama's idea is that he will pass his powers as titular head of the government-in-exile to a new elected prime minister who will be chosen in a scheduled vote by the 200,000-strong exile community on March 20.

This will accord the new prime minister a degree of greater prominence, but analysts say the change will be largely symbolic because the Dalai Lama will remain overall spiritual leader.

The problem long-term is whether the future leaders of the Tibetan movement -- the Dalai Lama's eventual successor and the newly empowered prime minister -- will have the contacts, profile and influence to keep the Tibet issue alive.

The over-arching goal of the movement among moderates is to secure political and cultural freedoms and autonomy in Tibet, while hardliners continue to lobby for full independence from China.

"The problem for any prime minister is that, compared to the Dalai Lama, he enjoys little name recognition outside specialised Tibetan circles, and that will be a difficult dynamic to shift," said Barry Sautman, a Tibet expert at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

The community in exile is braced for a huge struggle with Beijing about the choice of the next Dalai Lama.

The title is passed via a complex process in which senior monks choose a child thought to be the reincarnation of the previous holder of the office. China has already stated it intends to have the final say in the selection process.

The Dalai Lama has suggested several ways in which he might be replaced, either with a vote for a new Dalai Lama or a reincarnation -- male or female -- who would be born outside of China.

He has also said the title might be scrapped, ending a 600-year tradition.

"For its part, China hopes that with the Dalai Lama's passing, the cause will lack a globally recognised leader of symbolic importance and splinter along factional lines," said Sarah McDowall at research group IHS Global Insight.

Many observers believe the 26-year-old Karmapa Lama, one of the most senior monks in Tibetan Buddhism, would be capable of filling the void left by the Dalai Lama upon his death, if only temporarily.

The Karmapa also fled Tibet for exile in India and has a huge following, but he has been damaged recently by a police probe in Dharamshala.

Investigators found more than a million dollars in cash in buildings belonging to his trust and questioned him several times before eventually clearing him of all charges.

Tsrindiki Sonam Joraden, a Tibetan exile at the "Free Tibet" protest in New Delhi, expressed the sadness felt by many at the mortality and limitations of their current leader.

"We cannot live without him or die without him. He is our guiding light," said the 68-year-old, who fled Tibet more than 50 years ago.

"The Dalai Lama is like our mother. If the mother leaves the child's hand, he is shaken and experiences difficulty to walk alone. We will feel the same."

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