London ( CNN ) -- The Dalai Lama refused to answer a question Monday about whether Tibetan monks should stop setting themselves on fire to protest China 's occupation of Tibet . `` No answer , '' he said . `` I think that this is quite a sensitive political issue , '' the spiritual leader of the Tibetan Buddhist community said . Self-immolation is becoming an increasingly common form of protest for Tibetans who want genuine autonomy from China and accuse Beijing of repression . More than 30 of them took place in the last year in China , Tibetan advocacy groups say . The Dalai Lama was speaking in London , where he is accepting the Templeton Prize . He said he did not want to manipulate or politicize the event . `` Last year , I retired from political responsibility , '' he said . The Dalai Lama broke with four centuries of Tibetan tradition by separating the political aspect of his role from the spiritual one , he explained . He handed over political leadership of the Tibetan community to an elected prime minister in 2011 . The Templeton Prize , an award worth Â£1.1 million ( $ 1.77 million ) , honors `` outstanding individuals who have devoted their talents to expanding our vision of human purpose and ultimate reality . '' The Dalai Lama will give $ 1.5 million to the aid organization Save the Children , he said . He is giving another $ 200,000 of the prize money to the Mind & Life Institute , and $ 75,000 to his own monastic community .
NEW : The Dalai Lama says he does not want to politicize a prize ceremony . `` No answer , '' Tibet 's spiritual leader says when asked directly about the protests . More than 30 people set themselves on fire last year over China 's occupation , advocates say . The Dalai Lama is in London to accept a $ 1.77 million prize .