Today will be marked by something that has never happened before.

The Dalai Lama, Tibet's spiritual leader in exile, will meet publicly with a Canadian Prime Minister on Parliament Hill.

It may not sound like much, but it could mean plenty.

Now Stephen Harper may not make any political foray into the question of whether or not Tibet should be more autonomous or even independent, but just the meeting alone sends a pretty strong message.

That message is being received loud and clear by the Chinese.

They're annoyed. Not only is Harper meeting with the Dalai Lama, but other Western leaders are doing the same. President Bush was just one of the latest.

The Chinese take it as an insult. They insinuate there will be consequences.

But the government will go ahead all the same. It has had a different approach to China from the beginning: be tough on human rights. Beyond that observers say there is no real policy on how to handle the country.

And when asked, ministers will point to polls that show Canadians support the Prime Minister's meeting with the Dalai Lama.

That may be, but today the Prime Minister will have to walk a fine line: between showing supporting for human rights and a winner of the Nobel peace prize, and not further angering a country that already feels snubbed.