*EPF409 09/11/2003
Dalai Lama Speaks at Cathedral on Peace, Meets with Bush
(Bush supports Dalai Lama's "commitment" to talks with China) (620)

By Stephen La Rocque
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- The Dalai Lama, Tibet's religious leader, conducted a "teaching" at the National Cathedral in Washington September 11 on "Cultivating Peace as an Antidote to Violence."

The announcement of the event on the National Cathedral website quotes him as saying:

"The 11th September 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon were deeply shocking and very sad. I regard such terrible destructive actions as acts of hatred, for violence is the result of destructive emotions. Events of this kind make clear that if we allow our human intelligence to be guided and controlled by negative emotions like hatred, the consequences are disastrous.... We need to appreciate that genuine peace comes about through mutual understanding, respect and trust."

The Nobel Peace Prize recipient also paid a courtesy call on President Bush and met with members of Congress September 10 in a series of low-key visits that were mainly closed to the press.

During the meeting between President Bush and the Dalai Lama September 10, President Bush reiterated "our strong commitment to support the preservation of Tibet's unique religious, cultural and linguistic identity, and the protection of the human rights of all Tibetans," White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said.

"The President also declared his strong support for the Dalai Lama's commitment to the dialogue with China," he added. "The President said he would seek ways to encourage China to continue the dialogue on a substantive basis, and expressed his hope that the Chinese government would respond favorably."

The Dalai Lama, who is widely hailed on Capitol Hill as a champion of religious freedom for the people of Tibet, also visited with members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the House International Relations Committee September 10. Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert scheduled a meeting between lawmakers and the Dalai Lama September 11.

Lawmakers from across the political spectrum in both Houses of Congress have expressed support for the Dalai Lama in his efforts to ease the plight of the Tibetan people, restore their religion freedom, and preserve their culture.

The House of Representatives passed a resolution, House Resolution 359 (H. Res. 359), by a 421-0 vote September 10 in honor of the Buddhist spiritual leader's visit to the United States.

"The visit of the Dalai Lama to the United States in September 2003 is warmly welcomed," H. Res. 359 says. "[T]he Dalai Lama should be recognized and congratulated for his consistent efforts to promote dialogue to peacefully resolve the Tibet issue and to increase the religious and cultural autonomy of the Tibetan people."

H. Res. 359 also notes that the Dalai Lama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 in recognition of his efforts to seek a peaceful resolution to the situation in Tibet and hails the Dalai Lama as "a strong voice for the basic human rights of all peoples, particularly freedom of religion."

"His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama has used his position and leadership to promote compassion and non-violence as a solution to not only the present crisis in Tibet, but to other long-running conflicts around the world," the resolution says.

The measure praises the religious leader for seeking a solution for Tibet that provides "genuine autonomy for the Tibetan people and does not call for independence and separation from the People's Republic of China."

The resolution also stresses the policy of the United States "to support substantive dialogue between the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Dalai Lama or his representatives."

(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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