On Tuesday 14 June, the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Dalai Lama visited the Norwegian Human Rights House and gave a press conference in the conference room here. -The wish for democracy among the Chinese people has grown so strong that it can no longer be silenced, said the Buddhist monk, who himself is the best example of just that. (15-JUNE-05)
Dalai Lama was in high spirits during his visit at the Norwegian Human Rights House, despite the very serious human rights violations taking place against his own people and in his home country Tibet. -It will take time, he emphasised, but in the long run, I remain an optimist regarding how the whole of the People´s Republic of China will develop.
-I know the next Panchen Lama, the one who was kidnapped, is alive
-China´s goal is to become a superpower, and it already meets three of the four criteria. It has an enormous population, modern armed forces and an economic miracle. What it till lacks, is the respect of the rest of the world. the People´s Republic of China has an image problem, and the only solution to that problem is to become a proper state of law, with democracy, freedom of information and opinion and freedom of belief. I myself have a real hope one day of being able to return to Tibet, but how long that will be, I don´t know. Dalai Lama will turn 70 on 6 July, and considers himself ´semi-retired´. -Since we established the Tibetan exile government three years ago, I have become some kind of a political adviser. I know very little of the next Lama, though, the 11th Panchen Lama, who was kidnapped only three days after being named the heir to the Buddhist throne. All I know is that he is alive, and that he is getting a modern education. He just turned 16, on 25 April.
Olav Gunnar Ballo, MP for the Socialist Left within the Norwegian Parliament and a well-known spokesperson for Tibetan independence, Chungdak Koren of the Norwegian Tibet Committee, hosting the meeting, and Dalai Lama, the highest spiritual authority of all Buddhists worldwide and also the symbol of Tibet´s struggle for freedom and independence. Photo: Silja Nordahl / NHC
-There is dialogue, but without much progress
The Chinese have not succeeded in ridding their own nation of religion. On the contrary, the interest in Buddhism is growing, also within the People´s Republic of China. Hence, it is highly unlikely that the Dalai Lama tradition will end with me. Instead, for as long as the people´s will is different, the tradition will go on. However, for as long as Chinese authorities treat us the way they do, we will continue to need the attention and support of the outside world. There is a dialogue going on between Tibet and the People´s Republic of China, but the fear in Beijing of separatism among all kinds of minorities is such that any significant progress is pretty hard to detect.
