PEOPLE OF GREATNESS: MEN OF OUR TIME
T ibetan
refugees were rehabilitated in agricultural settlements. Economic
development was promoted and the creation of a Tibetan educational
system was established to raise refugee children with full knowledge
of their language, history, religion and culture. The Tibetan
Institute of Performing Arts was established in 1959, while the
Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies became a university for
Tibetans in India. Over 200 monasteries have been re-established to
preserve the vast corpus of Tibetan Buddhist teachings, the essence of
the Tibetan way of life. In 1963, His Holiness promulgated a
democratic constitution, based on Buddhist principles and the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a model for a future free
Tibet. Today, members of the Tibetan parliament are elected directly
by the people. The members of the Tibetan Cabinet are elected by the
parliament, making the Cabinet answerable to the Parliament. His
Holiness has continuously emphasized the need to further democratise
the Tibetan administration and has publicly declared that once Tibet
regains her independence he will not hold political office. In
Washington, D.C., at the Congressional Human Rights Caucus in 1987, he
proposed a Five-Point Peace Plan as a first step toward resolving the
future status of Tibet. This plan calls for the designation of Tibet
as a zone of peace, an end to the massive transfer of ethnic Chinese
into Tibet, restoration of fundamental human rights and democratic
freedoms, and the abandonment of China's use of Tibet for nuclear
weapons production and the dumping of nuclear waste, as well as urging
"earnest negotiations" on the future of Tibet. In Strasbourg, France,
on 15 June 1988, he elaborated the Five-Point Peace Plan and proposed
the creation of a self-governing democratic Tibet, "in association
with the People's Republic of China." On 2 September 1991, the Tibetan
Government-in-exile declared the Strasbourg Proposal invalid because
of the closed and negative attitude of the present Chinese leadership
towards the ideas expressed in the proposal. On 9 October 1991, during
an address at Yale University in the United States, His Holiness said
that he wanted to visit Tibet to personally assess the political
situation. He said, "I am extremely anxious that, in this explosive
situation, violence may break out. I want to do what I can to prevent
this.... My visit would be a new opportunity to promote understanding
and create a basis for a negotiated solution." Since 1967, His
Holiness initiated a series of journeys which have taken him to some
46 nations. In autumn of 1991, he visited the Baltic States at the
invitation of Lithuanian President Vytautas Landsbergis of Lithuania
and became the first foreign leader to address the Lithuanian
Parliament. His Holiness met with the late Pope Paul VI at the Vatican
in 1973. At a press conference in Rome in 1980, he outlined his hopes
for the meeting with John Paul II: "We live in a period of great
crisis, a period of troubling world developments. It is not possible
to find peace in the soul without security and harmony between
peoples. For this reason, I look forward with faith and hope to my
meeting with the Holy Father; to an exchange of ideas and feelings,
and to his suggestions, so as to open the door to a progressive
pacification between peoples." His Holiness met Pope John Paul II at
the Vatican in 1980, 1982, 1986, 1988 and 1990. In 1981, His Holiness
talked with Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Robert Runcie, and with
other leaders of the Anglican Church in London. He also met with
leaders of the Roman Catholic and Jewish communities and spoke at an
interfaith service held in his honor by the World Congress of Faiths:
"I always believe that it is much better to have a variety of
religions, a variety of philosophies, rather than one single religion
or philosophy.
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This is necessary because of the
different mental dispositions of each human being. Each religion has
certain unique ideas or techniques, and learning about them can only
enrich one's own faith." Since his first visit to the west in the early
1973, a number of western universities and institutions have conferred
Peace Awards and honorary Doctorate Degrees in recognition of His
Holiness' distinguished writings in Buddhist philosophy and for his
leadership in the solution of international conflicts, human rights issues
and global environmental problems. In presenting the Raoul Wallenberg
Congressional Human Rights Award in 1989, U.S. Congressman Tom Lantos
said, "His Holiness the Dalai Lama's courageous struggle has distinguished
him as a leading proponent of human rights and world peace. His ongoing
efforts to end the suffering of the Tibetan people through peaceful
negotiations and reconciliation have required enormous courage and
sacrifice." The Norwegian Nobel Committee's decision to award the 1989
Peace Prize to His Holiness the Dalai Lama won worldwide praise and
applause, with exception of China. The Committee Ős citation read, "The
Committee wants to emphasize the fact that the Dalai Lama in his struggle
for the liberation of Tibet consistently has opposed the use of violence.
He has instead advocated peaceful solutions based upon tolerance and
mutual respect in order to preserve the historical and cultural heritage
of his people." On 10 December 1989, His Holiness accepted the prize on
the behalf of oppressed everywhere and all those who struggle for freedom
and work for world peace and the people of Tibet. In his remarks he said,
"The prize reaffirms our conviction that with truth, courage and
determination as our weapons, Tibet will be liberated. Our struggle must
remain nonviolent and free of hatred." He also had a message of
encouragement for the student-led democracy movement in China. "In China
the popular movement for democracy was crushed by brutal force in June
this year. But I do not believe the demonstrations were in vain, because
the spirit of freedom was rekindled among the Chinese people and China
cannot escape the impact of this spirit of freedom sweeping in many parts
of the world. The brave students and their supporters showed the Chinese
leadership and the world the human face of that great nations." His
Holiness often says, "I am just a simple Buddhist monk - no more, nor
less." His Holiness follows the life of Buddhist monk. Living in a small
cottage in Dharamsala, he rises at 4 A.M. to meditate, pursues an ongoing
schedule of administrative meetings, private audiences and religious
teachings and ceremonies.
2-Kofi
A. Annan (Ghana)
Mr. Kofi A. Annan is
the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations, is the first to be
elected from the ranks of UN staff. His first five-year term began on 1
January 1997 and, following his subsequent re-appointment by the UN Member
States, he will begin a second five-year term on 1 January 2002.As
Secretary-General, Mr. Annan has given priority to revitalizing the UN
through a comprehensive program of reform; strengthening the
Organization's traditional work in the areas of development and the
maintenance of international peace and security; advocating human rights,
the rule of law and the universal values of equality, tolerance and human
dignity; restoring public confidence in the Organization by reaching out
to new partners and, in his words, by "bringing the United Nations closer
to the people".
CONTINUES ON P23
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