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Dalai Lama Begins US Visit in Seattle
Thursday, April 10, 2008
SEATTLE -- The Dalai Lama arrived in the United States on Thursday for the
first time since the recent turmoil in Tibet, serenaded by felow Tibetans as
he prepared to anchor an ambitious conference on compassion.
The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader came here a day after demonstrators
disrupted the Olympic torch run in San Francisco in a protest of China's
treatment of his people. The Dalai Lama will be attending a five-day
conference that begins Friday.
With the Dalai Lama in town, some community leaders said they expected
counter-demonstrations from pro-China groups.
But all was peaceful when he arrived at a downtown hotel Thursday, telling
local Tibetans who sang to him that he supports nonviolent demonstrations
but was saddened by the protests in San Francisco.
In Tibet, the recent protests against five decades of Chinese rule have been
the largest and most sustained in almost two decades. China has accused the
Dalai Lama of being involved in the uprising. The Tibetan leader has said
that he wants greater autonomy for the remote mountain region but is not
seeking independence.
Earlier Thursday, during a stopover in Japan, the Dalai Lama said he has
always supported China's hosting of the Olympic Games this summer, but said
Beijing cannot suppress protests in Tibet with violence or tell those
calling for more freedom in his homeland "to shut up."
He strongly denied Chinese allegations he and his followers have used the
run-up to the Olympics to foment unrest.
"Right from the beginning, we supported the Olympic Games," he told
reporters near the airport outside Tokyo. "I really feel very sad the
government demonizes me. I am just a human; I am not a demon."
Organizers of the five-day Seeds of Compassion conference in Seattle say the
Dalai Lama's visit is expected to draw more than 150,000 people.
The Chinese community in Seattle has been split by the Tibetan situation,
said Assunta Ng, publisher of the Northwest Asian Weekly, a local
Asian-American community newspaper. Ng said she wouldn't be surprised if
pro-China demonstrators show up at some of the events, and added that some
Chinese students plan to protest the politicization of the Olympics.
The conference will feature dozens of workshops on various subjects,
beginning with a panel discussion Friday with the Dalai Lama on "The
Scientific Basis for Compassion: What We Know Now."
Tickets for events involving the Dalai Lama have already sold out, according
to the conference Web site.
Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels will present the key to the city to the Tibetan
leader and the University of Washington will present him an honorary degree.
The Dalai Lama fled to India after a failed uprising in 1959 in Tibet, but
remains the religious and cultural leader of many Tibetans. He was awarded
the Nobel Peace prize in 1989.
He was determined to attend the Seattle conference because of his commitment
to global peace, organizers said.
"He wants compassion for both sides, for the Tibetans, for the Chinese
brothers," said Lama Tenzin Dhonden, a Tibetan monk who spearheaded the
development of the conference.
After Seattle, the Dalai Lama is scheduled to speak at the University of
Michigan at Ann Arbor on April 19 and 20, then at Colgate University in
Hamilton, N.Y., on April 22.
Dalai Lama Begins US Visit in Seattle
Thursday, April 10, 2008
SEATTLE -- The Dalai Lama arrived in the United States on Thursday for the
first time since the recent turmoil in Tibet, serenaded by felow Tibetans as
he prepared to anchor an ambitious conference on compassion.
The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader came here a day after demonstrators
disrupted the Olympic torch run in San Francisco in a protest of China's
treatment of his people. The Dalai Lama will be attending a five-day
conference that begins Friday.
With the Dalai Lama in town, some community leaders said they expected
counter-demonstrations from pro-China groups.
But all was peaceful when he arrived at a downtown hotel Thursday, telling
local Tibetans who sang to him that he supports nonviolent demonstrations
but was saddened by the protests in San Francisco.
In Tibet, the recent protests against five decades of Chinese rule have been
the largest and most sustained in almost two decades. China has accused the
Dalai Lama of being involved in the uprising. The Tibetan leader has said
that he wants greater autonomy for the remote mountain region but is not
seeking independence.
Earlier Thursday, during a stopover in Japan, the Dalai Lama said he has
always supported China's hosting of the Olympic Games this summer, but said
Beijing cannot suppress protests in Tibet with violence or tell those
calling for more freedom in his homeland "to shut up."
He strongly denied Chinese allegations he and his followers have used the
run-up to the Olympics to foment unrest.
"Right from the beginning, we supported the Olympic Games," he told
reporters near the airport outside Tokyo. "I really feel very sad the
government demonizes me. I am just a human; I am not a demon."
Organizers of the five-day Seeds of Compassion conference in Seattle say the
Dalai Lama's visit is expected to draw more than 150,000 people.
The Chinese community in Seattle has been split by the Tibetan situation,
said Assunta Ng, publisher of the Northwest Asian Weekly, a local
Asian-American community newspaper. Ng said she wouldn't be surprised if
pro-China demonstrators show up at some of the events, and added that some
Chinese students plan to protest the politicization of the Olympics.
The conference will feature dozens of workshops on various subjects,
beginning with a panel discussion Friday with the Dalai Lama on "The
Scientific Basis for Compassion: What We Know Now."
Tickets for events involving the Dalai Lama have already sold out, according
to the conference Web site.
Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels will present the key to the city to the Tibetan
leader and the University of Washington will present him an honorary degree.
The Dalai Lama fled to India after a failed uprising in 1959 in Tibet, but
remains the religious and cultural leader of many Tibetans. He was awarded
the Nobel Peace prize in 1989.
He was determined to attend the Seattle conference because of his commitment
to global peace, organizers said.
"He wants compassion for both sides, for the Tibetans, for the Chinese
brothers," said Lama Tenzin Dhonden, a Tibetan monk who spearheaded the
development of the conference.
After Seattle, the Dalai Lama is scheduled to speak at the University of
Michigan at Ann Arbor on April 19 and 20, then at Colgate University in
Hamilton, N.Y., on April 22.
