Nov 18, 2005

Tibet: His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Attend the 4th World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet in E


The objective of the 4th World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet is to share information, review current developments, and develop a plan of governmental action to advance Tibetan issues
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His Holiness the Dalai Lama to visit Edinburgh, Belfast.

The London-based Office of Tibet, the official agency of His Holiness the Dalai Lama for Northern Europe and the Baltic States, is pleased to announce that from November 18 to 23 His Holiness the Dalai Lama will be visiting Edinburgh and Belfast to give keynote addresses and a major public talk at the invitation of parliamentary bodies and others. This visit will follow His Holiness’ 19-day trip to the United States, where besides giving a series of public talks and participating in a conference with scientists, the Tibetan leader was also welcomed to the White House by President Bush and received by the Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at the State Department.

According to Mrs. Kesang Y. Takla, Representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama for Northern Europe & the Baltic States, the arrangements for His Holiness’ visit to Edinburgh and Belfast are going smoothly. She is especially encouraged by the public and media interest in His Holiness’ visit and message of hope not only for the future of the Tibetan people but also for the world at large.

His Holiness is this time visiting Edinburgh at the invitation to be the guest of honour and address the 4th World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet (WPCT) co-hosted by the Scottish Cross Party Parliamentary Group on Tibet and the UK All Party Parliamentary Group for Tibet. His Holiness has also been invited by The Lord Provost of the City of Edinburgh, The Edinburgh Inter-Faith Association and The Scotland Tibet Association to give a public talk in the city and to address an education conference.

In her invitation letter, the Right Honourable Lesley Hinds, Lord Provost, assured His Holiness “a very warm welcome” and said, “I would like to invite you to give a public talk, which would be a part of The Edinburgh Lectures, a highly successful and popular annual series of public talks.”

According to The Edinburgh Inter-Faith Association, which in partnership with the City of Edinburgh is organising the November 19 public talk, the tickets for this event have been sold out well in advance “with significant demand remaining.” At this event to be held at the Edinburgh Usher Hall, His Holiness will engage in a conversation on ‘Ethics for the New Millennium’ with Prof. Sheila MacLean, Director and the first holder of the International Bar Association Chair of Law and Ethics in Medicine at Glasgow University. ‘Ethics for the New Millennium’ also is the title of the best-selling book authored by His Holiness the Dalai Lama. The conversation will be chaired by former Episcopal Primus of Scotland, Richard Holloway. Prior to the discussion the audience will have the opportunity to view large projected photographs from His Holiness’s 2004 visit to Scotland. Further information on the Usher Hall even with His Holiness can be checked at their website link: http://www.usherhall.co.uk/concerts/?id=3142

On November 19 evening, His Holiness will give the keynote address at the concluding session of the 4th World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet. In a media release issued on 2 October, the convenor of the Scottish Cross Party Parliamentary Group on Tibet, Mr. Chris Balance, said that at the invitation of his group and the UK All Party Parliamentary Group for Tibet, “parliamentarians from around the world will be joined by members of the Tibetan government and parliament in exile for a two day Convention to be held in Edinburgh from 18-19 November.”

"I am delighted that we are able to bring the Convention to Edinburgh and am particularly pleased that we will once again be welcoming His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Scotland, so soon after his visit last year,” said Mr. Chris Balance, who also is a member of the Scottish Parliament representing the Green Party.

The objective of the 4th World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet is to share information, review current developments, and develop a plan of governmental action to advance Tibetan issues and secure effective governmental support for the process of dialogue between the Chinese leadership and His Holiness the Dalai Lama or his representatives leading to a negotiated solution for Tibet. The last World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet held in 1997 in Washington D.C. was hosted by the Chairman of the US House of International Relations and Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Emphasising that non-violence and dialogue is the only antidote to violence and in resolving conflicts, the Scottish MSP praised the non-violent struggle of the Tibetan people under the leadership of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. He, however, cautioned that “The Chinese population transfer policy in the name of development is seriously threatening the very identity of the Tibetan people. If the situation is not reversed, the loss of the unique Tibetan civilization would not only be detrimental for the Tibetans but to the whole world. There is an urgent need to resolve the Tibet issue to save the Tibetan civilization."

On 18 November, His Holiness the Dalai Lama will give a keynote address on ‘Cultivating warm-heartedness’ at a major educators conference on ‘Leading the Way on Positive Education’ in the Scottish capital of Edinburgh. His Holiness will be introduced by Norman Drummond, a well-known educationist and a Chaplain to Her Majesty The Queen in Scotland. Information about the education conference can be accessed from their website link: http://www.childreninscotland.org.uk/pec

Before addressing the education conference at the Edinburgh University, His Holiness will attend a meeting with the media to answers questions relating to his visit and other issues. The Office of Tibet, London, and the organisers of His Holiness’ visit have found this alternative a good substitute in the wake of the overwhelming requests for one-on-one interview with the Tibetan Nobel Peace Laureate. The Edinburgh City Council Media Office in conjunction with The Edinburgh Inter-Faith Association and the Scotland Tibet Association is coordinating the media invitation (Charity Dyke tel: 0131 529 4489 email: [email protected] ).

From Edinburgh, His Holiness the Dalai Lama will travel to Belfast on November 20. His Holiness’ visit to Northern Ireland follows his successful visit there in 2000 at the invitation of The World Community for Christian Meditation.

Mediation Northern Ireland and The World Community for Christian Meditation are this time jointly organizing the programmes for the coming visit of His Holiness to Belfast. According to them “this visit is a rare and special opportunity for all parties, faiths and ages in Northern Ireland to share their views and experience with one of the world’s most respected symbols of peace. At the same time it will be an opportunity to learn from what he has learned in his own struggle with political tragedy and enduring crisis.”

In Belfast, His Holiness’ first engagement on the day of his arrival is a visit to Corrymeela to celebrate its 40 years of work in the Northern Ireland Community as well as to mark its international influence. Corrymella is the longest running peace movement in Northern Ireland. Its current leader, David Stevens, and its founder, Rev. Ray Davey, will welcome His Holiness, who will listen to the story of and share with participants his own experience of the role of communities in healing the wounds of societies. There will be a special reflection on the way the pain of the victims of violence may be lifted up in a peace-filled community to become a healing force to overcome future occasions of violence.

On November 21, after opening the headquarters of Mediation Northern Ireland, His Holiness will give a talk on “Mediation and Nonviolence”. The same evening, His Holiness will address a forum hosted by the Community Relations Council that will provide an opportunity for His Holiness to listen to different perspectives from thoseengaged in community peace building. According the organisers, about 150 civic leaders will join His Holiness at this event.

On November 22, His Holiness will participate in the “2005 Way of Peace”, an Annual event of The WorldCommunity for Christian Meditation, which has its roots in an ongoing dialogue between His Holiness and The World Community. The service will be held in St. Anne’s Cathedral and will be hosted by the Christian Meditation Community of Northern Ireland and introduced by Father Laurence Freeman, the Director of The World Community. According to the organisers, “The Dalai Lama and Dom Laurence will each speak on ‘The Power of Prayer’. There will be music, poetry and the service and the Dalai Lama’s visit will end in the peace and unifying silence of a period of meditation”.