The Dalai Lama speaking at the US Capitol
AFP/Washington


The Dalai Lama voiced optimism yesterday that China will reform and allow greater freedoms as he welcomed a young potential spiritual successor before thousands of well-wishers in Washington.
Addressing the packed West Lawn of the US Capitol near where presidents are inaugurated, the revered spiritual leader responded without hesitation when he was asked if he hoped to return to Tibet after 52 years in exile.
“Oh yes, things are always changing,” the Dalai Lama said to an eruption of cheers from a crowd ranging from fellow Buddhist monks to young Americans lying on the grass on a hot summer morning.
“Certainly, I think the voice of freedom, democracy, rule of law, more and more voice(s are) now coming,” the Dalai Lama said in English, noting that Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao himself has called for political reforms in recent years.
“So things will certainly change,” he said. “Not only (in the) Chinese case, but the whole world, things are changing.”
The Nobel Peace Prize laureate said that violence can sometimes yield immediate results, but that in the long run, the “power of truth, power of compassion, (are) much more effective than (the) power of gun”.
Despite the Dalai Lama’s optimism, human rights groups report intensifying crackdowns inside Tibet. Many scholars believe China is waiting for his death, believing his cause will wither without the internationally popular monk.
The Dalai Lama, who is in Washington leading a 10-day religious ritual known as a Kalachakra, took the stage for his public talk by welcoming the 26-year-old Karmapa Lama, who some Tibetans hope could fill a void after the Dalai Lama dies.
The Dalai Lama offered the young monk a hearty smile and touched both his arms. The Karmapa Lama did not speak but took a front-row seat in the shade to respectfully listen to Dalai Lama’s lecture, which was moderated by actress Whoopi Goldberg.
The Karmapa Lama made a perilous journey in 1999 from Tibet to the Indian hill station of Dharamshala, where the Dalai Lama lives in exile, after voicing fear that China would force him to turn against the revered elder monk.
He arrived in Washington on Friday on his second visit to the United States. India rejected his previous requests to travel overseas.