Peace in Tibet and Everywhere Else

The title of this blog, "Respect Human Rights and Peace Will Last" is based on this quote from the 14th Dalai Lama:

"Peace, in the sense of the absence of war, is of little value to someone who is dying of hunger or cold. It will not remove the pain of torture inflicted on a prisoner of conscience. It does not comfort those who have lost their loved ones in floods caused by senseless deforestation in a neighboring country. Peace can only last where human rights are respected, where people are fed, and where individuals and nations are free."

Hands and Earth

Peace Symbol

I chose this quote because it is totally true and inspiring. Indeed, peace will not help the more than 10 million children who are employed in drug trafficking, sex, work, and other hazardous labor. It will not educate the billion people in the world who are illiterate. And what amazes me is the selflessness of the Dalai Lama here. While he was speaking this, he was probably thinking about the thousands and thousands of Tibetans dying in the past due to the China vs. Tibet conflict, but, rather than whine about those suffering people and how they needed peace, he faces the facts and points out: Even if there is peace and these Tibetans did not have to die for their region, millions of other people in the world would still exist in life threatening conditions. No, he says, striving for peace is not the answer. Those humans will have to have rights that are respected and followed in order for there to be true peace and harmony worldwide. What this little bald Chinese man spoke of was much broader than just his own region; it applies to everyone universally.