The Dalai Lama Says Chinese Communist Party Should 'Retire with Grace'

Friday, February 19, 2010 at 5:22PM
Staff in Frontpage 3, News/Commentary, Tenzin Gyatso, Tibet, chingyu Wang, democracy, presentation of the democracy service medal, the dalai lama

By Chingyu Wang-Talk Radio News Service

The Dalai Lama stated Friday that China's communist party should "retire with grace" due to its lack of support and solid ideology.

The Tibetan religious figure's remarks came after meeting with President Barack Obama Thursday at the White House, during a trip to the Library of Congress Friday for the Democracy Service Medal presented by The National Endowment for Democracy (NED).

[In] any country, the real change must come to people, to individual creativity," said the Dalai Lama. "[Under] the totalitarian system, without freedom, that opportunity to utilize individual creativity stops."

The Democracy Service Medal was created in 1999 "to recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to the progress of democracy around the world," said NED vice chairman Judy Shelton.

The Dalai Lama has been proceeding to develop and promote democracy system around the world. In the early 1950s, the Dalai Lama sought democratic reform in Tibet's system of government; in 1963, a democratic constitution was promulgated in India shortly after his departure.

The Dalai Lama explained that he views elections as an important symbol of democracy since "that gives people have some sort of power to control to change, and that also give them some kind of sense of responsibility and involvement."

Article originally appeared on Talk Radio News Service: News, Politics, Media (http://www.talkradionews.com/).