« 2008-04-30 | HomePage | 2008-05-05 »
05/04/2008
H.H the Dalai Lama Time's 'Most Influential'
KETV7 1 May 2008, Spiritual leader the Dalai Lama is the most influential person in the world, according to Time Magazine.
His holiness was the top name in Leaders & Revolutionaries category, released Thursday on Time's Web site. The list is also divided among the categories Heroes & Pioneers, Scientists & Thinkers, Artists & Entertainers and Builders & Titans.
"To me, the most mystical thing about him is also the most ordinary: the Dalai Lama is happy. He's happy in the midst of chaos and turmoil," spiritualist Deepak Chopra wrote in an essay on his holiness. "The most inspiring thing he ever told me was to ignore all organized faiths and keep to the road of higher consciousness."
Winfrey's appearance on the list is her fifth.
The list also includes presidential contenders Sen. Barack Obama, Sen. Hillary Clinton and Sen. John McCain, who are No. 3, 4 and 5 in the Leaders & Revolutionaries category, respectively. Putin is No. 2 in the category and Bush is No. 7.
Each person on the list is accompanied by an essay written by a public figure. Elizabeth Edwards writes about Lance Armstrong and Cate Blanchett writes about Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. Michelle Obama writes about Winfrey, while former president Bill Clinton writes about former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
George Clooney writes about star couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, who fall into the Heroes & Pioneers category for their work as goodwill ambassadors worldwide.
"It is one thing to talk about the problems of the world and quite another to actually try to change things," Clooney wrote.
Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, filmmaker Rob Reiner and Sen. Joe Lieberman write about Obama, Clinton and McCain, respectively.
The Time 100 also lists Iraq Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Chinese President Hu Jintao.
Other celebrities on the list include actor-filmmaker Tyler Perry, "Saturday Night Live" producer Lorne Michaels, Oscar-winning filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen, and "Knocked Up" and "Superbad" filmmaker Judd Apatow.
Distributed by Internet Broadcasting. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
10:32 Posted in Freedom of expression | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: tibet
Monks Defy Authorities Against Pledge to Denounce the Dalai Lama
{The Tibet Post International - Saturday, 3 May 2008}
On April 28, 19 nuns from Shugseb nunnery together with 4 monks from Gangri Thoekar monastery in Chushul (Ch: Quxui) near Lhasa, staged a peaceful demonstration. Two nuns have been identified as Tsundu and Dangdrung. The protesters were soon arrested by the local Security personnel and their whereabouts remain unknown. The present peaceful protest by the nuns follows an earlier peaceful march carried out in March by the nuns of Shugseb nunnery in Chushul to Nyethang Lha Chenmo. They are heavily suppressed by the Chinese armed forces. The nunnery was since then subjected to forcible "patriotic re-education" campaign compelling the nuns to rise again.
In another incident in Sershul county (Ch: Shiqu) under Kardze TAP, a lady named Tri Lhamo was compelled to commit suicide at her home near Wonpo monastery. The lady hung herself soon after a house-to-house raid by the Chinese armed forces on April 28. During the raid, Chinese forces tore down and trampled upon HH the Dalai Lama’s photos. First handedly witnessing this atrocious behavior, the lady broke down and shouted at the Chinese forces why she couldn’t keep the picture of her root-guru. She even shouted slogan for quick return of HH the Dalai Lama to Tibet and hung herself thereafter, sources said. Accordingly, unable to bear the endless suffering for days result of Chinese government's crackdown, a monk named Sonam Nyendrak, aged 70 years has gone insane.
Around end of March, the Chinese government dispatched a contingent of officials to Sershul monastery in Sershul County to propagate "Patriotic re-education" classes among the monks of this monastery. It is learnt that the former abbot of the monastery, Thupten Nyendak Rinpoche, had amidst a large gathering of monks and laity called on the Chinese authorities that their blame of His Holiness the Dalai Lama as the instigator of the protests in Tibet was baseless. He said that the current crisis was a result of failed policy of Chinese government's to transfer Han Chinese into Tibet and lack of opportunity for a proper education. His Holiness is refuge of all the Tibetans and there is none among us who do not want to see Him, he had said. He then called on the government of PRC to engage in dialogue with His Holiness the Dalai Lama as soon as possible. The former abbot is now under virtual house arrest with his movements closely monitored by the Chinese security.
On April 21, the local authorities in Sershul county had planned a Flag hoisting ceremony at Wonpo monastery. However, except for the Disciplinary In charge of the monastery, no monks or lay people turned up for the ceremony. The Disciplinary incharge also flatly refused to hoist the flag in the monastery premises saying, "I won't do it even if you slash my neck". The ceremony to fly the Red flag was then withdrawn.
In a police raid in Tashi Kkyil monastery in Amdo (Qinghai) on April 15, some monks have been arrested. Among the arrested are Lusho Tenzin, Rebtsa Gendun Nagdang and Sangkhok Jamyang Jinpa. The three monks who underwent merciless beatings and torture at the hands of the officials are reported to be admitted in a hospital. But it could not be verified where they have been actually taken to.
In an another development, a Tibetan named Nyima Drakpa from Barzi township in Tawu county has been arrested for allegedly passing on information through phone to the outside world.
Similar reports of arrests have also surfaced from Wonpo area, where three Tibetans namely, Yidor, Kyedhar and Baluk Kyab have been harshly beaten before being arrested.
10:25 Posted in Freedom of expression | Permalink | Comments (1) | Email this | Tags: tibet