china needs the dalai lama

Robert Thurman is professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies in the Department of Religion at Columbia University and President of Tibet House US. His upcoming book, "Why the Dalai Lama Matters: His Act of Truth as the Solution for China, Tibet and the World" (Atria Books/Beyond Words) will be out in June.
::he writes:

We are at a moment of great significance for humanity, at the beginning of this new century, which could be either a horrendous time of natural and man-made mega-disasters or the greatest century yet of environmental restoration and peaceful global community. Of all world leaders at this time, the Dalai Lama most convincingly provides spiritual, intellectual, and ethical leadership, exemplifying and elucidating the most reasonable path to peace and happiness. This is the secret of his worldwide popularity. His person and teaching really do matter, to the Tibetans, to the Chinese, and to all of us and our future generations.

If there ever was a social and political movement based on faith, on spirituality, it is the 50-year campaign of the Dalai Lama for the freedom of his people, and the present spontaneous uprising of the Tibetan people who want to be free to restore their spiritual life, in the closer presence of their spiritual and political leader. These acts of truth—the Dalai Lama’s long insistence on nonviolence and dialogue in responding to the genocidal acts of one of the world’s largest military powers, and the Tibetan people’s resistance in the face of overwhelming odds—may yet produce miraculous results, as one of the world’s greatest “lost causes” becomes a possible success.

The promise of the present moment has been precipitated first by the innovative leaders of China, gingerly stepping out into the glare of world publicity and opinion by hosting the Olympic Games and second, just now, by the brave people of Tibet stepping out on their own past the plans of their leader and, against great odds, standing up for the truth of their existence as Tibetans. Risking their very lives, they protest the total destruction of their culture, environment, and way of life. They have done this in the spirit of nonviolent resistance, although decades of bitterness and the extremity of their present situation did cause some of them to lose sight of this foundational principle of their struggle and commit some acts of violence. They stood up to the firing of armed Chinese troops, they raised their flag of freedom, and they remain standing in spite of the massive loss of life and liberty they knew would come.