Dalai Lama urges vision of hope in Seattle speech

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
The Dalai Lama planned to speak about the turmoil in Tibet on Sunday, but so far on his US tour he has simply urged people to have hope for the future and to look past a century of bloodshed and toward a period of dialogue. The spiritual leader of Tibet delivered his keynote speech Saturday to more than 50,000 people during the second day of a five-day conference on compassion. Before the Dalai Lama's speech, Lama Tenzin Dhonden, a Tibetan monk who spearheaded the Seeds of Compassion event, told the crowd that Tibet seeks only autonomy. "Granting autonomy would be good for Tibet and also good for China, but autonomy requires China's commitment to serious dialogue," he said. The organizers say the Dalai Lama will address the crisis in Tibet at a news conference early Sunday.