[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 114 (Thursday, September 14, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1720]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           FOURTEENTH DALAI LAMA CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 13, 2006

  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 2784 to award a 
congressional gold metal to Tenzin Gyatso, the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, 
in recognition of his many enduring and outstanding contributions to 
peace, non-violence, human rights, and religious understanding.
  I am honored to support the Dalai Lama to receive the Congressional 
Gold Metal. He has dedicated himself to the Tibetan people and the 
pursuit freedom. He is the head of state and spiritual leader of the 
Tibetan people--the epitome of strength and courage, revered around the 
world for his commitment to the cause of human rights and religious 
freedom--a man who wants only to be able to return to his country in 
peace and to lead his people in the practice of their religion. He had 
led the effort to preserve the rich cultural heritage of the Tibetan 
people.
  I traveled to Tibet in 1997 and saw with my own eyes the suffering 
the Tibetan people endure. I visited monasteries and talked with many 
people. Several monks spoke to me in secret and shared with me the 
horrors taking place in Tibet. I heard stories of monks and nuns who 
were dragged away to prison and tortured.
  These monks and nuns are not alone. Religious persecution is spread 
across China. Catholic bishops are in prisons and labor camps. 
Protestant House Church leaders are routinely harassed and detained. 
Large numbers of Muslims in China are in prison because of their faith. 
Young Muslim Uighur boys and girls are not even allowed to enter a 
mosque until they are 18-years-old.
  I have been standing on the floor of this House talking about human 
rights in China and the Dalai Lama for two decades. The world is now 
looking for resolutions to the human rights problems in China and 
Tibet. There has been a dialogue taking place between the Dalai Lama's 
envoys and the Chinese, and that is good. But we now need to see some 
concrete results from these talks. The Tibetan people deserve to live 
in peace.
  I am proud to support the Dalai Lama for the Congressional Gold 
Medal. He has kept the cause of human rights alive in Tibet and in 
other places around the globe. He is a true hero to me and many others 
throughout the world.

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