PLATFORM : Challenge for APEC

The DALAI LAMA, the spiritual leader of the Tibetan people, comments from his home-in-exile in Dharamsala, India, on the responsibilities of the countries in the Asia-Pacific region toward each other.

The leaders (of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation) must work for an interdependence beneficial to all nations and peoples that transcends material needs by supporting Asia’s democratic aspirations.

First, we must recognize that interdependence in the Asian-Pacific region must be based on all political entities respecting the right of individuals to develop spiritually, socially, materially and culturally. Asian-Pacific countries need to nurture democratic systems in each other, which does not mean looking only at Western models. We in Asia have many examples in our histories of democratic mechanisms.

Governments must respect the right of peoples to live peacefully. People not only want economic prosperity, they also need moral, spiritual and social prosperity. Countries are increasingly focused on how much they export and how big their gross national product is. Individuals now want more and more material things, and governments have lost their moral bearings.

Regional cooperation in Asia has been lagging, and now threatens to be overwhelmed by an economic giant in China, which could threaten stability throughout the Asian-Pacific region. The Chinese people are ready for change. The only question is whether and how peoples and governments in the region will help them.