Bush to attend ceremony for Dalai Lama

President Bush will attend an Oct. 17 ceremony in the Capitol Rotunda at which the Dalai Lama, will be presented with the Congressional Gold Medal, the country’s highest civilian honor.

{mosads}The event will be historic, signaling the first time a sitting U.S. president will appear with the Dalai Lama at a public event, according to International Campaign for Tibet.

Lodi Gyaltsen Gyari, Special Envoy of the Dalai Lama, said in the ICT statement Thursday, “Honoring His Holiness with the Congressional Gold Medal is a strong endorsement of His Holiness’ tireless commitment to enhancing the principles of non-violence, religious harmony, tolerance, and promoting a sense of universal responsibility.”

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) will preside over the event, ICT said. On Thursday, Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill confirmed Pelosi’s and the president’s attendance at the event.

“For millions around the world, His Holiness the Dalai Lama is a source of spiritual refuge and a connection to inner peace and harmony. He has traveled the world, building bridges between and among the different faiths. He has used his position to promote wisdom, compassion, and non-violence as a solution – not only in Tibet – but to other world conflicts,” Pelosi said in the ICT statement.

Following the ceremony, the Dalai Lama will speak on the West Lawn of the Capitol. The ceremony will also mark the first time the West Lawn will be used for a Congressional Gold Medal celebration in the medal’s 200-year history.

Thousands of Tibetans and supporters of Tibet are expected to gather for one of the most significant international tributes to the exiled Tibetan leader since the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to him nearly 20 years ago.

The bill to award the Dalai Lama the medal passed and was signed into law by President Bush in Sept. 2006. The bill, which required two-thirds of Congress to co-sponsor it before it was considered, had broad bipartisan support. Congress passed a resolution Sept. 4 to authorize the use of the Capitol grounds to the ICT.

President Bush informed China’s leader, Hu Jintao, that he would be attending the Gold Medal ceremony earlier this month, during discussions at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Sydney.

The event will be part of a week of festivities commemorating the Dalai Lama’s including a gala dinner, the creation of a sand mandala by Tibetan monks at the Washington National Cathedral, an inter-faith Pray for Peace event and a concert at the Cathedral.