Like violence, which is man-made, peace also depends on man, and therefore every one of us can make the world a better place, the Dalai Lama said.

"When I was 16, I lost my freedom, and when I was 24, I lost my country. For 50 years I have received heartbreaking, sad news from Tibet, but I still remain quite peaceful. It does not mean I am like a robot. I know very well that what is bad is bad, I understand that, but I do not let these emotions disturb me in a deeper level," he said.

He said that Tibet has no intention of breaking apart China but only aspires to the real autonomy granted to it in the 1951 agreement with the People's Republic of China.

"World peace cannot be achieved by praying or setting free white pigeons. [...] Peace does not mean that there are no problems. As long as there are men, there will be problems, but we have to remember not to use force," he said, pointing out that solutions must be found through dialogue. It is people who create difficulties, and with a peaceful mind, people can also overcome them, he continued.

"If we have a very strong sense of who is 'us' and who is 'them,' this will cause war because then we will want something that 'they' have," he said.

Mental balance is not something that comes through money or modern technology but through warmness of the heart and caring, he said, asking the audience to especially keep that in mind while raising the younger generation.

Erkki Sivonen