Press Release

United Nations Office of Communications and Public Information • News Coverage and Accreditation Service • New Yo ' tP ,

SG/SM/6812 30 November 1998

SECRETARY-GENERAL, IH MESSAGE TO WORLD BUDDHIST SUMMIT, NOTES BASIC AFFINITY

BETWEEN TEACHINGS OF GREAT RELIGIONS AMD VALUES OF UN CHARTER

Following is Secretary-General Kofi Annan's message to the World Buddhist Summit -- being held in , , on 1 and 2 December -- which was delivered on his behalf by Henning Karcher, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Coordinator in Nepal:

It gives me great pleasure to convey my warmest greetings and best wishes to the World Buddhist Summit. His Majesty King Birendra of Nepal, as well as the Government and and the Lumbini Development Trust, merit our gratitude for hosting this event and making possible an important contribution to the cause of world peace.

Lumbini is both a religious and cultural centre. As the most sacred place of pilgrimage for the world's Buddhists, Lumbini provides yet another illustration of the inter-connectedness of all people, across borders and across time. As a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage site, Lumbini reminds us how much the world's religions can teach us, Buddhists and non-Buddhists, believers and non-believers alike. And let us applaud the commitment to tolerance that allows a Buddhist summit to be held in an officially Hindu country. The world could use many more such examples of religious harmony.

Religions may manifest themselves in widely different practices and belief systems, but at heart we are dealing in universal values. To be kind, to be merciful: no single religion can claim a monopoly on such teachings. When religion is misused, and when religion is invoked in the name of war and assaults on human rights, the problem is not with the faith but with the faithful.

The further development of the Lumbini site in Nepal offers hope. It would enable Buddhists to complete their pilgrimage circuit more easily, since that circuit also includes nearby sites in . It would promote good relations among the countries of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation. And in the broadest sense it would serve as an international shrine for peace -- for pilgrims, for tourists, for all humankind.

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There is a basic affinity between the teachings of the great religions of the world and the values enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations that form the underpinning for our work. The Organization was involved in the early stages of developing the site during the tenure of Secretary-General U Thant and stands ready now to be an active partner in raising global awareness about Lumbini and realizing its great potential. In that spirit, please accept my best wishes for a successful and memorable Summit.

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