Dharamshala, India — His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama has expressed his condolences at the death of John Hume, a leading Northern Ireland politician regarded as one of the architects of the Northern Ireland peace process.
Hume, who along with David Trimble was awarded the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to forge a peaceful solution to the conflict in Northern Ireland, died on Monday, August 6, 2020, in a Londonderry nursing home following a long period of illness. He was 83.
"Responding to the news that Northern Irish politician and Nobel Peace Laureate John Hume had passed away, His Holiness the Dalai Lama composed a letter expressing his condolences to his widow," Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama said on August 4, 2020.
“I was pleased to be able to meet your husband during one of my several visits to Northern Ireland,” His Holiness wrote. “His deep conviction in the power of dialogue and negotiations to resolve the conflict was unwavering," the letter added.
"It was his leadership and his faith in the power of negotiations that enabled the 1998 Good Friday Agreement to be reached. His steady persistence set an example for all of us to follow,” the spiritual leader of Tibet further said,
The Tibetan Nobel Peace Laureate concluded with the observation that Hume’s dedication to peace and nonviolence in the resolution of conflict, no matter how protracted or difficult it may seem to be, will long survive him and noted that he had lived a meaningful life.
