By Choekyi Lhamo
DHARAMSHALA, Oct. 24: The Tibetan spiritual leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama on Sunday congratulated the new Prime Minister of Italy Giorgia Meloni. “Over the years, I have had the pleasure of visiting your country many times and have been touched by the affection and friendship shown to me by Italians from all walks of life. I also am grateful to those Italian brothers and sisters who have consistently supported the Tibetan people’s aspirations for freedom and dignity,” the Nobel laureate wrote in a letter.
The first woman Prime Minister of Italy responded, “I am honored by the message of affection that the Dalai Lama wanted to convey to me and to the Government. I take this opportunity to renew our sentiment of friendship,” PM Meloni tweeted in her response to the Tibetan leader.
Lauding the historic win as the first female to hold the position, the Dalai Lama remarked, “I would like to say that I am pleased to see that the new Prime Minister of Italy is a woman, because I believe, and there is scientific evidence to demonstrate it, that women are more empathetic and sensitive to the feelings of others. Consequently they show greater warm-heartedness and concern for others’ well-being.”
The 87-year-old Tibetan leader urged the new PM to lead with compassion as the world faces fresh challenges, “These are very challenging times for Italy and the whole of humanity. In today’s highly interdependent world, individuals and nations can no longer resolve the problems they face alone. We are reliant on the wider community to survive, therefore we need to show greater kindness and compassion to one another.”
Meloni and her ministers took the oath before President Sergio Mattarella at the Quirinal Palace in Rome, once home to kings of Italy on Saturday. PM Meloni hails from Garbatella in southern Rome. The far-right leader’s party ‘Brothers of Italy’, founded in 2012, rallied its supporters around an agenda against the European Union and international markets to secure her place in the elections.
One Response
I would question the generalization of “women are more empathetic and sensitive to the feelings of others” when it comes to political leadership. Given how the wind sways, many may feel the need to act more manly than men in certain situations to illustrate their “competence”. There are probably a whole generation of British who can recall Iron Lady Thatcher and certainly a whole generation of Indians that probably recall Indira Ghandi’s “family planning” phase. In statistics, there is a term called outlier. Question to ask–is there perhaps the chance of a female Pope?