The prestigious 2008 Gusi Peace Prize Awards ceremony was held on November 23 and 24 (Golden Year 5) in Manila, Philippines. The illustrious event was covered by media from around the world, including Supreme Master Television. Two years ago, Supreme Master Ching Hai was honored with this highly-acclaimed prize. This year, esteemed Gusi laureates were again chosen from all walks of life for their pursuit of peace, excellence and integrity in their respective fields of expertise.

Master was also invited as an honorary guest to the event; however, as She could not attend this time, initiates from Formosa, Hong Kong and Manila had the honor of representing and conveying Her love to the other guests. They first greeted Mr. Manual Morato, President of the Gusi Foundation, and presented a gift bag to him as a loving gesture from Master. Mr. Morato affirmed that he was looking forward to interviewing Master on his radio program in the future.

 

	Guests enjoy vegetarian food
	Receipt from Gusi Peace Prize Foundation for the US$10,000 contribution by Master

 

At the Award luncheon and dinner, initiates gave out gift bags to the guests and prepared a few vegetarian dishes for their enjoyment. They also spoke with several VIPs, and later dined with the Gusi family and discussed the benefits of a plant-based diet. Many guests also expressed their longing to see Master again. The Awards Ceremony took place the following night at the elegant Meralco Theater. The ceremony began with the unifying “Parade of Flags” and later included breathtaking entertainment from world famous Russian pianist Katya Grineva, local award winning Philippine performers and saxophone-playing laureate, Dr. Dan Zoltan Reinstein.

Initiates spoke with Malaysian laureate Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Haji Mulia that night about his wish to preserve his rare indigenous culture and also his support of the vegetarian diet. Newly appointed Presidential Advisor on Global Warming and Climate Change, Mr. Heherson T. Alvarez, winner of Master’s Shining World Leadership Award in 2007, also agreed that vegetarianism is beneficial to stop greenhouse gases.

The next day, initiates met with Mr. and Mrs. Gusi to present a US$10,000 check to their Foundation on behalf of Supreme Master Ching Hai, to provide medicine for the less fortunate. Chairman Gusi referred to Master as a “Child of God” and an “Angel of God” and invited Her to be the inspirational speaker of the 2009 Gusi Awards. He also mentioned the possibility of next year’s dinner being all vegetarian! That would truly be a progressive step in the name of peace because as the wise saying goes, “Peace begins on our plate.”

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