We must appreciate that all over the world, right down the centuries, there have been great religions that have encouraged the idea of giving - of fighting poverty and of promoting the equality of human beings - whatever their background, whatever their political beliefs.

Thinking is one of the most important weapons in dealing with problems

A good head and good heart are always a formidable combination. But when you add to that a literate tongue or pen, then you have something very special.

I came to accept that I have no right whatsoever to judge others in terms of my own customs, however much I may be proud of such customs.

As the years progress one increasingly realises the importance of friendship and human solidarity. And if a 90-year-old may offer some unsolicited advice on this occasion, it would be that you, irrespective of your age, should place human solidarity, the concern for the other, at the centre of the values by which you live.

Without language, one cannot talk to people and understand them; one cannot share their hopes and aspirations, grasp their history, appreciate their poetry, or savor their songs.

Racism is a blight on the human conscience