Hes bald, he looks like a monk, were in China and hes the only person in focus in the shot. And your eye always comes back to him. I guess thats the problem with most of my shots, in that they are too subtle. But I do take your point :)
It is hard to figure out which one in this picture is the speaker. You failed to emphasize Your subject. If it is the man with his back towards the viewer, he is too low and by this overpowered by the presence of the rest of the people.