Photo: Screengrab
Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama, turns 31 on April 25 and this year marks 25 years since he was abducted by the Chinese authorities. Tibetans and supporters around the world are marking his birthday and reiterating the call for the Chinese government to release him and to provide information on the whereabouts of his family.
The Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), also known as the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, has launched a month-long global advocacy initiative – CTA aims to amplify the call for the release of Gedun Choekyi Nyima and to demand that China releases “verifiable information” about his whereabouts.
“As we celebrate Gedhun Choekyi Nyima’s birthday, we also remember his disappearance for the last 25 years. To press on the Chinese government for his immediate release, the CTA has launched a global campaign […] Unfortunately, because of the coronavirus pandemic which originated in Wuhan, we are not able to do the physical lobbying but we are doing virtual lobbying all over the world. Mainly our Offices of Tibet around the world, in partnership with Tibet Support Groups and Tibetan Associations, will participate in month-long events […] [starting on] April 25, the day he disappeared – or got kidnapped. We will have petitions submitted to various governments, particularly to the United Nations, and specifically to the Commission on the Rights of the Child, and the Working Group on Enforced Disappearance in Geneva,” said Sikyong Lobsang Sangay, President of the CTA.
Gendun Choekyi Nyima, along with his parents, was abducted by the Chinese authorities at the age of six on May 17, 1995, three days after His Holiness the Dalai Lama recognised him as the 11th Panchen Lama. Since then there has been no confirmation of his whereabouts and wellbeing.
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) and members of the European Parliament have offered support calling for the Panchen Lama’s release.
USCIRF has shown its support in calling on China to release Gedhun Choekyi Nyima – who they consider is one of USCIRF’s Religious Prisoners of Conscience. “The Chinese government is so desperate to stifle Tibetan Buddhism that it kidnapped a six-year-old boy,” said USCIRF Vice Chair, Nadine Maenza. “Unfortunately, Gedhun’s tragic plight represents the struggles of millions of Chinese believers to practice their faith in the face of an unprecedented crackdown,” he added.
Dr Tenzin Dorjee, Commissioner of USCIRF, and who has advocated for the 11th Panchen Lama’s freedom for four years now, said “the Panchen Lama of Tibet has been kept isolated since he was a child and denied the opportunity to live a normal life. We urge the Chinese government to show video evidence of his safety during this COVID-19 pandemic out of human dignity, and free the Panchen Lama immediately.”
File photo of Tibet Interest Group (TIG) meeting in the European Parliament
Photo: Tibet.net
The Office of Tibet in Brussels reports that 32 members of the European Parliament have urged the European Commission to call upon China to release Gedhun Choekyi Nyima without any condition in a joint signed letter to the Foreign Affairs Chief of the European Commission.
The members expressed concern at the recurring human rights violations by China in Tibet and say that the Panchen Lama’s disappearance for 25 years exemplifies the repressive rule of China in Tibet, said the report.
Despite the COVID-19 lockdown across the world, Tibetans and right groups are marking the 31 birthday of the Panchen Lama through digital campaigns, discussions and appeals.
Online panel discussion
Photo: Screengrab
Tashi Lhunpo Monastery in Tibet is the seat of Panchen Lama lineage. In exile, Tashi Lhunpo Monastery in Bylakuppe, south India represents the Panchen Lama’s monastery. The monastery has marked the day with a long life prayer to the 11th Panchen Lama and has also arranged an online panel discussion. The panel includes Dr Lobsang Sangay (CTA President), Zeekgyab Rinpoche (Abbot of Tashi Lhunpo Monastery), Sophie Richardson (China Director at Human Rrights Watch), Tenzin Dorjee (Commissioner at USCIRF), Arif Virani (a Canadian Member of Pariliament), and Matteo Mecacci (President of the International Campaign for Tibet).
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