Speaking in Lhasa at a training session attended by over 100 monks, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference official, Sonam Rinzin said that reincarnation is “never a religious-only issue or a living Buddha’s personal right” but is instead an important representation of the Communist Party of China’s strategies and policies. The session was also attended by the Chinese government appointed Panchen Lama, Gyaltsen Norbu, widely regarded by the Tibetans as the ‘fake Panchen’.