$32, 490 reward for information on the 11th Panchen Lama
By Phurbu Thinley
Dharamsala: 25 April: You go to www.tashilhunpo.org, the official website of Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, and an amber alert announcing a 32,490 US Dollar award still awaits you on the home page for providing reliable information resulting to in and outside contact with the 11th Panchen Lama, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, one of Tibet’s most revered spiritual figures.
Tashi Lhunpo is the traditional seat of successive Panchen Lamas, the second highest ranking tulku lineage in the Gelugpa tradition, and one of the most prominent monasteries in Tibet.
Gendhun Choekyi Nyima, has today turned 18, but nothing solid of his whereabouts and well being are known to the outside world till date since he and his parents were abducted by the Chinese authorities in 1995.
Born on April 25, 1989, in Lhari County, Tibet, Gendhun Choekyi Nyima was recongnised by the Dalai Lama as the 11th Panchen Lama on 14 May 1995 at the age of six. Three days later, on 17 May, he along with his parents went missing.
Traditionally, the Panchen Lama bears part of the responsibility for finding the incarnation of the Dalai Lama and vice versa.
On 15 May, 1996, the Chinese government admitted to holding the 11th Panchen Lama and his parents in their “Protective custody”.
Tibetan Government in Exile and exiled Tibetans claim that he and his family continue to be political prisoners, and call him the “youngest Political prisoner in the world”. Others refer to him as “Tibet’s Stolen Child”.
At the “Conference on the 11th Panchen Lama, Gendhun Choekyi Nyima” held here today at the CTA (Central Tibetan Administration) Hall by the Central Association for H. H. the Panchen Lama (Tashi Lhunpo), Tibetan Prime Minister in exile, Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche said that the legacy left behind by the previous Panchen Lama for the betterment of Tibetan cause and what is being happening to the present Panchen Lama will hold a significant place in the annals of Tibetan history.
The conference is part of the Save Panchen Lama campaign led by the association and leaders of the prominent Tibetan NGOs participated in it.
Over the years, there have been conflicting reports about the whereabouts and well being of the Panchen Lama, ranging from rumours of his death towards the late 1999 to a set of photos that Chinese officials displayed briefly, but did not hand over to European human rights officials. The photos reportedly showed the young Gedhun Choekyi Nyima playing table-tennis and writing Chinese characters on a blackboard.
In 2001, the International Campaign for Tibet obtained a new photo purporting to be of 12 year old Gendhun Choekyi Nyima. However, nothing is known of the photo’s authenticity. Critics believe that it could have been faked by the Chinese authorities as a way to address growing international pressure for information on the safety and condition of the Panchen Lama.
Chinese Government of lately claimed that he is attending school and leading a normal life somewhere in China, and that his whereabouts are kept undisclosed to protect him, but all requests for access to Gendhun Choekyi Nyima have been repeatedly refused so far.
As of now, there is no any reliable evidence of what has become of the Gendhun Choekyi Nyima and, only one photo taken when he was six years old remains the only proving clue available outside China.
Facts about the 11th Panchen Lama
- In January 1989, the 10th Panchen Lama died under mysterious circumstance in .
- On 14 May 1995, His Holiness the Dalai Lama announced the six-year old Gendhun Choekyi Nyima as the reincarnation of the 10th Panchen Lama.
- On 17th May, 1995, three days after the announcement of the 11th Panchen Lama, Gendhun Choekyi Nyima along with his parents went missing.
- In November 1995, PRC put in its own puppet Gyaincain (tib. Gyaltsen) Norbu and claims him to be real 11th Panchen Lama.
- The Dalai Lama and the Government of Tibet in Exile, along with almost all of the Panchen Lama’s followers outside of mainland China, hold that Gendhun Choekyi Nyima is the 11th Panchen Lama.
