Gedhun Choekyi Nyima – The Panchen Lama

Country:
China
Key Fact:

11th Panchen Lama

Detained Since:

May 17, 1995

Biography:

Gedhun Choekyi Nyima was born on April 25, 1989, in Lhari County, Tibet. After the death of the 10th Panchen Lama, His Holiness the Dalai Lama chose Gedhun on May 14, 1995, to be the 11th Panchen Lama, which is the second highest position in Tibetan Buddhism.

Three days after his selection as Panchen Lama, Chinese government authorities kidnapped then six-year-old Gedhun Choekyi Nyima and his family. On November 29, 1995, Chinese authorities announced their own pick to serve as the Panchen Lama: Gyancain Norbu.  Most Tibetan Buddhists have rejected him.

In the more than 25 years since Gedhun’s abduction, Chinese authorities have provided little information about his whereabouts, alleging that they need to protect him from being “kidnapped by separatists.” In May 2007, Asma Jahangir, then-United Nations Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, suggested that the Chinese government allow an independent expert to visit and confirm Gedhun’s well-being. On July 17, 2007, the Chinese authorities said that he is a “perfectly ordinary Tibetan boy” attending school and leading a normal life, and that he “does not wish to be disturbed.” Authorities say that the state employs both of his parents and that his brothers and sisters are either working or at university.

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