In May 1995, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the six year-old boy, identified by His Holiness the Dalai Lama as the 11th Panchen Lama, disappeared. Suspicions that he had been kidnapped were confirmed in May 1996, when the Chinese leadership admitted to holding him and his family in "protective custody." After repeated attempts to gain access to the boy, no international agencies or human rights organizations - including the United Nations -- has been allowed to visit Gedhun Choekyi Nyima or his family, and their condition remains uncertain.
In an attempt to establish their authority over all "internal affairs" of China - political or otherwise -- the Chinese leadership nominated and selected their own 11th Panchen Lama in November 1995. Their selection, a six year-old boy named Gyaltsen Norbu, is another young victim in China's plan to undermine and control the Tibetan people, their religion, and their nation.
Background
In the 15th Century, the 1st Dalai Lama established a vibrant monastery called Tashi Lhunpo in the Tibetan city of Shigatse, just west of the capital city of Lhasa. Two hundred years later, when the 5th Dalai Lama was a young boy, the abbot of Tashi Lhunpo Monastery guided his spiritual upbringing as a Buddhist monk and scholar. History says that when the abbot died, the Dalai Lama dedicated the Monastery to his late teacher declaring that he would reincarnate again and again, and that each successor would be known as the holder of the Panchen Lama - or "Great Scholar" -- lineage. For generations, the Panchen Lama and the Dalai Lama maintained their unique teacher-disciple relationship of the elder mentoring the younger.
The 10th Panchen Lama
The 10th Panchen Lama, Lobsang Trinley Lhundrup Choekyi Gyaltsen, was a key figure in the struggle to preserve Tibetan cultural and religious traditions and to promote Tibetan autonomy under Chinese occupation. At the age of 21, he remained in Tibet after the Chinese annexation in 1959, and was appointed by the Communist Party as the Acting Chairman of the Preparatory Committee for the Autonomous Region of Tibet and later as the vice chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference which effectively made him the most senior leader in the Tibetan Autonomous Region. The 10th Panchen Lama's dedication to fighting for religious freedom, improved education and acceptance of Tibetan as the official language through delicate negotiation and open confrontation with the Chinese leadership met with mixed success.
In his capacity as Vice Chairman, the 10th Panchen Lama traveled extensively between the Tibetan countryside and Beijing documenting the conditions of Tibetans living under Chinese rule. His observations during these tours formed the basis of his renowned 70,000 Character Petition -- a fierce criticism of Chinese policy in Tibet -- submitted to Mao Zedong in 1962. Mao and the Party reacted violently to the Petition and within two years the 10th Panchen Lama was condemned without trial and spent the following 14 years in prison or under house arrest.
Upon his release in October of 1977, the Panchen Lama returned to senior Party leadership and continued his efforts for reform and modernization. He also continued to openly challenge the Chinese leadership, though he often subtly veiled his public commentaries behind the political rhetoric of the times. In an extraordinary public speech made in 1989 in Shigatse, the Panchen Lama was less reserved. He called for the Dalai Lama to be allowed to collaborate with him in Tibetan policy making and openly challenged the Chinese leadership's policies in Tibet. Shortly after this address, the Chinese Daily printed another critical statement which vaulted the Panchen Lama's international image as a critic of the Chinese government: "Since liberation, there has certainly been development, but the price paid for this development has been greater than the gains." (As reported in the China Daily, January 25, 1989.)
The 10th Panchen Lama's sudden death at 50 years of age was a severe blow to the Tibetan nation. Though there is uncertainty as to the cause of his death, there has never been a public investigation. His 70,000 Character Petition, remained confidential for nearly 34 years and only recently became available outside of the inner most circles of the Communist Party. It has proven to be a vital piece of Sino-Tibetan political history and modern Tibetan thought.
The Search for the 11th Panchen Lama
Traditionally, His Holiness the Dalai Lama identifies the reincarnation of the Panchen Lama and guides his training through adulthood. But when the time came to begin the search for the 11th Panchen Lama, the Chinese Government was determined to exercise strict control of the selection process by any means necessary. They asserted that the identification of the 11th Panchen Lama was an internal affair of the Chinese government and that the Dalai Lama was forbidden to participate in the process. When the official search party was formed, headed by Chadrel Rinpoche the abbot of Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, His Holiness the Dalai Lama had to communicate with the party through secret channels.
In the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, the Panchen Lama identification team is made up of senior lamas from Tashi Lhunpo Monastery. Their methodology involves visions that prophetically direct their search to the true reincarnation. Following these mystical signs, the lamas' test the best candidates by asking them to identify personal objects owned by the previous Panchen Lama. Oracles are then consulted and divinations performed to reconfirm the final candidate. Traditionally, His Holiness the Dalai Lama himself normally carries out these final steps.
During the search for the 11th Panchen Lama, the search party compiled a list of numerous young boys who were potential successors to the 10th Panchen Lama. Clandestinely, His Holiness the Dalai Lama received information and photographs of the candidates. After numerous divinations, he identified and proclaimed Gedhun Choekyi Nyima as the 11th reincarnation of the Panchen Lama on May 14, 1995.
By May 17, 1995, the six year-old boy and his parents disappeared from their home, reportedly taken into Chinese police custody for their protection. Denouncing His Holiness the Dalai Lama's proclamation as illegitimate, the Chinese authorities drew lots from a golden urn to select their own Panchen Lama on November 29, 1995. Six year-old Gyaltsen Norbu was selected and subsequently enthroned on December 8, 1995 sparking massive protests across Tibet.
To validate their authority in choosing the Panchen Lama, the Communist government cites a recommendation made in 1792 by the Manchu rulers to the Tibetan Government. The Manchus (the monarchy government of China from 1644 - 1912 made up of non-ethnic Chinese rulers) suggested that in selecting high lamas the Tibetans should institute a lottery, which was referred to as the Golden Urn system. One name would be chosen and then forwarded to the Chinese Central Government for final approval.
The Tibetans have asserted that a lottery system should be used when there are two very good candidates - making it difficult to choose between them - and, that they have their own lottery system that predates the Manchu recommendation. But, more importantly, the Tibetans also assert that His Holiness the Dalai Lama should have a primary role in identifying the Panchen Lama.
Despite worldwide appeals, though, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima and his parents remain in detention. China has refused to provide information of their location or condition and will not allow any independent observer to see them. Tibetans and supporters of religious freedom around the world are concerned about his physical welfare and spiritual upbringing.
Recommendations
Establishing religious freedom in Tibet requires deep structural and systematic reform of the Chinese political system. Initial steps must include:
- Immediate and unconditional release of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima and his family. He must be allowed to return to Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, installed as the rightful holder of the Panchen Lama lineage and given the proper monastic education.
- Immediate and unconditional release of all religious prisoners of conscience;
- Allow Tibetans to identify and install religious leaders of their own choosing;
- Abolish minimum age requirements for entering a monastery or nunnery;
- Halt the use of Work Teams in monasteries and nunneries;
- Permit Tibetans to worship the Dalai Lama, and display his photo in accordance with tradition.
Further Reading
Panchen Lama. A Poisoned Arrow: The Secret Report of the 10th Panchen Lama. London: Tibetan Information Network, 1997.
Tibet's Stolen Child, Gartwait & Griffin, 60 minute video, 1999.
Ya Hanzhang, Biographies of the Tibetan Spiritual Leaders Panchen Erdenis. Beijing: Foreign Languages Press, 1996.
World Press on Panchen Lama: Selections form Press Reports. New Delhi: Tibetan Parliamentary and Policy Research Center, 1996.
The Lives of the Panchen Lamas. Lungta. Dharamsala; Amnnye Manchen Institute. Winter 1996.
From the Heart of the Panchen Lama, Major Speeches. Dharamsala: DIIR, 1998.
The Panchen Lama Lineage: How Reincarnation is Being Reinvented as a Political Tool. Dharamsala: The Department of Information and International Relations, 1995.
A Season to Purge: Religious Repression in Tibet. Washington: ICT, 1996.
The Panchen Lama Speaks. Dharamsala: DIIR, 1991.
MacInnis, Donald E. (Ed), Religious in China Today. New York: Orbis Book, 1989.
