Tibetans around the world marked the 17th anniversary of the disappearance of the Panchen Lama on Saturday, May 30th.
On May 1995, XNUMX, the Dalai Lama, the exiled leader of Tibetan Buddhists, recognized the six-year-old boy Gedun Choekyi Nijima as the reincarnated Panchen Lama, the second most important figure in that religion.
The 11th Panchen Lama disappeared three days later, and there has been no independent news of his location or fate since.
Chinese authorities admit they know where Nijima is, but have provided very little information about the Tibetan, who would be 36 years old today.
The BBC has contacted the Chinese government to clarify the current status of the missing Panchen Lama.
The Chinese Embassy in London responded that "the person in question is just an ordinary Chinese citizen living a normal life."
"Neither he nor his family wish to be exposed to unwanted public attention" and called on the BBC to "consider dropping" the story.
The remote and largely Buddhist Tibet is governed as an autonomous region of China, which has been accused of stifling cultural and religious freedoms there.
Human rights groups have described Nijima as the "youngest political prisoner" in the world and have consistently supported Tibetan calls for his release.
When did the Panchen Lama disappear?
Tibetan Buddhists believe that people are reincarnated, while those with higher spiritual attainment can decide when and where this happens.
After the tenth Panchen Lama died under suspicious circumstances on January 28, 1989 (some believe he was poisoned), efforts began to identify his reincarnation.
A search led by a senior monarch identified a boy born on April 25, 1989, to Kunchok Phuntsog (father) and Dechen Chodon (mother), in Lari District, Nagchu Province, Tibet, as his reincarnation.
A detailed document submitted by the Society for Threatened Peoples, a non-governmental organization in special consultative status with the UN Secretary-General, accuses the Chinese government of kidnapping the entire family and detaining the monk tasked with leading the search.
The Tibetan government-in-exile describes Nijima's disappearance as one of the "most blatant examples of China's gross human rights violations."
"Since then, its location and condition have remained unknown, hidden behind a veil of state secrecy."
"We urgently call on the Chinese government to reveal the whereabouts of the Panchen Lama and ensure his well-being," Tenzin Lekshay, a spokesperson for the Central Tibetan Administration, told the BBC.
No country formally recognizes the Tibetan government in exile.
- The "reincarnated" leader of Tibetan Buddhism who disappeared 25 years ago
- The Dalai Lama and the wisdom of the Buddha in quarantine
- The Dalai Lama regrets asking the boy if he would stick out his tongue
'Fake Panchen'
China refused to recognize the Panchen Lama appointed by the Dalai Lama, and elected its own candidate, Gyaltsen Norbu, as the 11th Panchen Lama in 1995.
Although he attends Communist Party conferences and official events, he has no popular support and is often referred to as the "false Panchen" among Tibetans in exile.
Nijima might also enjoy greater recognition in Tibet, but photos of the Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama are banned.
In any case, there is only one photograph in circulation of a young boy "abducted by the authorities."
Why is the Panchen Lama important to Tibet?
In Tibetan Buddhism, there is only one person of higher rank than the Panchen Lama, and that is the Dalai Lama, who fled Tibet in 1959 and became a symbol of resistance to Chinese control of the region.
He turns 90 this year, on July 6th.
Discovering the fate of the missing boy is all the more important now that the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama recognize each other's reincarnation.
"The Chinese government kidnapped a six-year-old boy and his family and hid them for 30 years to control the selection of the next Dalai Lama and therefore Tibetan Buddhism itself," said Yalkun Ulujol, China researcher at Human Rights Watch.
"Concerned parties should pressure the Chinese government to end this atrocity and ensure the freedom of Nijima and his family."
What does China say about the Panchen Lama?
Immediately after Nijima's disappearance, China told a UN working group that "there has never been a case of the disappearance and abduction of a reincarnated child's family."
The following year, Beijing said several "unscrupulous souls" had tried to smuggle the boy abroad, and his parents sought protection, which was granted.
Despite the security, China said the boy and his family were living a normal life and did not want anyone to bother them, something she has repeated several times since.
In 1998, she told a UN working group that the Panchen Lama's mother was serving a prison sentence, although it is unclear for what reason or for how long she has been in prison.
In 2000, Robin Cook, then British Foreign Secretary, said that China had shown British officials two photographs of a boy it said was the missing Panchen Lama.
The British were allowed to view the paintings, but not to keep them.
Responding to a recent BBC inquiry, the Chinese embassy reaffirmed that Nijima is “just an ordinary Chinese citizen living a normal life with his family.
"They have not expressed a desire to be drawn into controversy and have public attention drawn to them."
"We urge all parties to fully respect their privacy and wishes," it said.
The Chinese embassy also accused the Dalai Lama of engaging in "anti-Chinese separatist activities under the guise of religion" and described his appointment as the Nijima as "illegal and invalid".
Is there any hope that he will be found?
Tibetan activists have created a painting to make the missing Panchen Lama look like a 30-year-old man, with the help of British forensic artist Tim Wieden.
But there has been no progress in finding the plump, red-cheeked boy in the famous painting.
For many Tibetans, the uncertainty surrounding the fate of the Panchen Lama is a traumatic experience.
Tibetan communities in India and Europe continue to hold public protests calling for his release.
"We are pained just thinking about his 30-year imprisonment. We pray and advocate for his immediate release every day. For the Tibetan people, he is not only a spiritual leader but also the hope for the future of Tibet," Tenzin Cundue, a Tibetan writer and activist living in India, told the BBC.
"I believe he is alive and I hope to see him," he said, adding that he believed China would use him to control the narrative about the next reincarnation of the Dalai Lama.
The Tibetan government in exile says the Panchen Lama's absence is being felt.
"The 10th Panchen Lama played a key role in preserving the Tibetan language, religion and cultural heritage under Chinese rule," says Tenzin Lekshay.
"His voice and vision are sorely missed in Tibet today."
BBC is in Serbian from now on and on YouTube, follow us HERE.
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram i Viber. If you have a topic suggestion for us, please contact bbcnasrpskom@bbc.co.uk
- How Buddhism crept into stadiums around the world - and in Serbia
- From Buddhist monk to raver in Ibiza: The extraordinary life story of a young Spanish man
- Monks kicked out of the temple, failed the drug test
Bonus video:
