Gedhun Choekyi Nyima

Gedhun Choekyi Nyima
11th Panchen Lama according to some sources
10th and 11th Panchen Lama by Claude-Max Lochu
Panchen Lama
Reign	14 May 1995 - present (&1000000000000001600000016 years, &10000000000000193000000193 days)
Predecessor	Choekyi Gyaltsen
Born	25 April 1989 (1989-04-25) (age 22)

Gedhun Choekyi Nyima
Tibetan name
Tibetan:	དགེ་འདུན་ཆོས་ཀྱི་ཉི་མ
Wylie transliteration:	dge 'dun chos kyi nyi ma
pronunciation in IPA:	[ɡendỹ tɕʰøci ɲima]
official transcription (PRC):	Gêdün Qoigyi Nyima
other transcriptions:	Gedhun Choekyi Nyima
Chinese name
traditional:	更登確吉尼瑪
simplified:	更登确吉尼玛
Pinyin:	Gèngdēng Quèjí Nímǎ

Gedhun Choekyi Nyima (born April 25, 1989) is, according to the 14th Dalai Lama, the eleventh Panchen Lama of Tibetan Buddhism. He was born in Lhari County, Tibet. On May 14, 1995, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima was named the 11th Panchen Lama by the 14th Dalai Lama. After his selection, he was detained by authorities of the People's Republic of China^[1][2] and has not been seen in public since May 17, 1995.^[1][2] Gyancain Norbu was later named as Panchen Lama by the People's Republic of China, a choice that is rejected by most Tibetan Buddhists.^[3]

Selection of the 11th Panchen Lama

Following the death of the 10th Panchen Lama in 1989, the search for an individual to be recognised as his reincarnation, by Tibetan Buddhists, quickly became mired in bureaucracy and controversy.^[4]

Armed with Beijing's approval, the head of the Panchen Lama search committee, Chadrel Rinpoche, maintained private communication with the Dalai Lama in order to arrive at a mutually acceptable candidate for both the Dalai Lama and Beijing authorities concerning the Panchen Lama's reincarnation issue.^[5] After the Dalai Lama named Gedhun Choekyi Nyima as the 11th incarnation of the Panchen Lama, Chinese authorities had Chadrel Rinpoche arrested and charged with treason. According to Tibet government in exile, he was replaced by Sengchen Lobsang Gyaltsen, so chosen because he was more likely to agree with the party line.^[6] Sengchen had been a political opponent of both the Dalai Lama and the 10th Panchen Lama.^[7]

The new search committee ignored the Dalai Lama's May 14 announcement and instead chose from a list of finalists; the list excluded Gedhun Choekyi Nyima. In selecting a name, lots were drawn from a Golden Urn, a procedure used in Tibet by the Chinese (Manchu) emperor in 1793. ^[8] The older method involves using possessions of the former Lama to identify his reincarnation. Chinese authorities announced Gyancain Norbu as the search committee's choice on November 11, 1995.^[9]

Whereabouts

The whereabouts of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima are unknown. Human Rights organizations have termed him the "youngest political prisoner in the world".^[10][11] According to Chinese government claims, he is attending school and leading a normal life somewhere in China.^[12] No foreign party has been allowed to visit him.^[12] Officials state that his whereabouts are kept undisclosed to protect him^[13] Those who claim Nyima as the 11th Panchen Lama call upon China to prove that he is safe and happy.^[14]

The Committee on the Rights of the Child requested to be told of Nyima's whereabouts on May 28, 1996. Xinhua declined, responding that Nyima was at risk of being "kidnapped by separatists" and that "his security had been threatened".^[15] The Committee requested a visit with Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, supported by a campaign of more than 400 celebrities and associations petitioning for the visit, including six Nobel Prize winners.^[16]

In May 2007, Asma Jahangir, Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief of the UN Human Rights Council, asked the Chinese authorities what measures they had taken to implement the recommendation of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, that the government should allow an independent expert to visit and confirm the well-being of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima while respecting his right to privacy, and that of his parents. In a response dated 17 July 2007, the Chinese authorities said: "Gedhun Choekyi Nyima is a perfectly ordinary Tibetan boy, in an excellent state of health, leading a normal, happy life and receiving a good education and cultural upbringing. He is currently in upper secondary school, he measures 165 cm in height and is easy-going by nature. He studies hard and his school results are very good. He likes Chinese traditional culture and has recently taken up calligraphy. His parents are both State employees, and his brothers and sisters are either already working or at university. The allegation that he disappeared together with his parents and that his whereabouts remain unknown is simply not true." This response did not answer the question about a visit or confirmation.^[17]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Gedhun Choekyi Nyima the XIth Panchen Lama turns 18: Still disappeared The Buddhist Channel, April 25, 2007
2. ^ ^{a b} "Tibet's missing spiritual guide". BBC News. May 16, 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4551425.stm. Retrieved May 3, 2010. 
3. ^ "Tibet's missing spiritual guide". BBC. 2005-05-16. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4551425.stm. Retrieved 2010-11-15. 
4. ^ Gedhun Choekyi Nyima: the XIth Panchen Lama of Tibet
5. ^ TCHRD: Chadrel Rinpoche's fate unknown
6. ^ Update-Communist China set to decide on a rival Panchen Lama
7. ^ Communist China set to decide on a rival Panchen Lama
8. ^ Alex McKay, The History of Tibet : The Modern Period, Routledge 2003, ISBN 0415308445, p. 32. Google books
9. ^ Isabel Hilton, A Reporter at Large, “Spies in the House of Faith,” The New Yorker, August 23, 1999, p. 170
10. ^ World's youngest political prisoner turns 17
11. ^ Laird, Thomas (2006). The Story of Tibet: Conversations with the Dalai Lama, p 374. Grove Press, N.Y. ISBN 978-0-8021-827-1.
12. ^ ^{a b} Congressional-Executive Commission on China
13. ^ Xizang-zhiye April 27, 2005
14. ^ UNPO - WS on Panchen Lamas Case
15. ^ Site of the TCHRD
16. ^ APPEL POUR LE PLUS JEUNE PRISONNIER POLITIQUE DU MONDE
17. ^ "China Fails to Respond to UN Rights Expert's Question on Panchen Lama". 2008-04-25. http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=20897&article=China+Fails+to+Respond+to+UN+Rights+Expert's+Question+on+Panchen+Lama&t=1&c=1. Retrieved 2008-05-28. 

External links

• The World's Youngest Political Prisoner
• BBC News article - "Tibet's missing spiritual guide"

Gedhun Choekyi Nyima Panchen Lama Born: 1989 April 25
Buddhist titles
Preceded by Choekyi Gyaltsen	Reincarnation of the Panchen Lama (Government of Tibet in Exile interpretation) 1995-present	Incumbent

Persondata
Name	Nyima, Gedhun Choekyi
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	April 25, 1989
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death