Washingtong DC — The US State Department has issued a statement regarding the 11th Panchen Lama of Tibet on the 29th anniversary of the enforced disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima and Matthew Miller, the department spokesperson said:" We urge PRC authorities to immediately account for Gedhun Choekyi Nyima’s whereabouts and well-being and to allow him to fully exercise his human rights in line with the PRC’s international commitments."
Gendun Choekyi Nyima was born on April 25, 1989. His Holiness the Dalai Lama recognised him as the reincarnation of the 10th Panchen Lama and announced Gendun Choekyi Nyima as the 11th Panchen Lama on May 14, 1995. The lineages of the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama share a special bond and have recognised each other's reincarnations in the past. Three days after this announcement, six-year-old Gendun Choekyi Nyima and his family were abducted by the Chinese government and have been missing for 29 years.
On May 17, 2024, Matthew Miller, spokesman for the US State Department, issued a statement concerning the 11th Panchen Lama of Tibet on the occasion of the 29th anniversary of the enforced disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima.
The statement stated, "Today marks 29 years since the People’s Republic of China (PRC) abducted the 11th Panchen Lama, one of the most important figures in Tibetan Buddhism, as a six-year-old child. Gedhun Choekyi Nyima remains missing and has not appeared in public since that day. The PRC government is denying members of the Tibetan community access to this important religious figure and instead continues to promote a state-selected proxy."
"The United States supports Tibetans’ human rights and their exercise of those rights in connection with their distinct religious, cultural, and linguistic identity. Tibetans, like members of all religious communities, should have the ability to select, educate, and venerate their own leaders, like the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama, according to their own beliefs and without government interference," the State Department said.
Matthew Miller, spokesman for the US State Department, "We urge PRC authorities to immediately account for Gedhun Choekyi Nyima’s whereabouts and well-being and to allow him to fully exercise his human rights in line with the PRC’s international commitments."
