Dharamshala — To mark the 31st anniversary of the abduction of the 11th Panchen Lama, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, Tibetan activists held protests in front of Chinese Consulates on May 17, 2026, in Canada, the US, Europe and India. They demanded the immediate release of the Panchen Lama and his family, who were abducted by the Chinese government in 1995.
The 11th Panchen Lama of Tibet, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, was abducted by the Chinese government on May 17, 1995, at the age of just six. This abduction took place merely three days after he was officially recognised by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, making him one of the world's youngest political prisoners. Since then, his whereabouts, along with those of his family and teacher have remained unknown. Today marks the 31st anniversary of his abduction, and Tibetans across the world call on the Chinese government to release him and his family immediately.
On May 17, 2026, Tibetans and Tibet supporters from Barcelona, Spain, Tibetan activists in Toronto, Canada and Regional Tibetan Youth Congress in New York and New Jersey, as well San Francisco Regional Tibetan Youth Congress in USA, protested in front of the Chinese Consulates in their resptective regions, to protest against China's abduction of 11th Panchen Lama of Tibet on May 17, 1995. Since then, he has been missing and his whereabout remain unknown till today. They demanded the PRC to release him, his family and teacher immediately.
The Tibetan Youth Congress commemorated the 31st anniversary of the disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama of Tibet, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, on May 17, 2026 by organising an event to raise public awareness of him in the Dharamsala region—specifically at the main square, McLeod Ganj, Upper TCV and the Dharamsala Stadium, where tourists and crowd people come to see football matches in Dharamshala.
While the Tibetan Youth Congress organising their public awareness programmes, they also released a statement on the the 31st anniversary of the disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama of Tibet, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, entitled,"Where is the Long-Lost Child of Tibet. and the World's Youngest Political Prisoner?"
Tenzin Lobsang, General secretary of TYC read out the statement, he said, "Thirty-one years. Over eleven thousand days of silence, uncertainty, and grief. Thirty-one years ago, a six-year-old boy - Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the true 11th Panchen Lama of Tibet, recognised by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama - was stolen from his family and from the world by the Chinese government. He was just a child and an innocent child. And to this day. the world has received no credible word of his whereabouts, his health, or whether he is even alive.
"On this stolen and heartbreaking annivsersary, the Tibetan Youth Congress urgently and passionately demands that China immediately reveal the condition and location of Gedhun Choekvi Nyima and his family, and grant them their long-overdue freedom. Every day of continued silence is another day of injustice another day, the world fails a child it promised to protect.
"The enforced disappearance of a six-year-old is not merely a political act. It is a wound on the conscience of humanity. It is a flagrant violation of fundamental human rights, a grave breach of international law, and a betrayal of the United Nations Human Rights Framework, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the universally, sacred right to religious freedom. No government - no matter how powerful - has the right to erase a child.
"Gedhun Choekyi Nyima was taken just three days after being officially recognised as 11th the Panchen Lama of Tibet. Three days, before he could even begin to understand the spiritual destiny that lay before him, he was silenced. In his place, the Chinese government installed a state-appointed figure in a calculated attempt to seize control of Tibet's religious soul and political future. But a faith cannot be appointed by a government. A people's spiritual identity cannot be legislated away.
"This is not the story of one child alone. It is the story of an entire people - the Tibetan people - who continue to endure occupation, suppression, and the systematic erasure of their culture, their faith, and their identity. The fact that a powerful state felt threatened enough to disappear a six-year-old boy speaks volumes about the profound significance of Tibetan spiritual leadership - and about the depths to which oppression will sink when it fears the truth.
"Today, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima - if he is still alive - would be 37 years old. He has never known freedom as an adult. He may never have known a single day of peace. He remains one of the world's longest-held and youngest-taken political prisoners, a living symbol of everything that is wrong with the silence of the international community.
"We call upon every human rights organisation, every children's rights advocate, every government with a conscience, and every compassionate soul across the globe: do not look away. Apply every legal, diplomatic, and moral pressure available on the Chinese government. Demand answers. Demand accountability. Demand his release.
"To the Chinese government, we say clearly and without hesitation: Release the 11th Panchen Lama and his family. Disclose the truth about their condition. Honor your obligations under international human rights law. The world is watching and history will not forget.
"A child's life, a people's faith, and the moral integrity of our global community hang in the balance," he concluded.
