CTA launches Month-long Awareness Program on the Occasion of the 36th birthday of the 11th Panchen Lama

Dharamshala: The Department of Information and International Relations (DIIR) of the Central Tibetan Administration launches a month-long awareness program today to mark the 36th birth anniversary of Tibet’s 11th Panchen Lama, Jetsun Tenzin Gedhun Yeshi Trinley Phuntsok Pal Sangpo, also known as Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, who was forcibly disappeared along with his entire family by Chinese authorities at the age of six in 1995. 

The awareness program, which will be carried out from 25 April, the birthday of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, through 17 May, marking the 30th year of his enforced disappearance, serves as an urgent initiative to raise critical awareness regarding the unprecedented three-decade disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama. This public engagement effort seeks to create awareness among the public to urge international community to pressure the Chinese government to disclose verifiable information concerning his current well-being and whereabouts. 

The program commences with a talk titled “Legacy of the 10th Panchen Lama and the Circumstances Surrounding the Enforced Disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama,” delivered by Dr. Tsewang Topla, Senior Lecturer at Sarah College. The inaugural event is held at the Tibet Museum’s Auditorium on Friday, 25 April 2025, at 3:00 PM. Around 20 interested individuals from Dharamshala, consisting mostly of staff of the Central Tibetan Administration and a few media reporters, attended the talk. 

Dr. Tsewang Topla’s talk on the legacy of the 10th Panchen Lama is vital because understanding the profound legacy of the 10th Panchen Lama is essential to grasp the magnitude of the Chinese Communist Party’s actions in abducting the 11th Panchen Lama at just six years old, effectively preventing him from continuing his predecessor’s vital work in preserving and advancing Tibetan cultural identity. 

Secretary Karma Choeying and Additional Secretary Mr. Tenzin Lekshay of the Department of Information and International Relations also attended the program. Mr. Karma Choeying, Secretary of the Department of Information and International Relations, in his welcome remark said, “Thirty years of silence on the fate of the Panchen Lama represents an ongoing tragedy for Tibetans worldwide and a stark reminder of the restrictions on religious freedom in Tibet. Through this awareness program, we seek to renew international attention on this decades-long case and advocate for any verified information about his well-being and whereabouts.” 

Throughout the month, weekly events will be organised, including expert talks every Friday at The Tibet Museum and Documentary film screenings every Wednesday at The Tibet Museum auditorium. 

The awareness program will conclude with an elocution contest on 17 May at the Tibetan Children’s Village School, Upper Dharamshala, featuring participants from five different Tibetan schools, in and around Dharamshala, speaking on various topics related to the legacy of the 10th Panchen Lama as well as enforced disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama. 

Gedhun Choekyi Nyima was recognised as the 11th Panchen Lama on 14 May 1995 by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. Three days later, on 17 May 1995, the six-year-old child and his family were taken into custody by Chinese authorities. Despite repeated requests from human rights organisations, foreign governments, United Nations bodies, Tibetan supporters and Tibetans around the world, China has provided no verifiable evidence of his whereabouts or condition. 

As the human rights situation in Tibet continues to deteriorate, with increased restrictions on religious practice, language, and cultural expression, it is imminent that we redouble our efforts to secure the release of the 11th Panchen Lama and defend the integrity of Tibet’s spiritual traditions. 

The month-long program is organised by the Tibet Advocacy Section in close coordination with the Tibet Museum of the Central Tibetan Administration. 

-Filed by the UN, EU and the Human Rights Desk, Tibet Advocacy Section, DIIR