Dharamshala, India — Tibetans and Tibet supporters protest, sign petitions, and call the Chinese Embassy to ask about the Panchen Lama's whereabouts and when he will be released, as China abducted him when he was six years old, making him the world's youngest political prisoner.
Tibetans and supporters of Tibet from the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, and Taiwan marked the 26th anniversary of China's abduction of the 11th Panchen Lama by protesting, signing petitions, and calling the Chinese Embassy to ask about the Panchen Lama's whereabouts and demand his immediate release.
On May 17, 1995, the Chinese government abducted Gedhun Choekyi Nyima and his family, including his teacher Chadrel Rinpoche, after His Holiness the Dalai Lama recognised him as the 11th Panchen Lama on 14 May 1995. For the past 26 years, Tibet's abducted boy has been missing in the public eye.
On the 26th anniversary of the Enforced Disappearance of the world's youngest political prisoner, Tibetans protested outside the Chinese Embassy in London, UK, on May 17, 2021, calling for the immediate release of the 11th Panchen Lama.
The Tibetan Youth Association in Europe marked the 26th anniversary of the enforced disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, by contacting the Chinese embassy in their respective countries to ask about the Panchen Lama's whereabouts and when he will be released.
The International Tibet Network has organized a petition campaign to urge governments to do more to ensure the release of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama, who was abducted by the Chinese government in 1995 and has not been seen or heard from since.
The Regional Tibetan Youth Congress in New York and New Jersey, staged a protest outside the Chinese Consulate in New York, demanding the immediate release of the 11th Panchen Lama.
The Tibetan Youth Association in Europe, Tibetan Women’s Association of Switzerland, the Tibetan Community of Switzerland and Liechtenstein, and the Swiss-Tibetan Friendship Association jointly organized a protest march in the Swiss city of Zurich on 17 May 2021, marking the 26th year of the enforced disappearance of Tibet’s 11th Panchen Lama Gendhun Choekyi Nyima.
The four organisations have sent a joint memorandum to the Chinese consulates in Zurich and Bern, demanding that international observers be allowed to visit Panchen Lama Gedhun Choekyi Nyima and his family, as well as called for their immediate release.
The Human Rights Network for Tibet and Taiwan, along with other Tibet-Taiwan organisations, held a press conference in Taipei on the 26th anniversary of China's abduction of the 11th Panchen Lama, demanding his unconditional release from Chinese custody.
