[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 67 (Wednesday, April 25, 2018)]
[House]
[Page H3562]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





                     FREE THE PANCHEN LAMA OF TIBET

  (Mr. McGOVERN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, today, we celebrate the 29th birthday of 
Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama of Tibetan Buddhism.
  He was chosen for his position on May 15, 1995, by His Holiness the 
Dalai Lama. Two days later, when he was only 6 years old, the Chinese 
Government detained him and his family. The Panchen Lama has not been 
heard from since. Twenty-three years later, he is one of the world's 
longest held prisoners of conscience.
  People from all over the world--representatives of governments, the 
United Nations, and civil society organizations--have repeatedly asked 
to see him, without success.
  What kind of government steals away a child?
  The Panchen Lama's disappearance symbolizes the violations of 
religious freedom that take place in Tibetan areas of China on a daily 
basis.
  Mr. Speaker, in honor of his birthday, please join me in calling on 
the Chinese Government to free the true Panchen Lama.

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