[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 70 (Thursday, April 28, 2022)]
[House]
[Page H4583]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               MARKING BIRTHDAY OF THE 11TH PANCHEN LAMA

  (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, this week, we mark the 33rd birthday of 
Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama. Born in central Tibet, at 
the age of six he was recognized by His Holiness the Dalai Lama as the 
reincarnation of the Panchen Lama, one of the most important figures in 
the Gelug School of Tibetan Buddhism, and a senior figure across all of 
Tibet.
  In May of 1995, just 3 days after he was recognized, Gedhun Choekyi 
Nyima and his family were taken away by the Chinese Government. 
Disappeared. Kidnapped.
  For 27 years, Tibetan Buddhists have asked of his well-being. For 27 
years, Chinese authorities have refused to provide proof of life. The 
most they have said is that he is well and wants to be left alone.
  Tibetans deserve an answer. The world deserves to know.
  Gedhun Choekyi Nyima remains one of the world's longest-held 
prisoners of conscience.
  His enforced disappearance is an egregious example of the Chinese 
Government's violation of the religious freedom of Tibetan Buddhists, 
who have the right to choose their own religious leaders, including the 
Dalai Lama, without government interference.
  In honor of his birthday, I again call on the Chinese Government to 
free the true Panchen Lama immediately and to uphold its international 
obligation to respect the religious freedom of all persons.

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