The Tibet Bureau Geneva, Switzerland released a short video today titled “The Story of Panchen Lama in 25 Words- 25thYear of Enforced Disappearance” marking the 25th year of enforced disappearance of Tibet’s 11th Panchen Lama Gedhun Choekyi Nyima.
The video as the title suggests tells the story of the kidnapped Panchen Lama Gedhun Choekyi Nyima with 25 key words. The video brings together various representatives from different walks of life who share a common passion: a quest for freedom. A quest for freedom to determine our present and future, freedom to believe, freedom to pursue knowledge, freedom to express, freedom from fear and injustice, all of which are now being violated in Tibet. And the case of abduction of Panchen Lama Gedhun Choekyi Nyima 25 years back demonstrates the egregious human rights violations being carried out by China in Tibet.
Speaking about the video, Representative Chhimey Rigzen from Tibet Bureau Geneva remarked, “Through this short video we want to send a clear message to China that even after 25 years the world continues to remember and pray for well-being of Tibet’s 11th Panchen Lama Gedhun Choekyi Nyima. China should heed the global call for his release as a gesture of transparency and commitment to human rights and enter into genuine substantive dialogue with the representatives of His Holiness the Dalai Lama for peaceful resolution of Tibet. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the supporters of Tibet and appeal for their continued support. Just as it is said in the video, we cannot give up now, this is the time to act, to stand up together and press China to respect the freedoms of Tibetans and all the peoples’ under its regime.”
Many prominent leaders across the world have joined the global campaign for the release of Panchen Lama. RecentlyCzech Senators and Czech Members of the Chamber of Deputies as well as Italian Parliamentarians, Swiss Parliamentarians, German Parliamentarians and Slovak Parliamentarians issued joint statements calling on China to immediately release Tibet’s 11th Panchen Lama Gedhun Choekyi Nyima with his entire family and respect the rights of the Tibetans to choose their own religious leader. The Czech Parliamentarians and Italian Parliamentarians had also issued video messages calling for transparency from China in the current time when it is losing global credibility due to the suppression of the COVID-19 whistleblowers which has plunged the world into tragic sufferings.
Many prominent civil society organizations also joined the call for the release of Panchen Lama Gedhun Choekyi Nyima. Moreover, 159 organizations from 19 countries submitted a joint petition to the UN calling for its intervention and to press China to release Panchen Lama Gedhun Choekyi Nyima.