Text of report by the Indian news agency PTI

New Delhi, 16th June: Tibetan spiritual leader, Dalai Lama, Friday [16th June] accused the Chinese authorities of having "smuggled out" a six-year old boy, recognized as the true reincarnation of the Panchen Lama, from Tibet and demanded his immediate release. The spokesman for Dalai Lama, Tashi Wangdi, told a press conference here the boy, Gedhun Choekyi Nima, was "missing" from Tibet since the first week of this month. The spiritual leader had "recognized" the boy "as the true reincarnation of Panchen Rinpoche" on 14th May this year in accordance with the Buddhist religious and spiritual traditions. Charging the Chinese government with "politicizing" religious issues of Buddhists and Tibetans, Mr Wangdi said the boy's parents were also "missing" and expressed fears they had been "kidnapped" along with the boy. Beijing does not recognise Gedhun Choekyi Nima as the reincarnation of the Panchen Rinpoche, who died in 1989. Wangdi said the Dalai Lama, while announcing the child's name, had appealed to the Chine

se government "to extend its understanding, cooperation and assistance in enabling Rinpoche to receive a proper religious training and to assume his spiritual responsibilities" in order to avoid confrontation over the issue. However, Wangdi said Beijing rejected all the appeals, including the spiritual leader's earlier request to send a religious delegation to Tibet to assist and participate in the search for the reincarnation. Stating that the selection of the boy was done purely in accordance with the religious traditions, the Dalai Lama's spokesman said the Chinese charge that the boy was an outsider in Tibet and hence could not be acceptable to them, was "only a ploy to politicize the matter" He also alleged that the Chinese authorities were "forcing" Tibetans to oppose the Dalai Lama's decision on the selection of the boy. Stating that Beijing was making "baseless allegations" against Dalai Lama's identification of the boy, Wangdi said "If respect for Buddhist tradition and customary methods are the cri

teria for the legality and validity of search and recognition of the reincarnation of the Panchen Lama, there are no grounds for opposing Dalai Lama's decision. Warning of a massive movement against the Chinese authorities on the issue, Wangdi said "China's disregard for Tibetan people's religious sentiments as displayed in their overbearing attitude towards recognition of the Panchen Lama's reincarnation is indicative of the true nature of their rule in Tibet" The Dalai Lama's representative said the "strong opposition" of the Tibetan Buddhist circles "will only become clear if the people of Tibet are given the freedom to express their true feelings"