Published by: World Tibet Network News, Saturday, Jun 1, 1996

[Extract from a UN press release in Geneva]

AFTERNOON HR/CRC/96/32, GENEVA, 28 May 1996

Chinese citizens had freedom of religious belief, Mr. WU said, and after the peaceful liberation of Tibet in 1951, religious belief had been respected there to the wide acclaim of all. Concerning the boy considered to be the reincarnation of the Panchen Lama, that title and the title of the Dalai Lama had always been conferred by the central Government, and to this day they were within the purview of the central Government. In selecting the new Panchen Lama the Government had strictly followed the established ritual, a ritual that had been used for more than 200 years. The Dalai Lama had disrupted the normal search procedure by declaring a particular boy to be the new Panchen Lama, but the Government had restored the process to its correct path. In general, the outside world had a distorted perception of the situation in Tibet -- human rights were respected there, and Tibet had first become an integral part of China in the 13th Century.

[...]

In reference to Tibet, it was noted that the boy recommended by the Dalai Lama but not confirmed by the Government as the new Panchen Lama had not been seen in public for more than a year, and the Committee asked for information on the situation of the child.

Mr. WU said responses to a number of these questions would have to wait for the morning, to give the delegation time to obtain information. As for the boy cited as the new Panchen Lama by the Dalai Lama, Mr. WU said, he was at risk of being kidnapped by Tibetan separatists and his security had been threatened, and so the parents had requested protection from the Government; he had been put under protection and lived with his parents and was in good condition.