By Kalsang Rinchen
Dharamsala, March 1 – China on Sunday made its handpicked Panchen Lama Gaincain Norbu a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the country’s top advisory body, according to the official news agency Xinhua. The 20-year-old boy is among 13 new members of the CPPCC.
The three-day meeting also appointed Qian Yunlu as secretary-general for the third session of the 11th CPPCC National Committee and 21 others as vice secretary-generals. The annual session will begin on March 3.
Gaincain Norbu was also made one of the 25 vice presidents of the Buddhist Association of China last month.
China installed Gaincain Norbu as its own Panchen Lama soon after the Dalai Lama recognized Gendhun Choekyi Nyima as the 11th Panchen Lama on 14 May 1995. Three days later, on 17 May, he along with his parents went missing. However, Gaincain Norbu is not widely accepted by Tibetans as the true incarnation of the 10th Panchen Lama despite China’s backing.
Panchen Lama is revered as the second highest tulku lineage in the Gelugpa tradition of Tibetan Buddhism and one of the most influential spiritual leaders of Tibet.
Tibetan exiles claim he and his family were abducted by China which installed Gaincain Norbu in his place and refer to Gendhun Choekyi Nyima as the “youngest Political prisoner in the world”. On 15 May, 1996, the Chinese government admitted to holding the 11th Panchen Lama Gendhun Choekyi Nyima and his parents in their “protective custody”.
Traditionally, the Panchen Lama bears part of the responsibility for finding the incarnation of the Dalai Lama and vice versa, a practice many say has prompted China to install its own Panchen Lama.
