25 April 2006 marks the eleventh successive years of the disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama, Gendun Choekyi Nyima, who suddenly disappeared on 17 May 1995 after the Dalai Lama recognized him as the child reincarnation of the tenth Panchen Lama, Erdeni Choekyi Gyaltsen. Since then there has been no information about his whereabouts. It is largely believed that he is currently kept in Chinese custody at an undisclosed location along with his parents.

On 13 April 2006, Asma Jehangir, the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, was informed by the Chinese Government that Gendun Choekyi Nyima is at present studying in a "secondary school" and that he "is leading a normal, happy life and receiving a good cultural education." However, there was no elaboration from the Chinese Government side about what they meant by the statement "receiving a good cultural education". So far private bodies and government officials were not permitted to meet Gendun Choekyi Nyima. But concerns of his well being still remain.

Incidentally the Chinese Government also told the UN expert Ms. Jahangir that Gendun Choekyi Nyima is not the Panchen Lama but an ordinary Tibetan boy. On the same day the Chinese Government organized the first-ever religious forum since the founding of People's Republic of China (PRC). The Chinese appointed Panchen Lama, Gyaincain Norbu, made a surprise appearance as a key speaker during the religious forum in an attempt by the Chinese government to garner support and establish legitimacy. However, the fact remains that in the hearts and minds of the Tibetan people, and according to the Tibetan Buddhism tradition, the Dalai Lama recognized Gendun Choekyi Nyima is accepted as the 11 th Panchen Lama.

On 14 May 1995, His Holiness the Dalai Lama recognized the then six-years old Gendun Choekyi Nyima as the reincarnation of the tenth Panchen Lama. The government of the People's Republic of China (PRC) declared the announcement invalid and illegal. Three days later, Gendun Choekyi Nyima and his parents disappeared and have never been seen again. China has signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child on 29 August 1990 and ratified it on 2 March 1992. China's detention of boy Panchen Lama is a clear violation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as domestic and international Laws.

In October 2000 a British delegation was told by the Chinese authorities that the boy was well and attending school. The delegation was also told that his parents did not want international figures and the media intruding into his life. Two photographs claimed to be of the Panchen Lama were shown to the British delegation showing a boy of approximately the same age. However it was impossible to determine the boy's identity or location, and the British officials were not given the photos to ascertain.

In August 2001, a Polish Parliamentary delegation visiting Lhasa was told in response to repeated questions that Gendun Choekyi Nyima was healthy; the delegation was promised photos of the boy within six weeks but never received them. Later, the Polish Government received a letter from the Chinese embassy in Warsaw stating that Gendun Choekyi Nyima and his parents did not want their peaceful life disturbed by strangers, and that the Chinese government "respects freedom of choice for its citizens and hopes that the Polish people would understand that too."

In March 2002, a government delegation from the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) met with a European Parliament delegation and the authorities once again reiterated that Gendun Choekyi Nyima did not wish to be disturbed. The "TAR" delegation refused to answer questions about photographs promised to the Polish delegation. In the light of a refusal to provide photographs that positively identify Gendun Choekyi Nyima, or to allow independent access to the boy and his family, the Tibetan people can only fear the worst.

The continued disappearance of the Panchen Lama completely contradicts China's claim to respect religious freedom in Tibet. It is a matter of great concern that such prominent religious figure is denied and bereft of any traditional religious studies and training even if he is alive.

For the past ten years since his abduction along with his parents, no information on their whereabouts and well being were known to international bodies and human rights watchdogs. Chadrel Rinpoche, a former abbot of Tashi Lhunpo monastery seat of Panchen Lama, and Chairman of the Search Committee for the reincarnation of the 11th Panchen Lama and his assistant Champa Chungla disappeared from Chengdu Airport in Sichuan Province on 14 May 1995. On 21 April 1997, the Shigatse Intermediate People's court sentenced Chadrel Rinpoche to six years of imprisonment. He was charged with "plotting to split the country" and "leaking state secrets". He was accused of working for and assisting the Dalai Lama in the search for the 11th Panchen Lama. Although his sentence ended on 13 May 2001 following the completion of a six-year prison term, it is believed that he is now kept under house arrest. There is no additional information on his exact whereabouts in Shigatse, or on his state of health. Jampa Chungla, 56-year-old former assistant of Chadrel Rinpoche, was arrested in 1995 for his participation in the search committee of the 11th Panchen Lama. He was sentenced to a four- year prison term and to a two-year deprivation of political rights. He continues to be held in custody even after the completion of his original four-year prison term.

In June 2005, at Bangkok the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances of the Commission on Human Rights forwarded the issue of Panchen Lama to the Chinese authority stating that it "would appreciate being provided by the Government of China with documents supporting its statement that he and his parents had appealed to the Government for protection and at present are "leading normal lives and enjoying perfect health." Unfortunately no tangible and fruitful response came from the Chinese officials.

The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) is deeply concerned at the Chinese government's continued detention of Gendun Choekyi Nyima who turns 17 years old on 25 April 2006. In the wake of subsequent failures of past independent bodies to meet him, TCHRD urges the United Nations and its various thematic bodies to continue its pressure on the Chinese Government to allow UN Committee on Rights of the Child to meet Gendun Choekyi Nyima to verify his health and living conditions.