China orchestrates rare appearance for boy lama

[dArKeR]

A teenage boy being groomed by China to become the new Tibetan religious leader has been allowed to meet tens of thousands of people in a rare trip, state media said yesterday.
The 11th Panchen Lama, who is rarely seen in public, held head-touching ceremonies to bless more than 60,000 believers during a trip to Tibetan-inhabited areas of southwest China's Sichuan Province from June 12 to 28, the Xinhua news agency said.

The trip, which was broadcast on state television and widely covered in state media, could mean the government believes the 15-year-old -- who has been under its strict tutelage since he was five -- is ready for a more public role.

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2005/06/30/2003261439

[Raster]

1. Is this the *actual* Panchen Lama or Bejing's interpretation thereof?

[Chan790]

2. huh?

Why would China have any say in who the new lama is? I was under the impression that it's not a choosing process like the catholic church but a divining process like (I can't think of an example except to cite the movie Little Buddha starring Keanu Reeves).

[Raster]

3. Free the Panchen Lama

http://www.tibet.ca/panchenlama

The Panchen Lama was 6 years old when he and his parents were kidnapped from their home in Tibet by the Chinese government. He is the world's youngest political prisoner and he has been missing for over 6 years.

Panchen Lama is a religious title like Vice-President or Prime Minister that Tibetans give to the second greatest leader of Tibet. Panchen means "Great Scholar" and Lama is a word Tibetans use for a religious teacher. We believe that the Panchen Lama is the protector of all the world's living beings.

This all means that the boy will grow up to be a very powerful leader of Tibet and perhaps the world.


Why did the Chinese Government Kidnap The Panchen Lama and his Parents?

Tibet used to be its own country but China invaded it in 1949. After the Chinese took over, Tibetans in Tibet were no longer free or happy. China kidnapped the Panchen Lama, his parents and brother from their home in Tibet and are holding them under house arrest somewhere in China. We are still not sure where they are and hopefully through this web page we can spread the word about this boy and help him and his family.

[applegrove]

4. They kidnapped him and then replaced him with their own. Do we

know if this is the real panche lama? Even then - how has he been taught?

[Raster]

5. Exactly.

Rumors have swirled around for years that Beijing has installed their own Panchen Lama, one more pliable and acceptable to the party.

[Running Free]

6. Wouldn't be funny...

If freedom fighters simultaneously attacked the Forbidden City, the Ottawa DEA office, the Vancouver DEA office, and the Kuomintang HQ?