Buddha with the blessing of Beijing defends regime

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From Jane Macartney in Beijing



Panchen Lama pictures gallery
TIBET’S holiest monk still living on Chinese soil, the 16-year-old Panchen Lama, made his international debut yesterday with a spirited defence of Beijing’s record on religion and a call to China’s Buddhists to defend their motherland.




The living Buddha, second only to the Dalai Lama in the Tibetan religious hierarchy, is a controversial figure because of his anointment in 1995 by China’s atheist communist rulers after they rejected the Dalai Lama’s nominee. Some participants at the World Buddhist Forum in the southern city of Hangzhou appeared reluctant to acknowledge him when he appeared in the auditorium.

Gyaltsen Norbu quickly took centre stage at the opening of the forum, the first in China.

Flanked by Buddhist leaders, the slim teenager spoke briefly in his native Tibetan to an audience of 1,000 monks and nuns. “Chinese society provides a favourable environment for Buddhist belief,” he insisted.

The boy rarely appears in public and is believed to have spent much of his life since his appointment living in great secrecy in Beijing. He makes infrequent visits to Tibet, where officials are unsure whether they can guarantee his safety. Nevertheless, he is a crucial player in the future of that restive Himalayan region since Beijing’s Communist Government is eager to erode the deep loyalty Tibetans feel for the exiled Dalai Lama.

In a speech certainly approved and probably written by commissars charged with overseeing religion, the tenth Panchen Lama dwelt on the responsibility of Buddhists to foster patriotism and national unity. “Defending the nation and working for the people is a solemn commitment Buddhism has made to the nation and society,” he said.

Many Tibetans regard this Panchen Lama as a sham and maintain a secret veneration for the boy chosen by the Dalai Lama and who has not been seen since.

The Dalai Lama’s nominee — Gedhun Choekyi Nyima — is believed to have been under house arrest since 1995, when he was 6. Human rights watchdogs call him the world’s youngest political prisoner. Beijing says he is living a quiet life.

The Dalai Lama has lived in exile in India since 1959 when he fled his homeland after an abortive uprising. A 23-year-old backed by the Dalai Lama as the Karmapa Lama, ranked third in the hierarchy, fled to India in 1999.

A spokesman for the Dalai Lama rejected yesterday Beijing’s right to make the final decision on reincarnations. “Reincarnation is a religious belief and it cannot be decided by an administrative office,” Thubten Samphel said from the Tibetan government-in-exile’s headquarters in the northern Indian town of Dharmsala.

Since the Panchen and Dalai Lamas play an important role in recognising each other’s successors, Beijing’s influence over the Panchen Lama potentially gives it additional leverage over a future Dalai Lama.

The forum is a breakthrough for China, whose constitution guarantees freedom of religion, although the Government tries to retain control. The Communist Party is less wary of Buddhism, which has a long history in China, than of other religions such as Christianity. Nevertheless, China routinely jails Buddhist monks and nuns as well as Christians who refuse to acknowledge the Communist Party’s authority. The forum is an opportunity to showcase the increased freedom of religion days before President Hu makes his first official visit to Washington. President Bush is certain to raise the issue.

李厅长

那个是不是PAUL Macartney的女儿？？？