[Buddha-l] H.H. The 11th Panchen Lama reappears

[Wong Weng Fai]

On Sunday, my wife and I happened to come across a Tibetan restaurant. It 
was closed on Sunday. But it had pasted on its wall something about "Boy 
Lama still missing" - an article about the 11th Panchen Lama. We were 
talked about it and then went home.

Then this morning, on cable's China Central TV 4 (CCTV4), the showed a 
rather lengthy clip of the 11th Panchen Lama visiting Chengde (the 
Qing emperors' summer palace near Beijing). He has grown into a handsome 
young man, I must say. The newscaster quoted him as thanking the central 
government and that he will dedicate himself to strengthening the harmony 
between the Party and religions as well as between the races, and that he 
will strive for the unity of the motherland.

Looks like the Beijing government is all set to pick the next Dalai Lama 
(like the Qing dynasty governments). Will we see another dramatic 
escape like the Karmapa? What other options are now available to the 
Tibetan government-in-exile?

W.F. Wong