Reincarnation must follow Chinese laws and be endorsed by Beijing, Tibetan Buddhist leader Panchen Lama has said in an apparent reference to the succession of the Dalai Lama.
Speaking at an official symposium in Shigatse on Monday, the Panchen Lama – the second-highest figure in Tibetan Buddhism after only the Dalai Lama – stated that reincarnated “living Buddhas” must be identified within China and approved by the central government.
This must be done “without any interference or control from organisations or individuals outside the country”, he added.
The Panchen Lama also said that the process for identifying reincarnated “living Buddhas” must adhere to Chinese law and uphold the leadership of the ruling Communist Party.
The remarks come amid continuing disputes between Beijing and the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader, over arrangements for his reincarnation.
The current Dalai Lama has been in exile in India since the People’s Liberation Army crushed an armed uprising in Tibet in 1959. Beijing accuses him of being responsible for unrest in Tibet during the 1980s and in 2008. He has denied the allegations.
