Salt Lake City, USA - About 30 people gathered Sunday evening at the Salt Lake City-County Building to pray for a boy who has been missing since 1995: the Panchen Lama, the second most important spiritual leader in Tibetan Buddhism.
In 1995, the Dalai Lama selected Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, who turns 22 on Monday, for the position. The boy and his family went missing days later and have not been seen since, while the Chinese government chose a different boy for the prominent religious post.
The protesters charged that China is keeping the Panchem Lama hidden for political purposes. Under their religious tradition, he would be responsible for picking the next reincarnation of the Dalai Lama, who at age 75 has led an exiled Tibetan government in India since 1959.
"In America if a six-year-old goes missing, there are Amber alerts," said Lala Norgyal, a student at the University of Utah. "In Tibet there's nothing like that. The people inside Tibet can't do anything."
Chinese officials have said the boy is studying and his family does not want attention.
"We all know that's not true," said Tenzin Zangma, another member of Utah Students for a Free Tibet. The purpose of the protest, she said, is so that "at least the Chinese government knows there are people who care."
She said there about 200 Tibetans living in Utah and 25 members of the student group.