Prague, Czech Republic: On 12 October 2026 (CEST), Sikyong Penpa Tsering of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) attended the second day of the 30th Forum 2000 Conference at the Prague Congress Centre. The day commenced with his attendance at the Opening Plenary Session, followed immediately by participation in the panel session “Václav Havel’s Courage of the Powerless.”
Throughout the morning, Sikyong engaged in bilateral discussions with international lawmakers, holding separate meetings with Roderich Kiesewetter, Member of the German Bundestag, and Yuya Mineshima, Member of the House of Representatives of Japan.
He subsequently participated in a media interaction with Milan Kajínek of The Epoch Times. In the interview, Sikyong exposed Beijing’s systematic suppression of Tibetan identity, highlighting how instruments such as the “Ethnic Unity Law” and colonial-style boarding schools are explicitly engineered to assimilate future generations. He dismissed the atheist Chinese Communist Party’s attempts to dictate the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation, remarking that Chinese leaders should study Buddhism and find the rebirths of Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping first.
Emphasising Tibet’s critical ecological role as the “Water Tower of Asia,” Sikyong warned of looming regional food and water insecurity driven by Beijing’s rampant damming, environmental neglect, and refusal to share hydrological data. Furthermore, he cautioned Western democracies against economic complacency and over-reliance on Chinese supply chains, warning that Beijing aims to export its autocratic surveillance model globally. Reaffirming the enduring spirit of Tibetans inside Tibet and across the diaspora, Sikyong stressed that the struggle for freedom persists through unwavering hope and sustained international awareness.
Following the media session, Sikyong met with Ana Helena Chacón, former Vice President of Costa Rica and prominent human rights advocate. Sikyong also engaged in targeted sideline discussions with prominent international leaders and experts, including Jamie Fly, President and CEO of Freedom House; Robert Řehák, Ambassador at Large, Special Envoy, and Chair of the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance (IRFBA); Alexandr Vondra, Member of the European Parliament; Kim Aris, British campaigner and son of detained Burmese democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi; Manny Caintic, Filipino IT executive and former government official; and Dr. Jagannath Panda, Head of the Stockholm Centre for South Asian and Indo-Pacific Affairs.
In the afternoon, Sikyong took the stage as a keynote panelist at the Václav Havel Hall in a discussion titled “When Faith Becomes Political: Defending Freedom in an Age of Authoritarianism,” organised in cooperation with the Community of Democracies. Moderated by Mantas Adomėnas, Secretary General of the Community of Democracies, the panel also featured Grace Davie, Emeritus Professor at the University of Exeter, and His Beatitude Epiphanius I of Ukraine.
During the session, Sikyong outlined the CTA leadership’s global diplomatic outreach to democratic governments, the Buddhist world, and the diaspora to counter Beijing’s persistent interference in Tibetan religious traditions. While noting that North America provides greater political latitude to discuss Tibet’s historical status compared to Europe’s primary focus on human rights, Sikyong affirmed that the inner resilience of Tibetans inside Tibet remains unbroken despite the destruction of over 6,000 monasteries, massive casualties during the Cultural Revolution, and pervasive surveillance. Citing the 1995 enforced disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, as a clear warning against China’s weaponisation of religious lineages, he reiterated that an atheist communist regime has zero authority over Buddhist succession, firmly asserting that the sole mandate to recognise the next Dalai Lama rests with the India-registered Gaden Phodrang Trust. Sikyong further exposed Beijing’s strategy to control Buddhist succession through measures such as Order No. 5, the unverified “Golden Urn,” and demands that reincarnations occur solely within China. While reaffirming the CTA’s commitment to the Middle Way Approach for genuine autonomy, he cautioned that Tibet faces a suffocating “slow death” under China’s sinister “Ethnic Unity Law.” Commending legislative and diplomatic backing from the United States and European allies, Sikyong called on the international community to pass robust resolutions safeguarding His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation process and supporting the Tibetan struggle.
Following the panel, Sikyong spoke with Noemi Fingerlandová of Czech Radio. During the interview, Sikyong reflected on the enduring bond forged between Václav Havel and His Holiness the Dalai Lama, expressing deep gratitude to the Czech public for their steadfast solidarity. Touching upon China’s internal surveillance, ecological degradation of Tibet’s water towers, and economic vulnerabilities, he dismissed Beijing’s claims over the Dalai Lama’s succession as hypocritical meddling by an atheist regime. Reaffirming the CTA’s pursuit of genuine autonomy via the Middle Way Approach, Sikyong emphasised that international support and the resilient spirit of Tibetans inside Tibet sustain their struggle for justice and freedom.
Sikyong then met with an Iranian delegation consisting of civil society leaders, human rights advocates, and academics—including Negin Shiraghaei, Nikahang “Nik” Kowsar, Shukriya M. Bradost, Ammar Maleki, Aram Hessami, Mehdi Yahyanejad, Neda Soltani, Abdolreza Ahmadi, Evan Alireza Firoozi, and Ahmad Khalid Majidyar.
Sikyong concluded the day’s engagements by attending the Global Democracy Networking Dinner at the Grand Hotel Prague Towers, convening alongside international leaders, parliamentarians, and democracy defenders. Throughout the day, Sikyong was accompanied by Representative Thinlay Chukki and Phuntsok Topgyal, UN Advocacy Officer at the Tibet Bureau, Geneva, who assisted in facilitating the engagements.
