Chinese authorities have used intimidation and threats of force to block attempts by local Tibetans to save a sacred mountain from uranium mining at Dringwa (Ch: Zhanwa) Township in Dzoege (Ch: Ruo’ergai) County, Ngaba (Ch: Aba) Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province.
According to reliable information received by TCHRD, on August 10 a mining team sent by the Chinese government proceeded to start mining at Drakzong, a sacred mountain in Dringwa. Just then a large number of Tibetans gathered at the site to stop the miners, with Tibetans explaining to the Chinese miners that it was inauspicious to mine at the sacred site and that mining would have disastrous consequences on the environmental stability of the region. In response, the miners threatened to call the police for obstructing their work. Despite protests from Tibetans, the mining team has already made preparations to start mining uranium; mining machines and equipment have been brought to the site.
A Tibetan nomad woman was detained incommunicado last week for staging peaceful protest in Meuruma town in Ngaba (Ch: Aba) County in Ngaba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province. Woekar Kyi, a…
Chinese authorities in two different Tibetan counties have used disproportionate force and violence as a punishment for Tibetans failing to properly organize the celebration of “Chinese Workers and Farmers Red Army Day”, which…
Chinese authorities have failed to launch an investigation into the death in detention case of Tenzin Delek Rinpoche, a highly-revered and popular Tibetan reincarnate lama and a social activist, who died last month…
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) is pleased to learn that Ronggye A’drak, a Tibetan nomad who was imprisoned for staging a peaceful protest eight years ago, has been released…
A Tibetan monk named Choekyi, 38, was detained and disappeared at around 5. 30 pm on 19 June 2015 in Wal-shul, Serthar (Ch: Seda) County, Kardze (Ch: Ganzi) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province.…
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) condemns the illegal and incommunicado detention of Tenzin Delek Rinpoche’s relatives and calls for immediate investigation into the death of Rinpoche in Chuangdong Prison near Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province, People’s Republic of China (PRC).
Information received by TCHRD confirms the arbitrary detention of Rinpoche’s sister Dolkar Lhamo, age 52, and niece Nyima Lhamo, age 25, at an undisclosed location after they submitted a petition calling for an investigation into circumstances leading to Rinpoche’s death. Both women were detained on 17 July from a restaurant in Chengdu by police officers from Lithang County, located in Tibetan province of Kham. They have not been heard or seen since then.
Nyima Lhamo
TCHRD believes that both relatives have been detained in connection with their sustained campaign to call for the release of Rinpoche’s remains and for calling on the Chinese authorities to launch an impartial investigation into the death of Rinpoche in prison. The petition has been widely shared and circulated by exile Tibetan organisations and submitted by TCHRD to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and relevant Special Procedures division including Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief; Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression; and Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly.
Rinpoche’s relatives did not deserve arbitrary detention and the psychological and physical harm associated with it; they submitted a petition calling for an impartial investigation into the death of Rinpoche. Submitting petitions to challenge the arbitrary use of power by government agencies does not break any law, therefore, the officers who detained them must be made accountable for their unlawful actions.
Tenzin Delek Rinpoche’s death was the result of a series of human rights violations. Even after his death, the government of People’s Republic of China (PRC) still has human rights obligations that it is legally obliged to follow. After ignoring its legal obligations and Tenzin Delek Rinpoche’s rights to be protected from arbitrary detention, torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, and arbitrary or extrajudicial killings, the PRC should investigate Tenzin Delek Rinpoche’s death and make the results of the investigation public.
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) is deeply saddened and appalled by the death in detention of yet another political prisoner in Tibet. Of more immediate concern is the refusal…
Chinese police have arbitrarily detained a young Tibetan mother for protesting peacefully with a portrait of the Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama in her hand in Tibetan province of Amdo. The woman has…
A senior Tibetan monk has been sentenced to twelve years of rigorous imprisonment Diru (Ch: Biru) county, Nagchu (Ch: Naqu) Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR).
Venerable Tenzin Lhundup, an accomplished Buddhist scholar at Gom Gongsar Monastery in Lenchu(Ch: Liangqu) township of Diru County, was sentenced in May 2015, according to reliable information received by Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD).
Venerable Tenzin Lhundup was sentenced after a year of his arbitrary detention in May 2014. For almost a year, he had been detained in Lhasa and the police did not provide any information to his family and friends about his whereabouts or condition. The news of his sentencing was the only confirmation his family had about his status in over a year, that he had somehow survived the beatings and torture in detention.
TCHRD earlier reported in July 2014 on the arbitrary detention of the Buddhist scholar in May 2014 when he was addressing a public gathering about the on the “status of Tibetan language and nationality” (Tib. mi rigs dang skad yig ki gnas bab skor) to villagers of Shagchu (Ch: Xiaqu) Diru County as requested by the local Tibetans on one of his visits to the area.[i] Immediately, a group of Chinese police arrived at the spot and took him away. He was detained on a Wednesday – the Dalai Lama’s ‘soul day’. A source told TCHRD that on every Wednesday, which is observed in many parts of Tibet as Lhakar or the ‘soul day’ of the Dalai Lama, Tenzin Lhundrup used to give Buddhist teachings to the local Tibetans, help arbitrate disputes, and advocate vegetarianism. He is known also for zealously advocating the need to preserve Tibetan identity. All of these initiatives had earned him much respect and admiration from the local Tibetans.
A prominent Tibetan reincarnate lama and philanthropist Tenzin Delek Rinpoche died at the age of 65 while serving life imprisonment at a prison near Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province, People’s Republic of China.
Tenzin Delek Rinpoche was a highly-respected religious leader in Lithang County, Kardze (Ch: Ganzi) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan Province, in the Tibetan province of Kham. He was renowned for his active involvement in the restoration of Tibetan culture and religion, social welfare activities and his outspoken criticisms against Chinese policies. On 5 December 2002, Rinpoche and his nephew Lobsang Dhondup were sentenced to death with two years’ reprieve and death sentence respectively for masterminding a series of bomb blast incidents at Tianfu Square in Chengdu. Lobsang Dhondup was executed but Rinpoche’s suspended death sentence was commuted to life due to international pressure.
Tenzin Delek Rinpoche had been held in detention for over thirteen years since his conviction in December 2002 for a crime he never committed.
According to reliable sources inside Tibet, on 2 July 2015 three officials from the Political and Legal Affairs Commission of Lithang County had come to meet Rinpoche’s sisters Donkar Lhamo and Sonam Dekyi asking them to leave with them for Chengdu to discuss the issue of Tenzin Delek.
