At least eight shot dead in Tongkor Monastery in Kardze
In the latest case of Chinese shooting Tibetan protesters in Tibet, at least eight Tibetans were known to have been shot dead after People's Armed Police (PAP) and Public Security Bureau (PSB) fired live ammunition onto the protesting crowd consisting of monks and laypeople on 3 April 2008. The protest broke out when monks of Tongkor Monastery (Ch: Donggu) in Zithang Township, Kardze County, Kardze "Tibet Autonomous Prefecture" ("TAP"), Sichuan Province, called for the release of two monks arrested for objecting Chinese 'Patriotic Education' campaign the previous day, according to confirmed information received by the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD). There are reports of scores of Tibetans injured and arrested after the protest and police firing.
The official mouthpiece, Xinhua, admitted the incident took place but described it as 'riot' mentioning only the injury of one government official and did not mention about deaths, arrests and injuries among the Tibetan protesters.
According to reliable sources, the protest flared up at Tongkor Monastery in Zithang Township, Kardze County on 2 April with the arrival of official 'work team' to enforce a "Patriotic Education" campaign - a political indoctrination session that requires monks to denounce the Dalai Lama and to oppose the ongoing protests. The chief monk of Tongkor Monastery, Lobsang Jamyang did not cooperate with the work team during the campaign. Yeshi Nyima, a monk protested against the campaign which was later joined by other monks of the monastery who refused to cooperate with the official work team by telling, "we cannot criticize the Dalai Lama even at the cost of our lives." But the next day the work team returned to the monastery with hundreds of PAP and PSB officials ransacked monks' residences looking for photos of the Dalai Lama, confiscated photos of Tongkor head lama, Tongkor Shabdrung, mobile phones and other belongings. Eyewitness said, PAP and PSB arrested an elderly monk Geshe Tsultrim Tenzin, in 70's and a lay person Tsultrim Phuntsok, 26.
Subsequently, more than three hundreds strong monastic community marched towards local county government headquarters to demand their release that was later joined by hundreds of laypeople. The group left after being told that the two monks would be released at 8:00 p.m. but returned after officials fail to deliver their promise. On their way, they were confronted by heavy presence of PAP and PSB officials which later turned into scuffle between the police forces and the protesters, with police forces firing shots into the protesters, killing at least eight Tibetans and injuring dozens of people.
According to sources, those killed in the shooting include: Zangden, monk, 27 years old from Tsangyoe Village, Phurbu Delek, 30 years old, Tseyang Kyi, 23 years old female, Druklo Tso, 34 years old, female from Gugra Village, Tenlo, 32 years old female from Gugra Village and identities of three could not be ascertained at the moment. Three monks, Nyima, Kalpo a.k.a Kabhuk and Thupten Gelek originally from Sheru Village and monks of Tongkor Monastery sustained bullet injuries and are known to be in critical condition. Other reports cited the death of at least eight Tibetans after the shooting. There is no information on the whereabouts of Tsewang Rinzin, a disciplinary master of Tongkor Monastery.
The Chinese authorities in recent weeks have stepped up a constant vilification campaign against the Dalai Lama with virulent rhetoric in an attempt to undermine Tibetans loyalty to the Dalai Lama. The reinvigoration of "patriotic education" in the monastic institutions is the point in case.
In a similar incident in August 2007, when Ronggye A'drak a 52-year-old Tibetan nomad staged a peaceful solo protest in Lithang County during the annual horse race festival, the "Patriotic Education" campaign, which attempts to undermine Tibetan loyalty to the Dalai Lama, was stepped up even more across Lithang area in Kandze "Tibet Autonomous Prefecture" ("TAP") and cases of arbitrary arrests surfaced from the area after Tibetans openly opposed the campaign.
TCHRD condemns in strongest terms the Chinese security forces' brutal use of force on the peaceful Tibetan demonstrators. TCHRD also call upon the PRC government to release all those Tibetans who have been arrested and detained for exercising their fundamental human rights enshrined in the UDHR, constitution and many other international covenants and treaties that she is party to. The Centre also calls upon the PRC to immediately put an end to "Patriotic Education" campaign across all religious institutions in Tibet. The government of the PRC should ensure that arrestees are not subjected to ill treatment and torture which are common features in Chinese administered detention centres and prisons in Tibet.
The Centre will update on the situation as and when more information surfaces from the area.
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