15 July 1997
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Prisoner miscarries
[ read ]
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Arrests in Rebkong
[ read ]
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China's gold mining in Tibet
[ read ]
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Profile:
Struggle in Drapchi
[ read ]
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Procuratorate flees Tibet to learn the truth
[ read ]
A recent report describing the inhumane treatment
of prisoners in Chinese prisons in Tibet has been
received. The report recounts the case of a pregnant woman
who was arrested on suspicion of independence activities
and subjected to intensive interrogations. The woman's
pleas that she felt weak were ignored and two days later,
denied recommended hospital care, she miscarried her child.
At the time of arrest in June 1993 the woman (name
withheld) was 3 months and 17 days pregnant. The night
of her arrest she was reportedly kept standing in a cold
room while being interrogated about her activities. The
woman told her interrogators that she was pregnant and
was feeling weak, however the pleas were ignored and the
questions continued.
When the officials realised that the woman was not going
to tell them anything, they finally halted their questions
but kept her standing, under guard, until 8.30 a.m. the
next day. The interrogation session had begun at 6 p.m. the
previous night.
By the next morning the woman had been standing for 14
hours in a row and she was reported to be so stiff that
she could scarcely move. When a policewoman offered her
some boiled water and biscuits she could not eat anything
and was suffering such incredible pain that she was unable
to bend her legs or sit down.
The woman was taken to hospital where doctors said she
should be admitted immediately. The prison officials
refused the advice and she was returned to the prison.
The woman was given some pills but did not take them for
fear they would be harmful to her child.
It was reported that the following day, while trying
to go to the toilet, the woman was suddenly struck with
dizziness and fell unconscious. The woman later said that
she had realised before losing consciousness that she had
lost her baby.
Following the miscarriage the woman was hospitalised
for one week from 12 June 1993. Although still not
completely well, she was then taken back to prison where
she was once again lectured and interrogated. This time her
interrogators reportedly told her that it was her own fault
and her problem alone that she had lost her child and that
"next time you should think before involving yourself in
political activities".
Despite testifying in court about losing her baby due to
the maltreatment of the prison officials and pleading with
the prosecutor to speak to the doctor of the hospital
who had treated her, the woman was sentenced to three
years imprisonment.
The special needs of pregnant women under detention are
recognised by the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules
for the Treatment of Prisoners which states that "there
shall be special accommodation for all necessary pre-natal
and post-natal care and treatment" in women's institutions.
[ top ]
In 1995 Lobsang Lungtok, a monk, was arrested for
independence activities. After 18 months imprisonment
he was expelled from his monastery in April this year. In
January 1997 three other monks and one layman were arrested
on similar grounds.
22 year-old Lobsang Lungtok, from Rebkong county (Ch:
Qinghai province), Amdo, joined Rongpo Gonchen monastery
at the age of seven. There are a total of 500 monks in
the monastery.
One night in March 1995, Lobsang pasted wall posters at
the the Rebkong monastery and the nearby Teacher Training
School. Lobsang had been inspired to act after listening
to the VOA Tibetan news service that exile Tibetans were
planning to undertake a peace march to Lhasa.
The posters read: "Tibetans and Chinese are distinct in
every sphere of life"; "Tibet is an independent country
with a recorded history. Thousands of Tibetans died as a
direct consequence of Chinese occupation of Tibet"; "All
valuable religious artifacts, gold statues and antiques
have been hijacked into China"; "Sinocisation policies
including birth control are being implemented with an aim
to completely eliminate Tibetans as a race" and "Chinese
stop wanton destruction of Tibetan environment".
Ten days later, PSB officials came to arrest Lobsang. Not
at the monastery at that time, he was finally arrested on
5 June 1995 and taken to Rebkong county prison. Chinese
officials told him, "You are now convicted, therefore if
you provide us with the names of anyone who is propagating
Tibetan independence we can help you."
Lobsang refused and was subsequently sentenced to 18 months
imprisonment and deprivation of political rights for two
years. While in prison he was frequently beaten and was
served meals just once in the morning and once at night.
In January 1997, independence wall posters and the Tibetan
national flag began appearing in the courtyard of the
Teacher Training School and in the monasteries. Lobsang
reports that three Rebkong monks named Gedun Dhondup
(senior), Gedun Dhondup (junior) and Dakpa Gyaltsen, and
one layman named Menpa Dorjee, were arrested in March 1997
for their involvement.
Gedun Dhondup senior and junior were released in May
after one month, and it is believed that Dakpa Gyaltsen
may also have been released. Menpa Dorjee is said to be
still in detention. There are reports that more arrests
are to follow.
[ top ]
China's mining practices in Tibet reveal a two-way policy:
to transfer massive population numbers into Tibet so
as to lessen the burden of its own population problems
while marginalising Tibetans and to exploit Tibet's
mineral resources. At a gold mining conference held in
Lhasa in 1995, officials of the "Tibet Autonomous Region"
announced that minerals account for about 20% of Tibet's
industrial output and reported the existence of 148 mine
zones in the "TAR", of which six had deposits. Tibetan
sources reported in the same year that in Gansu province
in eastern Tibet and from Tso-ngon province (Ch: Qinghai)
to the districts to the west of Nagchu (borders eastern
Tibet) in central Tibet, there are about 12,000 gold
miners unlawfully extracting gold from the area. Nomads and
farmers have raised serious objections to heavy extraction
of mineral resources and destruction of green pastures,
to no avail. The following two accounts from Golok reveal
that such mining exploitation continues.
Kunga Gyatso,
aged 20, is from Thakmar shang (township)
under Golok Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture (TAP) in Pema
county, Amdo (incorporated into the Chinese province of
Qinghai). Kunga was a gold miner prior to his escape to
India on 8 June 1997.
Kunga reports the existence of massive gold mines in
his locality of Dokha and says Chinese authorities began
mining in the area as early as 1988. From 1988 to 1990
thirty workers, all Chinese, were employed to dig the area.
Kunga says that, unlike Lhasa and other tourist prone
areas, Golok is extremely remote and not easily accessible
to the outside world. "Any opposition by local inhabitants
will be crushed with brute force. People do not dare
to protest against the Chinese authorities who declare
that the land belongs to China", he says. The Dokha gold
mines lie in a nomadic area and Kunga reports that Chinese
authorities have used various means, from monetary payment
to force, to evict the local Tibetan inhabitants from
the area.
"This sort of project has least benefited the local
inhabitant", Kunga says, "Rather, it brings huge numbers of
Chinese into Tibet which creates problems for the Tibetans
in every sphere of life".
In 1990 the Chinese introduced a new mining boat machine,
known in Chinese as Tse-jing Trang no. 2, in order to
increase its yield or output. The number of workers was
subsequently increased to 330, of which only 20 were
Tibetans.
Kunga Gyatso joined the mines in July 1995 at the age
of 18 and worked there for two years before leaving
Tibet. He recalls that the pure gold output was (1 gyama
is equivalentkg) in 1991, 240 gyama in 1992, 240 gyama
in 1993, 212 gyama in 1994, 240 gyama in 1995, and in
1996 it was 200 gyama. The gold is transported to China
via Chendu.
Kunga was paid 500 yuan per month as he belonged to the
lowest grade worker known as Kangwa Kung in Chinese. All
the top posts were held by the Chinese and therefore he
had no access to detailed information about the mine.
Kunga reported that if the annual output exceeded the
prescribed target, the miners would receive a bonus
of between 3000 to 5000 yuan. He said there is no
discrimination between Tibetans and Chinese with regard
to remuneration and bonus and all miners were levied 20
percent of their remuneration as a tax.
Kunga also reported that Dornyi village in Machu county
under Golok TAP in Amdo, is rich in copper, gold, silver,
aluminum, lead and iron. Copper makes up 70 percent of
the mineral resources.
Kunga learnt from another source that in 1997 Chinese
authorities plan to bring 20,000 Chinese migrants into
Golok to work in the mines in Dornyi. For this purpose,
necessary infrastructure such as electricity is being
introduced.
24 year old
Jigme Sonam
arrived in Dharamsala, India, in June 1997 and provided
an account of mining activities in his Raktrom township
of Serta county under Golok TAP. Chinese authorities began
mining sometime in 1984-1985 and approximately 200 workers
were engaged in the work. The authorities compulsorily
conscripted 20 people from every township to work in the
mines and if a worker failed to turn up at the mines a
penalty would be imposed on his friends and other members
of his group. Workers are told they will be paid 150 yuan
per month but this amount is reportedly never received.
Each year the workers are told by Chinese authorities
that their salary has been automatically deducted from
the annual tax payable.
The gold mines are kept under strict guard by Chinese armed
personnel and Jigme did not have access to information
regarding the exact output of the gold mines. He reported
that the Chinese transport both the pure gold and the
residue.
The workers had to provide all food for themselves and
thus if a miner has to work for fifteen days he must also
carry food for 15 days. If his work is extended, he asks
relatives to bring food for him which must be handed to
the guard.
According to Jigme, Chinese scientists have revealed that
Serta county has abundant gold resources. The county has
in fact received the name "Serta" beacuse people believe
that there is a horse-shaped gold nugget beneath the earth
(ser is the Tibetan word for gold and ta is horse).
Serta's gold mining area lies just behind the
Labrang mountain where for a long time nomads have
subsisted. Regardless of the nomads, Chinese authorities
have ordered evacuation of the area for mining, telling
the inhabitants that the land belongs to the Chinese
government. Local Tibetans have been used by the Chinese
to evict the nomads without any compensation payment
or resettlement.
Kunga Gyatso also reports that in Pema county the Chinese
authorities have established two forestry departments
called Dokhog Forest Department (Chi: Dokhog Ling Trang)
and Makhog Forest Department (Chi: Makhog Ling Trang)
which are responsible for logging the area. Vast portions
of forest land in the area have already been reduced to
arid desert land.
Loggers must deposit a huge sum of money for logging
rights; the Dokhog gold mining company pays 750000 yuan,
Dokhog Forest department pays 150000 yuan and Makhog Forest
Department pays 100000 yuan. The total amount of 1 million
yuan goes directly to the Chinese government treasury.
[ top ]
Ngawang Pekar
was halfway through his eight year sentence
in Drapchi Prison when his sentence was extended by six
years. Already being punished for his attempts to broaden
awareness of the situation in Tibet, Ngawang had been
caught by the Chinese prison authorities trying to alert
the international community to the conditions for political
prisoners in Drapchi.
Ngawang Pekar (layname: Paljor) is a 34 year-old monk from
Drepung monastery. He was born in Toelung Aangkar under
Toelung Dzong (county), just west of Lhasa. His father,
Topgyal, and one of his younger sisters are still living
in Toelung. Ngawang has a total of two younger sisters,
one elder sister and three younger brothers.
His brother Khedup has served a five year sentence in
Sangyip and Drapchi prisons. Khedup was a Drepung monk
and, now released, lives with his father. Ngawang's mother
died while Ngawang was serving one of his terms in Sangyip
Prison.
Ngawang was first arrested on 5 March 1988, along with
three other Drepung monks, as a result of participating
in the massive "March Demonstration" in Lhasa.
Ngawang was sentenced to approximately eight to nine months
which he served in various prisons. He was first detained
in Gutsa Detention Centre and later was transferred to
Outridu, a "Re-education-through-Labour" centre in the
Sangyip prison complex located in the outskirts of Lhasa,
and then to Sangyip prison itself.
The sentence received by Ngawang was a relatively short
one. This was said to have been a result of the general
influence of the 10th Panchen Lama at that time.
Ngawang Pekar was arrested for the second time on 12
July 1989. He was alleged to have put up pro-independence
posters and participated in demonstrations. He was also
said to have spoken with and to be "linked" to certain
foreign delegates and organisations.
Ngawang was sentenced to eight years, reportedly around
the end of November 1989. At the time of this second
arrest Ngawang was said to have been planning an escape to
India. Ngawang was first taken to Sangyip prison and later
transferred to Drapchi Prison in Lhasa. On 28 April 1991
a number of Drapchi prisoners, including Ngawang Pekar,
were subjected to a massive beating by prison guards. This
was a punishment to those who had not renounced their
"criminal splittist activities".
While in Drapchi, Ngawang wrote appeal letters to the
United Nations and certain human rights organisations
and was caught trying to smuggle out a list of political
prisoners and a document describing human rights violations
being perpetrated in Drapchi Prison. Such activities led
to Ngawang being sentenced in June 1996 to an additional
six years imprisonment.
It is reported that Ngawang is not having any health
problems at present. He is described by a fellow prison
mate as a "giant of a man", reaching approximately six feet
tall and weighing 180 gyama (90 kg). He is well-educated
and fluent in both English and Chinese and remains
extremely patriotic in his calls for Tibet's freedom.
Ngawang Pekar is now serving a total of 14 years in prison,
a result of his expression of opinion and his attempts
to reveal to the world the conditions of Chinese prisons
in Tibet. To protest Ngawang's arbitrary detention, write
a letter addressed to the Chinese premier Li Peng asking
for his immediate and unconditional release and send it
to TCHRD for forwarding.
[ top ]
Lhakpa Tsering,
24 years old, from Toelung Dechen Dzong, near Lhasa,
was one of the staff at the Dzong (county) Procuracy
Office (the Chinese governmental office responsible for
investigating and prosecuting criminal cases), earning a
salary of 670 yuan (around US$ 85) per month. He confirms
the much-reported futility of the Chinese appeal sytem in
Tibet and reveals why, despite his well-paid, privileged
position in the Chinese administration, he felt compelled
to leave Tibet in May 1997.
"I was able to attend a Lobchung (primary school) for five
years in Tibet, a Lobdring (secondary school) in China
for three years and then for three years I studied law in
a special technical secondary school.
"In 1993, after completing my studies, I returned to Tibet
to work as a procuratorate. There were 12 other staff
in my office, all Tibetan except for the Chinese office
head. Cases of political prisoners did not come under
my category but I know that the procedure of appeal is
useless. The appeal system exists solely for the sake of
formality and has never been successful.
"I did not agree with the attitudes of Communist China but
to be honest I had no personal problems with Chinese. I was
fortunate compared with other Tibetans to have received
education and my post as a procuratorate meant that I
enjoyed a lot of facilities.
"But it pained me immensely that I hadn't been educated
about Tibet. There are so many youngsters in Tibet who
do not know the real history of Tibet. Ever since I was
able to think and act for myself, I could not bear what
was happening to my country. Especially after reading
books on Tibet and listening to the VOA, I felt I could
no longer tolerate being a Tibetan in Tibet.
"In Tibet, when riots or protests break out, the media
plays a manipulative role. I had previously felt that
the Chinese were justified in punishing the monks as in
Tibet we are always shown television broadcasts of monks
indulging in mob-like activities such as throwing stones
at the police. When I came to India I saw a video tape of
the same incident but this time I saw monks being beaten
by groups of policemen or being thrown off the roof of
the Tsuklakhang (Lhasa's main temple). I was so sad and
distressed because I had never before seen such things."
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