65. New prison in Lhasa: increased surveillance for political prisoners, 'oppressive' cell-blocks

ICT news release, 20 January 2006

A major new prison housing hundreds of inmates, including monks, nuns and other political prisoners, has become operational near Lhasa, Tibet. The prison, described by Beijing as Qushui prison, is in a rural area south-west of Lhasa and although there has been a detention facility there since the 1960s, it was not known to foreign observers until now. A political prisoner who is familiar with the new prison told ICT: "On the outside the prison looks very modern and many of the facilities are new. But inside it is very tough and hard for prisoners, even compared to Drapchi prison." The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture, Dr Manfred Nowak, visited the new prison during his two-week visit to the PRC which concluded on 5 December 2005, and said that he spoke to inmates whom he had been told were imprisoned for political offences and transferred from Drapchi. A Tibetan source who has visited the prison reported that many prisoners are held there in solitary confinement, specifically in 'punishment' (solitary) cells (sometimes known as 'dark cells' due to the lack of natural light and poor conditions). The same former political prisoner, who is now in exile, said: "In Drapchi you can see the sky and sometimes the mountains from the cells. But in the new prison there are smaller windows which are higher up, and the cells are more oppressive. It is in a more remote area, which I think is to keep the political prisoners far from Lhasa and other prisoners, so that no one can hear their voices." The former prisoner said that levels of surveillance in the new prison are even higher than at Drapchi. At least 25 political prisoners, including monks and nuns serving sentences for peaceful protests, were reportedly transferred to Chushur prison from Drapchi in summer 2005. Lobsang Tenzin, a Tibetan former student in his late thirties whose death sentence on a charge of murder was commuted to life and then to a fixed term of 20 years, is one of the most well-known prisoners who has been transferred to the facility. The office of the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture confirmed that the prison facility is new and stated that "conditions are much better than Drapchi." The Rapporteur's office did not state how or why conditions were better. Official visits to all prisons in the TAR are strictly controlled by the authorities, and visitors see units that are carefully prepared for the visit. A strong statement issued by the Special Rapporteur in Beijing following his visit noted: "In his interviews with detainees, the Special Rapporteur observed a palpable level of fear and self-censorship, which he had not experienced in the course of his previous missions". It took several decades for the Chinese to admit that they had more than one prison in TAR - as of 2004, the Chinese authorities had admitted only to the existence of three prisons (meaning a facility for holding tried prisoners) in the Tibet Autonomous Region. Until now, the three formally designated provincially ranked prisons in the TAR have been Drapchi, Powo Tramo (Tibet Autonomous Region Prison Number Two) and Lhasa Prison (Utritru), several kilometres north-east of the Jokhang temple in central Lhasa.