13 years in jail for peaceful protests/ENG

2012. április 4./Phayul.com/TibetPress

DHARAMSHALA, April 4: A Chinese court in eastern Tibet has sentenced Tibetan protesters up to 13 years in jail for taking part in peaceful protests that rocked parts of Tibet in January, earlier this year.

11 Tibetans, who have been accused of participating in the January 23 peaceful protests in Drango and January 24 peaceful protests in Serthar, have been given prison terms varying from three to thirteen years.

The official Chinese government news agency Xinhua, while reporting on the lengthy jail terms, said the Tibetans were sentenced for “inciting social disorder” and destroying public properties.

The Dharamshala based Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in a release last week noted that the speedy sentencing of Tibetans showed signs of a miscarriage of proper judicial procedure and flayed Beijing for “criminalising” all legitimate forms of peaceful expressions.

“The Tibetans in Drango and Serthar had staged peaceful protest marches against repressive official policies,” the release said. “Unsurprisingly, by labelling these legitimate forms of protests as ‘anti-government, vandalism, and violence’, the Chinese government has criminalised all peaceful ways of expressing ones opinions and thoughts.”

“The fact that heavy sentences were meted out to 11 Tibetans in less than two months after the protests shows the way in which proper judicial procedure has likely been hijacked,” the release added.

Hundreds of Tibetans had come out on the streets in Drango on January 23, the first day of Chinese new year, calling for Tibet’s freedom and the return of His Holiness the Dalai Lama from exile. Chinese security personnel reacted by firing indiscriminately at the unarmed demonstrators.

The following day, similar peaceful protests in Serthar were violently suppressed with open gunfire.

The two incidents left several Tibetan protesters killed and many seriously injured.

TCHRD in its release said the county court at Drango sentenced seven Tibetans to 10 to 13 years imprisonment in addition to imposing fines. The rights group identified those sentenced as Peldor, Dugyal Nyima, Jhipey, Gyaltho, Gyalrong Tsetan, Tsering Dhargyal and Sherab Rongpo.

In Sertha, the county court sentenced four Tibetans – Tseyang, Khechung, Tsering and Lenchung – to three to seven years in prison for 'obstructing government activities,' according to the release.