RFA: Three Tibetans, Previously Unknown, Sentenced for Dalai Lama Photos, Teachings

January 26, 2006

Three Tibetans who attempted to carry photographs of the Dalai Lama and audio tapes of his religious teachings from Nepal into the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) were sentenced to imprisonment in July 2001, according to a Radio Free Asia (RFA) report on August 11. The Shigatse (Rikaze) Intermediate People's Court sentenced two of the men, Lungtog and Tennam, to four years imprisonment. The third man, identified by the pseudonym Jigme, was sentenced to two years imprisonment and recounted his experience to RFA after he fled the TAR. He showed RFA a copy of the official court document sentencing the men for illegally crossing the border into China and "instigation to split the country."

Three Tibetans who attempted to carry photographs of the Dalai Lama and audio tapes of his religious teachings from Nepal into the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) were sentenced to imprisonment in July 2001, according to a Radio Free Asia (RFA) report on August 11. The Shigatse (Rikaze) Intermediate People's Court sentenced two of the men, Lungtog and Tennam, to four years imprisonment. The third man, identified by the pseudonym Jigme, was sentenced to two years imprisonment and recounted his experience to RFA after he fled the TAR. He showed RFA a copy of the official court document sentencing the men for illegally crossing the border into China and "instigation to split the country."

Law enforcement officials told RFA's informant that Tibetans are free to practice their religion, but that the materials the men carried "could harm socialism and damage the unity of the people." Chinese leaders deny that Tibetans remain devoted to the Dalai Lama, depicting him instead as menacing and out of favor. Xinhua reported in May 2005 that TAR Chairman Jampa Phuntsog (Xiangba Pingcuo) said, "All the locals want the current stable and sound situation in Tibet to continue but Dalai Lama, judging from his words and deeds, simply wants to destroy it and make something different. And the result is he has grown more and more unpopular in Tibet."

Chinese officials have told foreign visitors that the public display of a Dalai Lama image, even in a Buddhist monastery, is forbidden, but that a monastic or secular Tibetan can have a Dalai Lama photo in a private residence for religious purposes. Information in the CECC Political Prisoner Database shows that the detention or imprisonment of approximately 170 Tibetans since 1987 is believed to be wholly or in part the result of possessing photos, printed matter, or recordings featuring the Dalai Lama. More than 20 of these Tibetans are believed to be currently detained or imprisoned.

Additional information about China's policy toward the Dalai Lama is available in the CECC 2004 Annual Report.