News and Views on Tibet

Tibetan monk sentenced to three years in Chinese prison

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Tibetan intellectual Monlam Gyatso in undated photo (Photo/Tibet Express)

By Choekyi Lhamo

DHARAMSHALA, Dec. 21: The Chinese authorities have reportedly sentenced a Tibetan writer and teacher Monlam Gyatso from Serta County in Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Octpber 2022 following his disappearance last year, according to a report published by Radio Free Asia on Tuesday. The Tibetan monk was charged for his participation in a campaign against killing and selling animals in his locality, said reliable sources.

“He [Monlam Gyatso] was arrested on June 9, 2021 by the Chinese government. His whereabouts continue to remain unknown,” said one of the sources, adding that despite the official sentencing, it still remains unclear where he is being held and in what condition. The 46-year-old, an ordained monk at the Jampaling monastery in Raktam village, was held incommunicado for more than a year in an undisclosed location without informing his family.

Another source in exile told RFA that Gyatso was sentenced allegedly for supporting the “10-point regulation campaign” initiated by a monk in Kardze’s Larung Gar monastery “to discourage people from killing and selling animals.” The authorities have reportedly crackdown on the campaign and accused their supporters for “disrupting the ecosystem and livelihoods of the residents.” 

Gyatso set up a school in his hometown and has authored several books and written articles and poems. According to a report by the Tibet Express, he formed a group consisting of 20 people including monks, nuns, laypeople, and travelled across 30 different places and taught Tibetan language and grammar, Buddhism, and Chinese language to the people in remote areas with no access to education. The authorities in China often use trumped-up charges like “inciting separatism” and “endangering state security” to silence public intellectuals like Gyatso and influential writers and poets to curb dissent against the CCP government.

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