By Tsering Dhundup
DHARAMSHALA, July 17: Tibetan activist A-nya Sengdra’s lawyer Lin Qilei encountered a hostile and uncooperative staff at the Sixth Circuit Court of the Supreme People’s Court in Xi’an on July 10. Lin had visited the court to inquire about the progress of Sengdra’s appeal against his politically motivated imprisonment. This incident sheds light on the ongoing challenges within China’s legal system and the lack of transparency in dealing with human rights cases, especially when it concerns Tibetans.
A-nya Sengdra, a well-known activist in Tibet was arrested on September 4, 2018 by Chinese security forces in Gade County. He was held in incommunicado detention for 48 days, without access to a lawyer and during this time, he was reported to have been beaten while in custody. He was held in pre-trial detention for 14 months before he was sentenced. His detention period was extended several times between 2018 and his trial. On December 6, 2019, he was sentenced to seven years imprisonment in a closed trial after he was accused guilty of ‘picking quarrels and provoking trouble’ and ‘gathering people to disturb public order’ by a court in Golog Prefecture, Amdo, eastern Tibet.
Lin Qilei, the lawyer representing Sengdra pursued appeals against the verdict. However, his efforts were met with rejection by both the Intermediate People’s Court of Golok Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture and the Higher People’s Court of Qinghai Province. Determined to seek justice, Sengdra decided to take his case to the Chinese Supreme Court, refusing to accept a verdict that he considers a tool to silence his activism.
On July 10, when Lin approached the Sixth Circuit Court of the Supreme People’s Court in Xi’an to ascertain the status of Sengdra’s appeal, he encountered hostile and uncooperative staff who refused to provide a contact number for Lin to make enquiries in future.
Lin recounted on his Twitter account, “At about 9 am on 10 July 2023, I arrived at the Sixth Circuit Court of the Supreme People’s Court to represent Qinghai-based Tibetan A-nya Sengdra’s appeal case. At the reception, I enquired about the progress of the case. But the female reception staff told me there was no such case. When I made further requests, she directed me to a bailiff to whom I showed the “Notice of Refusal of Appeal from the Higher People’s Court of Qinghai Province”. The bailiff then informed me that the court had received the case documents on June 6 this year. He further told me that it takes three months to review [the documents] and asked me to enquire again on 6 September. I repeatedly asked him to provide me with his office phone number, but he said, “Even if there is a phone number, I can’t give it to you.” If this is the attitude of [the staff] at the Supreme Court, how can anyone enquire about the progress of a case without a phone number to contact the office?” Lin asked for a contact number, but the bailiff refused to provide it.
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) condemned the actions of the Chinese authorities, labelling them as unlawful and disgraceful attempts to obstruct Sengdra’s appeal case. Tenzin Dawa, the executive director of TCHRD, criticized the violation of human rights in Sengdra’s case and called on the Chinese authorities to release Sengdra and his associates immediately. Dawa emphasized the need for accountability for the guilty officials responsible for corruption.
The troubling treatment experienced by A-nya Sengdra and his lawyer highlights the ongoing human rights challenges within China’s legal system and the lack of transparency surrounding such cases. As international attention turns to this distressing incident, advocates for justice and human rights organizations continue to demand the immediate release of A-nya Sengdra and his associates.
