21. Apr 2009
Tibetan monk on trial for weapons charge
(AP) A respected Tibetan monk has gone on trial on weapons charges. Phurbu Tsering Rinpoche, who heads a convent in Kardze (Chin: Ganzi, Garze), TAP, Sichuan province, is accused of illegally possessing weapons, his Beijing-based lawyer told AP in a phone interview. He said the monk was forced into making a confession after a police interrogation that lasted four days and threats that his wife and son would be detained if he did not comply. The lawyer said he was the first senior Buddhist leader to face a serious charge linked to demonstrations in 2008. Prosecutors allege a pistol and more than 100 bullets were found under a bed in Phurbu Tsering Rinpoche's living room during a police raid, but the monk has denied the allegation, saying he was framed, Li said. The monk also pleaded not guilty to a separate charge of embezzlement involving a home for the elderly he set up, the lawyer said.