12. Nov 2009
Tibetan writer sentenced to five years
(Tibet.net) Tibetan writer and photographer Gunga Tsangyang has been sentenced to five years imprisonment by a Chinese People's Intermediate Court. Gunga Tsangyang, whose pen name is 'Snow Sun' (Tib: Gangnyi), was convicted on three counts. He faced charges of writing 'splittist' articles, breaching national security, and communicating with Shingsa Rinpoche, an exiled Buddhist leader who lives in south India. The arrest was apparently made because of political essays Gunga Tsangyang published on the website 'Jottings' (Tib: Zindris). Before his arrest, he was planning to establish a Tibetan School for Higher Studies (Tib: Gangjong Thorim Sherig Lobling). Gunga Tsangyang had often spoken about the deterioration of the education standard in Tibet. "The establishment of this school is one of my life's most important goals", he said.