04. Jul 2010
Rinchen Samdrup gets five years
(HPPE; RFA) Tibetan environmentalist, Rinchen Samdrup, has received a five-year prison sentence on charges of inciting to split the nation, a week after his brother, Karma Samdrup, was sentenced to 15 years for alleged tomb robbery. Rinchen Samdrup was tried at Chamdo Intermediate People's Court on charges that an article about the Dalai Lama had been posted on his website. He pleaded not guilty and said that someone else had posted the article. Rinchen Samdrup was detained in August 2009 after he had accused local officials of hunting endangered animals. His youngest brother, Chime Namgyal, was detained alongside him and is currently serving a 21-month administrative sentence of re-education through labour for harming national security. In addition to the three brothers, three of the brothers' cousins have also been arrested and are in detention.
05. Jul 2010
Seven village leaders arrested in Ngaba
(Phayul) Chinese authorities in Dzoege (Chin: Ruo'ergai) county, Ngaba (Chin: Aba) Q&TAP, Sichuan province, arrested seven Tibetans on 27 June 2010 following local scuffles. The arrestees were all elected leaders of various divisions or villages in the area. Government officials at the next higher, township level were removed from their posts and so was the head of a county level department "in charge of political affairs", a Tibetan with contacts in the region told Phayul. The dispute is said to have stemmed from disagreements after local Tibetans living around Tagtsang Lhamo Kirti monastery had allegedly expanded their houses to the extent that they hindered passage along a public road leading to the monastery.
05. Jul 2010
Investment package for the western regions
(AFP) The People's Republic of China's (PRC) National Development and Reform Commission has announced investments for more than 682.2 billion yuan (UK£65.4bn; US$100bn; EUR€77.5bn) in Xinjiang, the TAR, Inner Mongolia, Sichuan and Yunnan. The funds will be used for 23 new infrastructure projects, including railways, roads, airports, coal mines, nuclear power stations and power grids. Construction will start in 2010 to "actively expand domestic demand and promote the fast and healthy development of the western areas", the top economic planning agency said. The plan was announced after Premier Wen Jiabao said the Chinese economy was facing an "extremely complicated" situation. It is unclear whether the spending is part of a government stimulus package unveiled in late 2008 to cushion the impact of the global financial crisis.
06. Jul 2010
Tibetans detained on Dalai Lama birthday in Nepal
(AP) Dozens of Tibetan exiles on their way to take part in a celebration for the Dalai Lama's birthday were detained by police in Kathmandu. Police stopped vehicles to check for the exiles, and an Associated Press (AP) reporter saw at least 22 Tibetans detained at the Anamnagar police station before authorities told reporters to leave. Kathmandu police chief Ramesh Kharel said the Tibetans were taken for questioning and would be soon released. Laxmi Prasad Dhakal, Katmandu district administration chief, said the government has banned and will not tolerate protests against what it calls all friendly nations, including China. Dhakal said the exiles will, however, be allowed to celebrate the Dalai Lama's birthday inside monasteries and refugee camps so long as the facilities do not contain slogans or banners protesting against China.
14. Jul 2010
Hague expresses concerns over Tibet
(AP; BBC; Xinhua) Britain's foreign secretary, William Hague, has called for greater autonomy and human rights in Tibet. Speaking on his first visit to China since becoming foreign secretary, Hague said the UK had "long-standing human rights concerns" about Tibet. On a trip to strengthen bilateral trade, he made the remarks during a press conference with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi in Beijing. According to AP, Yang responded by saying that their differences on the issue will not negatively affect ties. "We believe that the common interests of the two countries far outweigh the differences between the two sides", Yang was quoted as saying. Chinese state media, however, made no mention of any of the Tibet-related remarks. In a brief report, Xinhua news agency simply reported that Hague said: "Britain recognised that Tibet and Taiwan were inalienable parts of the Chinese territory".
15. Jul 2010
Karmapa won't go to the US
(IANS; TibetInfoNet) The 17th Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorjee, head of the Karma-Kagyu tradition of Tibetan Buddhism will not travel to the United States where he was scheduled to spend a two-week tour to attend religious events on the invitation of the Karma Triyana Dharamchakra centre in Woodstock, New York. The Indian government informally requests the Karmapa to take its approval before foreign trips. Gonpo Tsering, an aide of Karmapa told the Indo Asian News Service: "We fail to understand that why restrictions were imposed on his movement as the tour was purely a religious one. Moreover, the government has not cited any reason for declining to grant permission".
