Engnews April 2013

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RFA BREAKING NEWS: Three Tibetans Die in Burning Protests

by Parameswaran Ponnudurai

Three Tibetans Die in Burning Protests APRIL 24, 2013— Three Tibetans—two monks and a woman—set themselves ablaze and died Wednesday in Sichuan province’s Ngaba (in Chinese, Aba) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in one of the worst fatal self-immolation protests to date against Chinese rule, sources in the region and in exile said. The burnings bring to 119 the number of Tibetan self-immolations since the wave of fiery protests began in February 2009. The two monks from the Tagtsang Lhamo Kirti monastery in Dzoege [in Chinese, Ruo’ergai] county set themselves alight and died near the monastery, a Tibetan living in India told RFA’s Tibetan Service, citing sources in the region. They staged “a fiery protest against Chinese policy in Tibet,” the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “They died at around 6:30 p.m. local time near the main assembly hall of the monastery.” Sources identified the monks as Lobsang Dawa, 20, and Konchog Woeser, 23. Lobsang Dawa came originally from Dzaru Menma village in Dzoege country, while Konchog Woeser was a native of Tsakho village in the Kirti Kangchu township in Ngaba (Aba) county, one source said. Monks hold prayers Their bodies were moved to the monastery, where monks held prayers for them, said India-based monks Kanyag Tsering and Lobsang Yeshe, citing contacts in the region. Lobsang Dawa, 20, was the son of Dorje Khandro, 62, while Konchog Woeser, 23, was the son of Tsering Norbu and Samdrub Drolma, according to Tsering and Yeshe. They will be cremated on Thursday, the two monks said. Also on Wednesday, at about 2:00 p.m., a 23–year-old Tibetan woman set herself on fire and died in a protest against Chinese rule in Sichuan’s Dzamthang (Rangtang) county, Tibetan sources said. The woman’s name and other details of her protest are still unknown. Well-known Tibetan poet and blogger Woeser confirmed the woman’s protest, describing her in a blog entry as a “shepherdess.” No options? Tibetans resort to self-immolations because they are left with no options in their demand for better rights, according to rights groups Though self-immolation protests by Tibetans under Chinese rule are no longer unexpected, “each individual’s choice to undertake this most extreme form of protest remains deeply important,” said Eleanor Byrne-Rosengren, director of the London-based advocacy group Free Tibet. “All the Tibetans who resort to self-immolation do so because they feel they have no other way to make China and the rest of the world listen to their country’s call for freedom,” Byrne-Rosengren said in a Wednesday statement. “As yet, China is still turning a deaf ear, but the rest of the world must not,” Byrne-Rosengren said. The last time a triple Tibetan self-immolation protest occurred on the same day was on Nov. 7, 2012, when three teenage monks from Ngoshul monastery, also in Ngaba, set themselves on fire to protest Beijing’s rule in Tibetan areas. Chinese authorities have tightened controls in Tibet and in Tibetan prefectures in Chinese provinces to check the self-immolations, cutting communication links with outside areas and jailing Tibetans they believe to be linked to the burnings. More than a dozen have been jailed so far, with some handed jail terms of up to 15 years. Reported by Lumbum Tashi and Yangdon Demo for RFA’s Tibetan Service. Translated by Karma Dorjee. Written in English by Richard Finney. View this story online at: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/three-04242013160540.html Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation broadcasting and publishing online news, information, and commentary in nine East Asian languages to listeners who do not have access to full and free news media. RFA’s broadcasts seek to promote the rights of freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom to “seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” RFA is funded by an annual grant from the Broadcasting Board of Governors. If you no longer wish to receive RFA news releases, send an e-mail to engnews-leave(a)rfanews.org. To add your name to our mailing list, send an e-mail to engnews-join(a)rfanews.org . ##### All media inquiries may be sent to Rohit Mahajan at <mailto:mahajanr@rfa.org> mahajanr(a)rfa.org.

11 years, 10 months

Radio Free Asia Wins Regional Edward R. Murrow Award

by Rohit Mahajan

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 18, 2013 Contact: Rohit Mahajan 202 530 4976 <mailto:mahajanr@rfa.org> mahajanr(a)rfa.org Radio Free Asia Wins Regional Edward R. Murrow Award Winning Entry Documents Story of Former Tycoon Targeted by Bo Xilai WASHINGTON - Radio Free Asia (RFA) today won a regional Edward R. Murrow Award in the reporting category for hard news. The winning entry, "Billionaire Flees China <http://www.rfa.org/cantonese/91cd5e865bcc8c6a674e4fca63ed9732858471996765-1 ?encoding=simplified> 's Modern Day Red Terror," submitted by RFA's Cantonese Service, consists of an on-camera interview with former Chinese real-estate mogul Li Jun who fled China in 2010. He was one of the highest-profile victims of the anti-mob and corruption campaign orchestrated by disgraced Chongqing politician and former Politburo member Bo Xilai and ex-police chief Wang Lijun. The award, sponsored by the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA), will compete for a national award expected to be announced in June. "Li Jun's amazing story gets to the heart of the Bo Xilai scandal and the larger issue of abuse of power and corruption among China's party leaders," said Libby Liu, President of RFA. "For our listeners in China, who wouldn't get the whole story otherwise, this epitomizes RFA's brand of journalism - informative and up close. "This award speaks to the hard work of our reporters who went to tremendous lengths to interview Li Jun." RFA's Cantonese Service tracked down the fugitive businessman who lives in hiding in Asia and interviewed him. Li recounted his experience of becoming the victim of one of China's most tumultuous political dramas in years - a situation he characterized as a kind of "red terror" recalling incidents of the Cultural Revolution. In RFA's interview <http://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/campaign-04032012163029.html?searchte rm=Li+Jun> , the penniless former tycoon talked about the detentions of his family, including his wife, and associates, as well the confiscation of his company's assets, estimated at $700 million. The saga of ambition, intrigue, and abuse of political power is presented through this personal account of one of the campaign's highest-profile victims. The two-part interview was aired in April 2012. Other regional Edward R. Murrow award winners <http://rtdna.org/content/2013_regional_edward_r_murrow_award_winners> include Bloomberg News, World Radio Switzerland, Siren FM, KQED, WAMU, and WNBC. # # # Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation broadcasting and publishing online news, information, and commentary in nine East Asian languages to listeners who do not have access to full and free news media. RFA's broadcasts seek to promote the rights of freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom to "seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers." RFA is funded by an annual grant from the Broadcasting Board of Governors Rohit Mahajan Media Relations Manager Radio Free Asia Email: mahajanr(a)rfa.org Desk: (202) 530-4976 Cell: (202) 489-8021 www.rfa.org

11 years, 11 months

RFA BREAKING NEWS: Thousands Gather After Young Tibetan Mother Self-Immolates

by Parameswaran Ponnudurai

cid:image001.png@01CCE405.460E1840 Thousands Gather After Young Tibetan Mother Self-Immolates APRIL 16, 2013— A young Tibetan mother burned herself to death on Tuesday in Sichuan province to protest Chinese rule in Tibetan areas, drawing thousands of villagers and monks to her home and a monastery near which she self-immolated, according to sources in the region and in exile. Chugtso, 20, self-immolated at about 3:00 p.m. local time near Dzamthang (in Chinese, Rangtang) county’s Jonang monastery, a Tibetan living in India and with contacts in the county told RFA’s Tibetan Service. “Her self-immolation was in protest against China’s repressive policies in Tibet,” Tsangyang Gyatso said, citing sources in the region. Chugtso’s burning brings to 116 the number of Tibetans who have burned themselves to protest Chinese rule and policies, with many also calling for the return of exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama. Chugtso died at the scene and was brought to the nearby Jonang monastery, where monks performed prayers. Afterward, her remains were taken to her home, Gyatso said. “Following this, local government officials and security forces pressured the family to cremate her remains during the night,” Gyatso said, adding, “This has been the usual practice of the government in handling self-immolation incidents.” Show of support The incident brought "thousands" of area residents out in support, Gyatso said. "Thousands of local Tibetans and monks are gathering at the monastery and her home to show solidarity with the deceased and her family," he said. Chugtso, a native of Dzamthang's Barma Yultso village, is survived by her husband and a three-year-old child. Her father’s name is Tenkho and her mother’s name is Dronkyi, Gyatso said. Separately, the London-based Free Tibet advocacy group confirmed Chugtso’s death, noting that Jonang monastery has been the scene of other self-immolation protests in the past. On March 24, Kalkyi, 30, a mother of three sons and one daughter and also from Barma village, torched herself near Jonang to protest Chinese rule, while another Tibetan woman, Rikyo, 33 and a mother of three, burned herself to death near the monastery in May 2012. Two cousins self-immolated at the same site about a month before in a separate protest, sources said. 'Protest, not suicide' In a statement, Free Tibet spokesperson Alistair Currie said that though the pace of self-immolation protests in Tibetan areas has slowed in recent months, “the death of [Chugtso] shows that even the full force of the Chinese state cannot deter some Tibetans from this act.” “Self-immolation is a protest, not a suicide, and until China addresses the grievances of the Tibetan people, protests of all forms will continue in Tibet,” Currie said. Meanwhile, the U.S. State Department on Monday said Washington is “very concerned by the self-immolations, detentions, [and] arrests of family members and associates of those who have self-immolated.” “We call on the Chinese Government to engage in substantive dialogue with the Dalai Lama [and with] his representatives, and without preconditions,” acting deputy spokesperson Patrick Ventrell said. Chinese authorities have tightened controls in Tibet and in Tibetan prefectures in Chinese provinces to check the fiery protests, cutting communication links with outside areas and jailing Tibetans they believe to be linked to the burnings. More than a dozen have been jailed so far, with some handed jail terms of up to 15 years. Reported by Chakmo Tso for RFA’s Tibetan Service. Translated by Dorjee Damdul. Written in English by Richard Finney. View this story online at: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/gather-04162013140411.html Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation broadcasting and publishing online news, information, and commentary in nine East Asian languages to listeners who do not have access to full and free news media. RFA’s broadcasts seek to promote the rights of freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom to “seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” RFA is funded by an annual grant from the Broadcasting Board of Governors. If you no longer wish to receive RFA news releases, send an e-mail to engnews-leave(a)rfanews.org. To add your name to our mailing list, send an e-mail to engnews-join(a)rfanews.org . ##### All media inquiries may be sent to Rohit Mahajan at <mailto:mahajanr@rfa.org> mahajanr(a)rfa.org.

11 years, 11 months

RFA BREAKING NEWS: North Korean Hackers Target Foreign Currency

by Parameswaran Ponnudurai

cid:image001.png@01CCE405.460E1840 North Korean Hackers Target Foreign Currency APRIL 11, 2013— Hackers trained by North Korea’s military have expanded their repertoire from cyberwarfare to financial fraud as part of a bid to skirt international sanctions following weapons tests by Pyongyang, according to a well-informed source. “Pyongyang has expanded the dossier of the Reconnaissance Directorate General of the North Korean Armed Forces Department from hacking enemy computer networks to ‘earning’ foreign currency on the Internet,” the source, who has first-hand information about the North’s military cybersquads, said Wednesday. Speaking to RFA’s Korean Service on condition of anonymity, the source said that the North Korean hackers access banking networks in “hostile” countries and disable their security software to steal money from individual or corporate accounts. The source said that regime leader Kim Jong Un had recently brought hackers of the North Korean military’s special Unit No. 3 back from China, where they had been operating, posing as researchers and businessmen in major cities like Beijing, Dalian, Tianjin and Shanghai. The source said he was informed that the Reconnaissance Directorate General “had achieved success in sourcing foreign currency for the revitalization of the economy.” “The Reconnaissance Directorate General is being tasked with making money directly.” The source said that young leader Kim, who has made threats to attack U.S. bases and South Korea, had expressed great confidence in the North’s cyberespionage capabilities, saying, “I am not afraid of the U.S. sanctions against North Korea.” “As long as I have the Reconnaissance Directorate General, building a strong country is not a problem.” Last month, the United Nations imposed sanctions in response to Pyongyang's defiant third nuclear test in February, targeting the illicit activities of North Korea's diplomats, banking relationships, and illicit transfers of bulk cash. “Kim has expressed self-confidence because the Reconnaissance Directorate General earned a lot of foreign currency online last year,” the source said. “The North Korean government rewarded several cybercombatants with luxury homes and U.S. dollars, while promoting regular operatives to the ranks of lieutenant colonel or colonel,” he said. Source of pride The source said that North Koreans are proud of their cyberespionage units, which they consider to be just as important as nuclear weapons and rocket technology in fighting against South Korea and the U.S. He said that the North Korean hackers also feel pride because they see their illicit financial activity as an essential contribution to sustaining the impoverished North Korean economy. A source in China’s Shenyang city, located in Liaoning province along the border with North Korea, said that the North’s cyberhackers also believe that they are taking revenge on hostile countries, such as South Korea and the U.S., rather than committing illegal acts. He called the cyberunits “well-organized” and said they had “significantly increased their range of activities.” “In the past, North Korea was under observation internationally due to drug-trafficking and counterfeiting, but now they can safely make money via their computers,” he said. On Wednesday, a spokesman for South Korea’s Internet and Security Agency said an official investigation into a cyberattack in March traced the malicious codes used to six computers in the North. The March 20 attack on around 48,000 PCs and servers severely affected several broadcasters and operations at the Shinhan, Nonghyup and Jeju banks. Last month, James Lewis, Director of the Technology and Public Policy Program at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, told RFA that North Korea is among a handful of Asian nations that is developing its cyber infrastructure for military capabilities and doctrine. Reported by Jung Young for RFA’s Korean Service. Translated by Goeun Yu. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. View this story online at: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/korea/hackers-04112013162328.html Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation broadcasting and publishing online news, information, and commentary in nine East Asian languages to listeners who do not have access to full and free news media. RFA’s broadcasts seek to promote the rights of freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom to “seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” RFA is funded by an annual grant from the Broadcasting Board of Governors. If you no longer wish to receive RFA news releases, send an e-mail to engnews-leave(a)rfanews.org. To add your name to our mailing list, send an e-mail to engnews-join(a)rfanews.org . ##### All media inquiries may be sent to Rohit Mahajan at <mailto:mahajanr@rfa.org> mahajanr(a)rfa.org.

11 years, 12 months

RFA BREAKING NEWS: Tibetans Detained for Protesting Destruction of Their Homes

by Parameswaran Ponnudurai

cid:image001.png@01CCE405.460E1840 Tibetans Detained for Protesting Destruction of Their Homes APRIL 11, 2013— Chinese security forces have detained 21 Tibetans following clashes with police over the forced demolition of recently rebuilt homes in an earthquake-hit region of northwest China’s Qinghai province, according to Tibetan sources. At least six Tibetans and four policemen were injured in the clashes Tuesday after a protest by over 100 area residents angered by the demolition of Tibetan homes in the town of Kyegudo in the Yulshul (in Chinese, Yushu) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, a local source told RFA’s Tibetan Service, speaking on condition of anonymity. “When the police cracked down on the Tibetan protesters, the Tibetans clashed with police, and six Tibetans and four policemen were injured in the clash,” he said. “So far, the authorities have detained 21 Tibetans and taken them away,” he said. Kyegudo was hit by a devastating earthquake on April 14, 2010, that largely destroyed the town and killed almost 3,000 residents by official count. Now, Chinese authorities have begun to demolish rebuilt Tibetan homes, saying their occupants are not officially registered to live in the town, sources said. Many of the houses were built by families on their own land and with their own resources, sources said. Woman self-immolates In late March, a Tibetan woman set herself on fire to protest the demolition of her home in the Kyegudo area, sources said last week. “Around 1,000 Tibetan houses in Kyegudo have now been forcibly demolished,” a U.S.-based Tibetan told RFA last week, citing contacts in the region. “Many Tibetans could not even gather up their belongings before the houses were bulldozed,” he added. Separately, a Tibetan living in India with sources in the region confirmed Tuesday’s protest, saying that over 100 Tibetans had taken part. “They demanded that the government stop the forced demolitions and return land that had been confiscated,” Choenyi Woeser, editor of the online Tibet Express, said. “The authorities dispatched armed police to quell the protest, and clashes ensued,” Woeser said, adding, “Six Tibetans and four policemen were injured, and 21 Tibetan protesters were detained.” “The government also announced that a further 200 houses were to be demolished,” he said. Information blockade Woeser said that following the April 14, 2010 earthquake in Yulshul, authorities have also demolished all houses deemed “unsafe” in the name of reconstruction. “Tibetans have been detained for protesting the forced demolition by authorities.” “Some of them have jumped off buildings or committed self-immolation as a form of protest,” he said. Confirmation and details of reported incidents are difficult to obtain because of an “information blockade” erected by authorities, he added. Reported by Lobsang Sherab for RFA’s Tibetan Service and by Dan Zhen for the Mandarin Service. Translated by Karma Dorjee and Jennifer Chou. Written in English by Richard Finney. View this story online at: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/homes-04112013153745.html Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation broadcasting and publishing online news, information, and commentary in nine East Asian languages to listeners who do not have access to full and free news media. RFA’s broadcasts seek to promote the rights of freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom to “seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” RFA is funded by an annual grant from the Broadcasting Board of Governors. If you no longer wish to receive RFA news releases, send an e-mail to engnews-leave(a)rfanews.org. To add your name to our mailing list, send an e-mail to engnews-join(a)rfanews.org . ##### All media inquiries may be sent to Rohit Mahajan at <mailto:mahajanr@rfa.org> mahajanr(a)rfa.org.

11 years, 12 months

RFA BREAKING NEWS: Vietnamese Dissidents Attacked by Police-Linked Thugs

by Parameswaran Ponnudurai

cid:image001.png@01CCE405.460E1840 Vietnamese Dissidents Attacked by Police-Linked Thugs APRIL 9, 2013—Unidentified assailants believed to be connected to the police on Tuesday ambushed and severely beat a Vietnamese dissident a day after he tried to shield a prominent woman land rights activist from harassment and attack by suspected government agents, according to the victims. Five or six men appeared suddenly from a bush and beat dissident Nguyen Chi Duc with heavy sticks, knocking him off his motorbike, as he was on his way for lunch near his office at Thang Long industrial park in Hanoi, Duc said. The attack appeared to be in retaliation for his protection of land-rights activist Bui Minh Hang from harassment by suspected agents working for government security forces who had followed her on Monday from her hometown of Vung Tau to Hanoi over a lawsuit she had filed. “I am 100 percent convinced that it was policemen who attacked me,” Duc told RFA’s Vietnamese Service, adding that his attackers kicked him in the face and struck repeatedly at his head, which he covered with his arms. After the assault, Duc rode on his motorbike “to another place,” lay down to rest, and called a friend for help. “I ache very much, especially my back,” Duc said. “I can still walk, but my face is swollen.” Lawsuit over detention On Monday, Duc had accompanied Bui Minh Hang, a frequent critic of Vietnam’s one-party communist state, when she arrived in Hanoi in response to a letter sent by the Hanoi People’s Court. The letter concerned a lawsuit she had filed against Nguyen The Thao, chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee, over his role in what she called her “illegal” detention the year before in a reeducation center. “Nguyen Chi Duc and some friends in Hanoi went with me because they were worried about my safety,” Hang told RFA’s Vietnamese Service on Tuesday. “People had followed me from 10:00 a.m. until about 2:00 p.m,” said Hang, who at one point took a picture of her pursuers. When they arrived at the Hang Da market in the center of Hanoi, three men from the group tried unsuccessfully to provoke Nguyen Chi Duc into starting a fight, Hang said. “After that, Chi Duc drove me to my place, but when I got there I was shocked to see a man I had photographed earlier standing right in front of me. I called out, and he started his motorbike and tried to run away.” Alerted by Duc, a crowd pursued the man and stopped him, Hang said. “When I got there, he attacked me even though two people were holding his hands, and some young men witnessed this, became upset, and beat him.” The man then took out a piece of paper that identified him as working for the police, Hang said. “They then released him, but he was very aggressive, and he called 10 other men over to join him.” Later, Hang said, the men followed her to a café where she was sitting with friends. “He and the others were searching for Chi Duc,” she said. Blogger and family victimized The attacks on the two dissidents came after a prominent Vietnamese blogger said that he and his family in central Vietnam were victimized Monday by unidentified men believed to be agents of local security forces angered by his online writings. Huynh Ngoc Tuan, 50, told RFA’s Vietnamese Service that two men pulled up at his home in Quang Nam province on a motorbike just after midnight on Monday and threw a rank liquid containing fish heads and human waste at his house. “We wrote essays and articles that they don’t like, so they attacked our family and harassed us,” Tuan said. “This is not the first time. They have done the same thing to other dissidents,” he said. Vietnamese authorities have jailed and harassed dozens of activists, bloggers, and citizen journalists since stepping up a crackdown on protests and freedom of expression online in recent years. Many have been imprisoned under Article 88 of the Vietnamese Criminal Code for “conducting propaganda against the state,” and international rights groups and press freedom watchdogs have accused Hanoi of using the vaguely worded provision to silence dissent. Reported by Mac Lam for RFA’s Vietnamese Service. Written in English by Richard Finney. View this story online at: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/vietnam/dissidents-04092013182514.html Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation broadcasting and publishing online news, information, and commentary in nine East Asian languages to listeners who do not have access to full and free news media. RFA’s broadcasts seek to promote the rights of freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom to “seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” RFA is funded by an annual grant from the Broadcasting Board of Governors. If you no longer wish to receive RFA news releases, send an e-mail to engnews-leave(a)rfanews.org. To add your name to our mailing list, send an e-mail to engnews-join(a)rfanews.org . ##### All media inquiries may be sent to Rohit Mahajan at <mailto:mahajanr@rfa.org> mahajanr(a)rfa.org.

11 years, 12 months

RFA BREAKING NEWS: Tibetan Political Activist Freed After 17 Years in Jail

by Parameswaran Ponnudurai

cid:image001.png@01CCE405.460E1840 Tibetan Political Activist Freed After 17 Years in Jail APRIL 1, 2013— A popular Tibetan political activist has been freed after serving 17 years in prison with hard labor for seeking independence for Tibet and calling for the long life of Tibet's spirtual leader, the Dalai Lama, according to a Tibetan source. Jigme Gyatso, 52, a former monk, appeared "very weak" when he returned Monday to his home in Sangchu (in Chinese, Xiahe) county in Gansu province's Kanlho (Gannan) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture after being released from Chusul prison near Tibet's capital Lhasa on Saturday, the source told RFA's Tibetan Service. Jigme Gyatso, who was the leader of the Association of Tibetan Freedom Movement, was sentenced in 1996 to 15 years in prison on charges of being a "counter-revolutionary ring leader" and endangering national security. The Chinese authorities added three more years to his sentence in 2004 for "inciting separatism" when he shouted in prison for the long life of Dalai Lama, who lives in exile in India's Dharamsala hill town. Jigme Gyatso was due to be released in March 2014. Many international human rights groups had protested his jailing or campaigned on his behalf, including Amnesty International which designated him a prisoner of conscience after accusing the Chinese authorities of beating and torturing him in prison. He was also hospitalized for a unknown period during his imprisonment. A year after he was sentenced, he was beaten so badly that he could barely walk afterwards, Amnesty had said in one of its reports. "After he was released from prison, Jigme Gyatso was ordered to leave for his hometown and reached his hometown on April 1 with a police escort," the Tibetan source said. “Those who saw him reported that he was very weak. He was limping and reported having heart problems and high blood pressure. His vision was also weak,” Jigme Gyatso's friend, Jamyang Tsultrim, who is living in exile in India, told RFA, citing local contacts. Violent response In May 1998, Jigme Gyatso was among a group of prisoners in Lhasa’s Drapchi prison who began shouting pro-Dalai Lama slogans, prompting a violent response from prison staff, resulting in the death of nine inmates, reports had said. The protest coincided with a European Union delegation's visit to the prison. The U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture met with Jigme Gyatso during his mission to China in November 2005 and appealed to the Chinese authorities for his release. Following that, the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention stated that his detention was arbitrary and violated his rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly. The World Organisation Against Torture, a large coalition of non-governmental organizations fighting against arbitrary detention, torture, extrajudicial executions, and other forms of violence, reported in 2009 that Jigme Gyatso had become "very frail", suffered from kidney dysfunction, and could "only walk with his back bent." Amnesty said in 2011 than he was suspected to be "seriously ill as a result of torture and ill-treatment in custody." Reported by Lumbum Tashi for RFA's Tibetan Service. Translated by Karma Dorjee. Written in English by Parameswaran Ponnudurai. View this story online at: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/prisoner-04012013215019.html Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation broadcasting and publishing online news, information, and commentary in nine East Asian languages to listeners who do not have access to full and free news media. RFA’s broadcasts seek to promote the rights of freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom to “seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” RFA is funded by an annual grant from the Broadcasting Board of Governors. If you no longer wish to receive RFA news releases, send an e-mail to engnews-leave(a)rfanews.org. To add your name to our mailing list, send an e-mail to engnews-join(a)rfanews.org . ##### All media inquiries may be sent to Rohit Mahajan at <mailto:mahajanr@rfa.org> mahajanr(a)rfa.org.

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Engnews April 2013