Engnews May 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, 9 months

RFA BREAKING NEWS: Myanmar to Reexamine Divisive Birth Rule

by Parameswaran Ponnudurai

Myanmar to Reexamine Divisive Birth Rule MAY 31, 2013—Myanmar on Friday said it will reexamine a controversial two-child policy in restive Rakhine state after rights organizations and the international community said the law unfairly targets members of the Muslim Rohingya ethnic group. “We are reexamining this order,” President Thein Sein’s spokesman Ye Htut told RFA’s Myanmar Service, adding that the policy which bans Rohingya families from having more than two children was regionally implemented and had not been developed in tandem with the central government. Ye Htut’s statement marked the first time Thein Sein’s office has publicly commented on the policy which, according to Rakhine state spokesperson Win Myaing, was initially introduced in 2005 and reaffirmed earlier this month for Rohingyas in Buthidaung and Maungdaw townships along the Bangladesh border. Rights groups say the two-child regulation was an addition to longstanding discriminatory marriage restrictions on Rohingyas in Rakhine, which required them to obtain advance permission before tying the knot and which limited Rohingya men to one wife. Flouting the two-child restriction is punishable with fines and imprisonment, they say. Though they are a small, unrecognized minority in Myanmar and Rakhine state, Rohingyas make up most of the population in Buthidaung and Maungdaw, which are also home to a small number of Buddhist Rakhines. Buddhists are not subject to the two-child policy in the two townships, which were hotspots for ethnic violence in Rakhine state last year. Ye Htut said that laws requiring Rohingyas to inform and apply for permission from the authorities before getting married were aimed at preventing abuse against women. “The reason for this is that [Rohingya] girls who are not old enough to get married are often married by force.” The age of consent for marriage in Myanmar is 18 years of age. He said community leaders and husbands in Rohingya society also prevent women from using reproductive health services. “Women are harassed when they make personal decisions about their health,” he said. “Because of this, the authorities have encouraged and directed [Rohingya] women to make use of birth control and reproductive health programs.” Allegations of discrimination Ye Htut noted that Myanmar’s Ministry of Health and Mother and Child Welfare Association are overseeing reproductive health programs across the country. But he admitted that “I’m not very well informed about the Rakhine state government’s policy on child limits,” adding "we have to have a look at this policy." When asked to address criticism from rights groups and the international community that the policy was discriminatory towards Rohingyas, Ye Htut said that the central government was aware of the charges but declined to comment until carrying out an investigation. “Some other countries have birth policies in effect to control the nation’s population, such as China. We will study those policies,” he said. He said the government would also review advice from the Rakhine Inquiry Commission, a panel which in April probed last year’s clashes between Buddhists and Muslims and which recommended family planning education be provided to Rohingyas, saying their “rapid population growth” had been a factor fueling the unrest. “We will be able to comment on the policy after we review all information,” Ye Htut said. Recent criticism Violence in June and October last year left nearly 200 people dead and some 140,000 displaced in Rakhine state. Most of the victims were Rohingya, many of whom remain in camps they are not allowed to leave. Earlier this week, Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi slammed the two-child policy, voicing rare comments defending the rights of the Muslim minority group. The National League for Democracy (NLD) leader, who faced criticism from international rights groups for not speaking up for Rohingyas’ rights following the violence last year, called the policy “discriminatory and … not in line with human rights.” The policy also drew condemnation from rights groups such as New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW), which this week called on Myanmar to immediately revoke it. “Implementation of this callous and cruel two-child policy against the Rohingya is another example of the systematic and wide ranging persecution of this group, who have recently been the target of an ethnic cleansing campaign,” said Brad Adams, Asia director at HRW. “President Thein Sein says he is against discrimination. If so, he should quickly declare an end to these coercive family restrictions and other discriminatory policies against the Rohingya.” The United Nations deputy spokesman Eduardo del Buey on Thursday said the decision to restore the two-child limit on Rohingyas would be discriminatory and called on authorities in Rakhine state “to remove such policies or practices.” Reported by RFA’s Myanmar Service. Translated by Khet Mar. Written in English by Joshua Lipes View this story online at: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/myanmar/children-05312013171333.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, 9 months

RFA BREAKING NEWS: Laos Admits Handing Over North Korean Defectors to Pyongyang

by Parameswaran Ponnudurai

Laos Admits Handing Over North Korean Defectors to Pyongyang MAY 31, 2013— Laos broke its silence Friday over its much-criticized deportation of nine North Korean defectors, saying it had handed them directly to North Korea and not to China as widely reported. News reports, some quoting South Korean officials, had said that Laos had deported the defectors, some as young as 14 years old, to China which then repatriated them to North Korea this week without having their asylum claims assessed. North Korean defectors face harsh punishment, including the death penalty, on their return home. The Lao Foreign Ministry said in a two-paragraph statement sent to RFA's Lao Service that the Lao government had handed the nine North Koreans to the North Korean Embassy in Vientiane. It said that the nine North Koreans, aged between 14 to 18 years, and two South Koreans were detained by police in Oudomxay province in Laos bordering China. It accused the South Koreans of committing human trafficking. Lao statement "On 10th May 2013, the police of Oudomxay Province of the Lao PDR detained 11 Koreans and had subsequently transferred them to Vientiane for investigation," the statement said. "As a result of the investigation, it has been identified that nine of them are the citizens of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) aged between 14 to 18 years who have illegally entered into the Lao PDR, while the other two are the citizens of the Republic of Korea (ROK) who have committed human trafficking." "In accordance with the Law of the Lao PDR, particularly the Prime Minister’s Decree No. 136 on Immigration and Foreigners Control, and after coordination between the Lao authorities concerned and the concerned Embassies in Vientiane, the Lao side has handed over the nine citizens of the DPRK and the two citizens of the ROK to their respective Embassies on 27th May 2013 and 28th May 2013, respectively," the statement said. There was no reference to China in the statement or whether the defectors had been sent to North Korea or China. Reports had said the nine were returned to China on Monday and flown back to North Korea the following day. Beijing has not commented on the issue so far. International obligations International law requires that a person be allowed to apply for asylum and not be expelled to a country where his life or freedom may be under threat. The U.N. refugee agency UNHCR had expressed concern that the deported individuals did not have a chance to have their asylum claims assessed. “We have received credible information that the nine young North Korean defectors were subsequently returned to DPRK via China,” a spokesperson for the U.N. human rights office (OHCHR), Rupert Colville, said, according to a statement issued by the Geneva-based office. Colville added that OHCHR was “extremely concerned” about the protection of the group members “who are at risk of severe punishment and ill-treatment upon their return.” "We are dismayed that the Governments of Laos and China appear to have abrogated their non-refoulement obligations, especially given the vulnerability of this group, all of whom are reported to be orphans." "We urge the Chinese and Laotian authorities to publicly clarify the fate of the nine young North Koreans, as well as the conditions under which they were returned, and request the Government of DPRK to provide immediate access to the group by independent actors to verify their status and treatment," the statement said. The U.N. General Assembly, in successive resolution, has expressed serious concern about the situation of refugees and asylum-seekers expelled or returned to North Korea and the sanctions imposed on those repatriated from abroad. On Friday, South Korean activists criticized Laos during a rally outside its embassy in Seoul. "We are here to call on Laos not to deport North Korean defectors because there is concern they may be tortured when sent back," the Associated Press quoted Lee Ho-taek, head of a group that provides refugees with support, as saying. Defectors' plight Close to 25,000 North Koreans have come to South Korea since the end of the Korean War. The vast majority of them hid in China and Southeast Asian countries including Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam before flying to Seoul. China, North Korea's key ally, does not recognize defectors as asylum seekers and has been known to return them to Pyongyang. "North Korea has to come clean on where these nine refugees are and publicly guarantee that they will not be harmed or retaliated against for having fled the country," said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch. "As a result of their return, they are at dire risk." Reported by RFA's Lao Service. Written in English by Parameswaran Ponnudurai. View this story online at: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/defectors-05312013155247.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, 9 months

RFA BREAKING NEWS: Tibetan Activist Freed in Critical Condition After 25 Years in Prison

by Parameswaran Ponnudurai

Tibetan Activist Freed in Critical Condition After 25 Years in Prison MAY 2, 2013— Chinese authorities in Tibet have released one of the region’s longest-serving political prisoners and sent him home in critical condition following a quarter century of torture and abuse in prison, according to Tibetan sources. Lobsang Tenzin, who was serving a 25-year term, was released in June 2012, former prison cellmate Penpa Tsemonling told RFA’s Tibetan Service on Thursday, speaking from New York and citing several sources in the region. News of Tenzin’s release, which sources said came just months before his 25-year sentence was due to expire in April 2013, was apparently withheld by persons close to him to prevent unwanted publicity that might result in his being returned to jail. “The release was purposely kept secret and I did not tell anybody,” Tsemonling said, adding, “Now, more details are coming out about his release, so I am speaking out to the media.” Tenzin was likely released because his health conditions had badly deteriorated, Tsemonling said. “The Chinese have done that many times,” he said. “But prisoners can be put back in jail if their condition improves.” The Central Tibetan Administration, Tibet’s India-based government in exile, confirmed in a May 1 statement that Lobsang Tenzin "has been sent back to his home,” quoting a “reliable source.” “Because he had been tortured over a long period in prison, his health has badly deteriorated. And because he suffers from kidney damage and diabetes, he is now almost blind. He has been undergoing medical treatment at home since the end of last year,” the CTA said. Active in protests Tenzin had been jailed for his role in anti-China protests in the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, in 1988. He was one of five Tibetans charged in the death of a Chinese police officer who was beaten and thrown from a window after being detected photographing protest participants. Tenzin’s role in the killing was never clearly established, with one long-time Tibet expert describing the trial in a September 2011 interview as “completely unfair.” Frequently tortured and beaten during his years in prison, Tenzin was at first sentenced to death following his conviction. The sentence was later commuted to a life term following “strong international pressure on China,” the Dharamsala-based Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy said in an earlier report. Tenzin remained politically active while incarcerated, organizing a protest in Lhasa’s notorious Drapchi prison and founding a group called Snow Lion Youth for Independence. In 1991, Tenzin and another prisoner attempted to pass a list containing the names of Tibetan political prisoners to then-U.S. Ambassador to China James Lilley, who was visiting Tibet. The attempt led to further beatings and a term in solitary confinement. 'Committed to his cause' “Lobsang Tenzin is a person who has no vices, only virtues,” Penpa Tsemonling said. “He is a man committed to his cause.” Tsemonling said the two had been in prison together for three years. “I was first jailed in Drapchi, where we shared a cell together. >From Drapchi we were transferred to Powo Tramo prison in Kongpo, and we were together there until I was released.” Tsemonling said that a high-ranking Chinese judicial official once visited Tenzin in prison and asked him if he was not afraid that he would die if he continued his activism. “'There is no one who does not fear death,'” Tenzin replied, according to Tsemonling. “'But if I die for my country and my people, I will have no regrets … So do whatever you want to do with my life,'” Tenzin said. Others released Tibetan dissident Tanak Jigme Zangpo, who was released in 2002 after 32 years in prison, holds the record of being the longest serving Tibetan political prisoner. Two other long-serving Tibetan prisoners were freed in March. Activist Jigme Gyatso, 52, was freed after serving 17 years in prison with hard labor for seeking independence for Tibet and calling for the long life of Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. Another activist, Dawa Gyaltsen, a former bank accountant and believed to be about 47, was released after 17 years with a limp in one of his legs having worsened due to ill-treatment and torture in prison. Reported by Yangdon Demo and Nyima Namseling for RFA’s Tibetan Service. Translated by Benpa Topgyal and Karma Dorjee. Written in English by Richard Finney. View this story online at: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/freed-05022013170737.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 Responds to Freedom of the Press Findings

by Rohit Mahajan

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE : May 1, 2013 Contact: Rohit Mahajan 202 530 4976 mahajanr(a)rfa.org Radio Free Asia Responds to Freedom of the Press Findings All Six RFA Countries ‘Not Free,’ Cambodia, Hong Kong Decline WASHINGTON – Radio Free Asia (RFA) President Libby Liu today responded to the findings of Freedom House’s Freedom of the Press 2013 report, which designated all six RFA broadcast countries – China, Burma, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, and North Korea – as “not free” while citing some recent improvements in Burma. “Sadly, there are no surprises here,” Liu said. “Especially troubling in this year’s survey is the noticeable decline in Hong Kong’s media environment, which may be interpreted as a distressing indicator of things to come. “It is also clear that Cambodia is approaching a free speech crisis, with its legal system used as an effective tool of repression of independent journalists and dissenting voices. “Burma’s recent progress in media and political reforms offers fragile hope – but only time can tell if those changes stay permanent.” Freedom House’s survey found that despite general improvement of media freedoms in Asia, trends in the vast majority of RFA countries have worsened. Cambodia, which declined in its ranking, saw an increase of journalists behind bars, including independent radio station owner Mam Sonando, who was convicted of sedition and sentenced to 20 years in prison (he was later released), and the first murder of a reporter since 2008. Burma’s dissolution of its censorship body and release of imprisoned bloggers and journalists led to it receiving the largest numerical improvement in score worldwide. In China, the report observes the growing use of microblogs in sharing uncensored news among citizens, but also notes a crackdown on newspaper journalists and editors, as well as bloggers, especially during the November Party leadership transition. Hong Kong received a worse score than last year due to “ growing government restrictions on journalists’ access to information and several violent and technical attacks against reporters, websites, and media entities” there. North Korea remains at the bottom of the list, tied this year with Turkmenistan. The report comes out just two days before World Press Freedom Day on May 3. RFA’s mission is to provide accurate and timely domestic news and information to Asian countries whose governments prohibit access to a free press. Guided by the core principles of freedom of expression and opinion, RFA serves its listeners by providing information critical for informed decision-making. Radio Free Asia has nine language services delivering content online and via the airwaves and satellite television into its six target countries (China, North Korea, Burma, Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia). # # # 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 Desk: 202.530.4976 Cell: 202.489.8021 www.rfa.org

11 years, 10 months

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Engnews May 2013