Jigme Gyatso (Tibetan independence activist)
Jigme Gyatso | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1961 |
| Nationality | Chinese |
| Occupation | independence activist |
| Known for | 1996 arrest |
Jigme Gyatso (born 1961) is an Tibetan activist with the Association of Tibetan Freedom Movement who has been imprisoned by the People's Republic of China from 1996 until the present on charges of endangering national security. Several international human rights groups have protested or campaigned on his behalf, and Amnesty International designated him a prisoner of conscience.[1]
Background and early activism
Jigme Gyatso is from Kersul in Amdo, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Gansu province, China. In 1985, he traveled to India to receive religious initiation, then returned to Tibet to join a monastery the following year.[2] He then became involved in the Tibetan independence movement, acting as the leader of the secret youth organization "Association of Tibetan Freedom Movement" in 1988 and 1989.[3] In 1992, he helped to organize a pro-independence rally in Lhasa, at which many participants were arrested by the Chinese public security bureau (PSB). Following the rally, PSB officials put Jigme Gyatso under surveillance.[3]
Arrest and imprisonment
On 30 March 1996, Jigme Gyatso was arrested at a restaurant in Lhasa owned by a fellow member of the Association of Tibetan Freedom Movement who had been arrested earlier that day. He was then detained on charges related to the 1992 Lhasa protest: incitement and endangering national security by establishing an illegal organization.[3] At his trial, authorities described him as a "counter-revolutionary ringleader".[1] On 25 November 1996, the Lhasa Municipal Intermediate People’s Court sentenced him to 15 years' imprisonment and 5 years' deprivation of his political rights.[3]
Jigme Gyatso was then held for one year and one month in Gutsa PSB Detention Centre. He later stated that he was tortured during this time by prison authorities. During the first six months, he allegedly faced lengthy interrogation sessions, was forced to wear manacles on his wrists and ankles, and was beaten with batons.[3] Amnesty International reported that in 1997, he was "beaten so badly that he could barely walk afterwards".[1]
He was transferred to Drapchi Prison in April 1997.[3] In May of the following year, he joined other inmates in shouting pro-Dalai Lama slogans. Nine inmates were killed by prison authorities in retaliation, and Jigme Gyatso was again beaten.[1]
In May 2004, Jigme Gyatso again shouted "Long live the Dalai Lama!", resulting in a beating with electric batons. He was charged with "inciting separatism" and given an additional three years to his sentence, pushing his scheduled release back to March 2014.[1] He was later transferred again, this time to Chushul Prison on the outskirts of Lhasa.
In January 2011, Amnesty International reported that Jigme Gyatso was believed to be seriously ill as a result of prison mistreatment, and issued an alert on his behalf.[1] The World Organization Against Torture reported that he had become "very frail", suffered from kidney dysfunction, and could "only walk with his back bent".[3]
International reaction
The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention reviewed Jigme Gyatso's case in 1999, and issued a ruling that his detention was "arbitrary" and unlawful.[4] Amnesty International has campaigned repeatedly for Jigme Gyatso's release, and designated him a "prisoner of conscience", "detained solely for peacefully exercising his rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly".[1][5] The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy has issued warnings over his health and called for his release on compassionate grounds.[2] In 2009, the World Organization Against Torture called for a letter-writing campaign on Jigme Gyatso's behalf in light of the evidence that he had been mistreated by prison authorities.[3] The International Campaign for Tibet has also circulated petitions calling for "the release of Jigme Gyatso, so that he may seek medical attention and be freed from unjust political persecution".[6]
On 27 November 2005, UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Manfred Nowak visited Jigme Gyatso in prison; in his official report, Nowak recommended that the prisoner be released. Jigme Gyatso was reportedly subject to beatings and solitary confinement as a result of the meeting.[1][7]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Urgent Action: torture fears for tibetan prisoner". Amnesty International. 10 January 2011. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
- ^ a b "TCHRD calls for the release of Jigme Gyatso on medical ground". Uyghur News. 22 April 2009. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "China: Precarious health conditions of Mr. Jigme Gyatso / Torture and ill-treatments / Arbitrary detention". World Organization Against Torture. 28 April 2009. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
- ^ "Jigme Gyatso v. China, Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, U.N. Doc. E/CN.4/2001/14/Add.1 at 67 (2000)". United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. 19 March 1999. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
- ^ "Amnesty International Appeals for Immediate Release of Tibetan Political Prisoner, Jigme Gyatso". Voice of America. 1 July 2003. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
- ^ "Petition to Free Jigme Gyatso" (PDF). International Campaign for Tibet. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
- ^ "Fears for welfare of Tibetan prisoner following meeting with UN Rapporteur". International Campaign for Tibet. 1 December 2006. Retrieved 24 January 2012.