DHARAMSHALA, Jan. 16: 12 Tibetans have reportedly been sentenced to prison terms ranging from a year to almost two years, earlier this month by a Chinese court in Sog County in the Kham region, on charges of running a “criminal gang” that is attempting to use “religious influence to interfere in the affairs of local government”, Chinese state media said Tuesday.
In a report published on January 14, China Daily said that those sentenced had “exploited and harassed” the people in the village by propagating “superstitious ideas and to spread the evil influence of religion”. All 12 have been reported to have given confessions and are not going to resort to higher courts to appeal their sentencing.
Right groups in exile and in international circuits have often questioned the fairness of trials in occupied Tibet where sham trials and sentencing are common. High profile cases of language rights activists Tashi Wangchuk and anti-corruption activist Anya Sengdra have exposed gaping holes in the Chinese judicial systems and miscarriage of justice inside Tibet.
The sentencing of 12 Tibetans may share links with the nationwide campaign to eliminate criminal activities related to ‘black and evil forces’ that many say are government’s efforts to quell dissent.
Dharamshala based Tibetan Center for Human Rights in June 2019 said: “China has deepened the widespread and systematic campaign to weed out ‘organised crimes and other black and evil forces’, which has raised fears over potential human rights violations faced by human rights defenders and dissenters.”
“The local regulations governing the campaign’s implementation in Tibet contain explicit references to Tibetan cultural expression and political dissent as criminal acts,” the rights group further said.
