Tenzin Nyidon
DHARAMSHALA, Sept. 10: Tibetan human rights and environmental activist A-Nya Sengdra, currently held in Chinese custody, is reported to be in poor health, according to research group Tibet Watch. On September 6, Sengdra was granted his first family visitation since his arrest six years ago.
Lin Qilei, Sengdra’s defense lawyer, revealed that the brief family visit took place a month ago after a formal complaint was filed. The meeting, lasting only minutes, left Sengdra’s family deeply concerned about his fragile condition. Their complaints to prison authorities regarding his health were met with rejection, as further visits were denied.
In a separate effort, Lin Qilei visited the Sixth Circuit Court of the Supreme People’s Court in Xi’an on January 8, 2024, to inquire about the status of Sengdra’s appeal. He was informed that the appeal remains under review, with no clear timeline for a decision.
A-Nya Sengdra, a prominent advocate against illegal mining, poaching, and local corruption, was arrested in September 2018 in Gade County, located in the so called Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. He was charged with “gathering people to disturb public order” and “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” under vague provisions often used by Chinese authorities to suppress dissent.
His case has been taken up by human rights groups, with the UN’s human rights experts urging China in 2020 to drop the charges. The experts expressed concerns over his declining health, stating, “We are deeply concerned by what appears to be the criminalisation of the legitimate work of a minority community member and human rights defender. We are also concerned about the reports of deterioration of his physical and mental integrity due to poor detention conditions.”
