Tenzin Nyidon
DHARAMSHALA, Nov. 4: Gonpo Kyi, the sister of imprisoned Tibetan businessman Dorje Tashi, has reportedly suffered multiple bone fractures and severe internal injuries following repeated physical assaults by Chinese police during peaceful protests demanding justice for her brother, according to a report by the Washington-based International Campaign for Tibet (ICT).
On October 26, Gonpo Kyi staged another sit-in protest outside the so-called Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) Higher People’s Court in Lhasa. She held a portrait of Chinese President Xi Jinping and a two-point petition calling for a review of her brother’s life sentence, a fair retrial, and permission to visit him in prison.
According to ICT, citing sources close to the family, Gonpo Kyi has staged similar demonstrations outside the court in June and August this year, in addition to repeated protests over the past four years. Her persistent efforts to seek justice have reportedly been met with physical assaults, arbitrary detention and intimidation by local police.
The repeated violence has allegedly left her with a broken arm, multiple fractures, internal bleeding and lasting health complications. Police officers have routinely beaten her, forcibly removed her from protest sites and confiscated her personal belongings, the report said, citing family sources.
Her two-point petition calls on Chinese authorities to grant Dorje Tashi’s defence lawyers full access to his case files and to hold a public retrial to overturn what the family maintains was an unjust conviction. The petition also declares, “Dorje Tashi is innocent.”
For years, Gonpo Kyi has pursued a sustained campaign for her brother’s release and justice, organising solo demonstrations, sit-ins, prayer vigils and hunger strikes outside government offices, police stations and courts in Lhasa. Chinese security personnel have repeatedly detained her, confiscated her mobile phones and deleted photographs and video recordings, severely restricting her ability to document the protests and alleged abuses against her.
During the October 26 demonstration, her husband, Choekyong, accompanied her and filmed the protest to document her appeal. When a police officer approached and ordered him to stop recording, he refused and questioned the authorities over their handling of Dorje Tashi’s case.
“I will keep filming. Dorje Tashi’s case is not being handled according to the constitution. If things were conducted according to the law, we wouldn’t need to record anything,” Choekyong said in the video.
He further alleged that authorities were exerting pressure on people associated with the family, claiming that even medical personnel and individuals in their immediate surroundings were being used to monitor them. “Today is October 26. Police vehicles are circling right now, preparing to detain us again,” he said.
The surveillance reportedly extends beyond Gonpo Kyi to other members of the family. According to family sources cited by ICT, Chinese authorities maintain round-the-clock surveillance of Dorje Tashi’s elder brother, Dorje Tseten. Plainclothes security personnel allegedly follow him wherever he goes, while authorities routinely compel him to leave Lhasa for remote locations during politically sensitive periods.
The reported assaults on Gonpo Kyi, coupled with the continued surveillance and intimidation of other family members, highlight the pressure faced by relatives who continue to challenge Dorje Tashi’s imprisonment and seek accountability from Chinese authorities.
