Tenzin Nyidon
DHARAMSHALA, Feb. 16: Trinley Gyatso, a Tibetan monk from Kirti Monastery in Ngaba (Ch: Aba), northeastern Tibet, remains under stringent state surveillance despite his early release from prison, according to a report by the Washington-based advocacy group International Campaign for Tibet (ICT).
Trinley Gyatso was released in November 2025, several months before completing his five-year prison sentence. Chinese authorities reportedly granted the early release on grounds of “good behavior” during his incarceration. However, instead of being permitted to resume his monastic life, Gyatso has effectively been placed under home confinement and is subject to intense and continuous monitoring.
He was initially arrested on July 1, 2021, on allegations of distributing written materials containing teachings by His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Following a prolonged period of detention and interrogation during which his family was reportedly denied due process and provided with no clear explanation, a Chinese court sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment. He served his sentence at a prison facility in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province.
The advocacy group has stated that it is unable to verify Gyatso’s current health condition. Adding to the hardship faced by his family, Gyatso’s father passed away due to illness several months before his release, depriving them of a reunion after years of separation.
Before his arrest, Gyatso had been engaged in advanced religious studies at Kirti Monastery. Originally from Meruma (Mai’erma) in Ngaba County, part of the Ngaba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture in present-day Sichuan Province, he had reportedly been subjected to repeated arrests and interrogations by Chinese authorities in the past on suspicion of political activities.
