NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2005
Indian and Tibetan MPs Campaign for Trulku Tenzin Delek
Assembly of Tibetan People's Deputies, Dharamsala
2 December 2004, New Delhi: The Assembly of Tibetan People's Deputies expresses deep anguish and concern over the impending execution of a Buddhist monk, Trulku Tenzin Delek Rinpoche.
Trulku Tenzin Delek is a popular religious figure from Sichuan Province in eastern Tibet. Before his arrest, Trulku Tenzin Delek was involved in a lot of social welfare activities. He was instrumental in the construction of six monasteries, an old people's home and an orphanage in the province. His steadfast community services started to trigger China's concern over "national stability" and he was constantly scrutinized for alleged political activities.
On 3rd April 2002, a bomb blast occurred in Chengdu, the provincial capital of Sichuan. Shortly after the blast, Lobsang Dhondup, Rinpoche's disciple, was arrested for his alleged involvement in the blast. Trulku Tenzin Delek was later arrested on 7th April 2002.
On 2nd December 2002, a closed trial was held in Kardze Intermediate People's Court which resulted in a conviction and sentencing of Trulku Tenzin Delek to a two years' suspended death sentence and Lobsang Dhondup to immediate death penalty. The local Tibetans voiced their anxiety over the judgment and submitted a signed memorandum to the Chinese government to bestow justice. Efforts of the family and disciples of Trulku Tenzin Delek for a fair trial failed when their appointed lawyers from Beijing were refused permission to plead in the Higher People's Court.
On 26th January 2003, after the Higher People's Court upheld the decision of the Lower court in a closed-door trial, Lobsang Dhondup was put to death on the same fateful day. Trulku Tenzin Delek would face the same fate if his death sentence with a two years' reprieve that ends on 25th January 2005, is not reversed.
It is widely believed that Trulku Tenzin Delek's trial is unfair and unjust not just because he was denied the right to hire an attorney as enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights but also because no known evidence was produced to impose such a severe sentence.
We therefore appeal to our Indian and international friends to help save the life of a peaceful Buddhist monk and to also urge the Government of the People's Republic of China to comply with the laws laid down in their Constitution and the Criminal Procedure Law.