New York City – While traveling in South India today, the Dalai Lama called on the Chinese government to stop the execution of Tibetan religious leader and political prisoner Tenzin Delek Rinpoche. The Dalai Lama’s appeal comes two years to the day since Tenzin Delek was sentenced to death and within weeks of when the Chinese government could carry out the execution. Also today, Tibetans and supporters worldwide kicked off a week of coordinated global protests. From a week-long sit-in in Vancouver to fasts throughout India to a demonstration in Warsaw and mass phone calls to Chinese officials from around the globe, Tibetan rights groups are pleading with the Chinese government for Tenzin Delek’s release.
“This peaceful monk is guilty only of protecting Tibet’s environment, culture and religion, yet China calls him a terrorist,” said Piotr Dynowski of the Polish Tibetan Friendship Association in Warsaw, Poland.
“Tenzin Delek Rinpoche could soon be executed for crimes he did not commit. In Poland, we know what it means to live under the control of another country, so we will fight for the life of Tenzin Delek and the rights of all Tibetans until their country is free.”
The suspension of Tenzin Delek’s death sentence will expire between December 2nd and January 26th (date his appeal was rejected) and he could be executed anytime thereafter. Tenzin Delek worked within the boundaries of Chinese law for more than ten years to establish social, educational, religious, and medical institutions and protect the environment in eastern Tibet (Chinese: Sichuan Province). He was arrested in April 2002 for alleged involvement in a series of bombings.
According to a February 2004 report by Human Rights Watch, he was denied access to a lawyer and basic legal rights, and the charges against him appear to be groundless.
Tenzin Delek’s case has sparked strong interest and alarm around the world. The governments of India, Norway, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, the United States and the European Union, among others, have pressured China on Tenzin Delek’s behalf.
“We are seeing unprecedented concern about this case,” said Lhadon Tethong, Executive Director of the international organization Students for a Free Tibet, based in New York City. “People from Montana to Venezuela are disturbed by Tenzin Delek’s death sentence and determined to save his life.”
For more information on this case read Human Rights Watch’s report “Trials of a Tibetan Monk: The Case of Tenzin Delek”
http://hrw.org/reports/2004/china0204/
CONTACT:
Lhadon Tethong, 917.418.4181
Freya Putt, 646.240.5828
