Dharamsala, Jan. 23: According to the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy, at least 120 Tibetans have lost their lives facing bullets fired from guns of Chinese security forces, 6500 Tibetans have been put behind bars, and more than a thousand Tibetans have gone missing following the anti China protests throughout Tibet.
The centre says that jail terms ranging from nine months to life imprisonment have been given to at least 190 Tibetans.
Actual figures could be manifold in the light of the magnitude of the uprising in Tibet, said the Dharamsala based Tibetan NGO that monitors human rights situation in Tibet which released its annual report of 2008 on Wednesday.
“The pan-Tibet political uprising this past spring is an eruption of popular resentment against the Chinese authorities’ five decades of misrule in Tibet which saw systematic and gross violations of human rights in every sphere of life,” said Ugyen Tenzin, the executive director of the centre.
The centre said that there was a sharp decline in the number of Tibetan refugees arriving in India since the March uprising of 2008. As against the usual figure of around 2000 refugees, only 627 Tibetans have entered India in 2008, it said, adding that majority of them had reached India prior to the March uprising.
The centre also said that Chinese authorities resort to systematic use of torture in police stations, detention centres and prisons.
“The annual report will be shortly made downloadable on our website, and for hard copies our office can be contacted at office@tchrd.org,” said Tashi Choephel, a researcher at the centre.
