Dharamsala, June 26 – The United States has expressed its regrets over the sentencing to 15 years imprisonment of a Tibetan environment once honored by Chinese government as ‘Philanthropist of the year’, according to a media report.
US State Department Spokesperson said, “We certainly regret that action and it is something that we continue to talk to China about.”
The spokesperson was responding to questions about Karma Samdrup and his two brothers. Karma is believed to have earned the wrath of Chinese government due to his attempts to secure his two brothers’ release. His brothers, Rinchen Samdup and Chime Namgyal, both environmentalists, had publicly denounced Chinese officers for poaching endangered Tibetan species in their native Chamdo.
Karma is the latest victim of what many Tibet activists and analysts say is China’s recent stepping up of control against influential Tibetans like artistes, writers, singers and intellectuals.
Karma Samdup, 42, a prominent Tibetan art collector and environmentalist was arrested in January this year and sentenced Thursday to 15 years’ imprisonment on a “grave robbery” charge which had already been dropped more than a decade ago.
The environmentalist, also known as the “King of Heavenly Beads” for his large collection of important Tibetan antiques appeared in court Tuesday looking “gaunt and shrunken.”
He started ‘Three Rivers Environmental Protection Group’ which campaigned for the conservation of the source region for the Yangtze, Yellow and Lancang (Mekong) rivers, winning other awards and recognition including the Earth prize, an environmental prize jointly administered by ‘Friends of the Earth, Hong Kong, and the Ford Foundation.
