Dharamsala, August 7 – Chinese authorities in Xining seem to be deliberately delaying the trial of a Tibetan writer jailed in April on charges of “instigating to split the motherland”, a very common allegation faced by Tibetans for expression of anti government sentiments through writings or protests.
Radio Free Asia cited August 6 an interview with Yeshi Tsomo, daughter of Tagyal, who writes under pen name Shogdung (morning conch), in which she said that the police told her that her father’s case is “quite special because it has to do with different ethnicities.”
“They must have given a nod to the state prosecutor because the case is still with the police,” Tsomo was quoted by RFA as saying.
Chinese authorities on April 23 arrested Tagyal who worked for the Nationalities Publishing House in Xining, the provincial capital of Qinghai.
Officers from Xining Police Station arrived at the Qinghai Nationalities Publishing House and took Tagyal to his house which was thoroughly searched on the day of his arrest. The same evening, several police officers came to his house again and took his two personal computers.
Sources say that Tagyal’s detention is linked with signing an open letter written by Tibetan intellectuals expressing condolences for the quake survivors and criticized the Chinese government’s handling of the earthquake relief efforts. Other signatories of this open letter include well-known Tibetan writer and singer Jamyang Kyi and other members of the group known as the “New School of Thought.”
Shogdung has authored several books including the recent publication gnam sa go ‘byed (Opening of Earth and Sky) about the nationwide protests against the Chinese government in 2008, which was reprinted in exile from Nepal in May.
Shogdung’s family has not been allowed to visit him since his detention, according to the RFA which quoted an employee at the Xining public security department saying “I don’t know about this,” when asked about Tagyal’s case.
Officials at the Xining People’s Procuratorate, or state prosecutor, were reluctant to address the case directly, reported RFA. “It’s not convenient for me to talk about these things,” one official said. “I have only just started here.”
Another official said setting a date for Tagyal’s trial depended on several factors. “It depends on the seriousness of the case, on its position in the queue,” he said. “We have to take a lot of different factors into consideration.”
“If the case is sent back for further investigation, then it’s not even sure which office it will end up in.”
Beijing-based lawyer Pu Zhiqiang, who defended jailed Tibetan environmentalist and businessman Karma Samdrup, said it is hard to gauge what will happen to Tagyal’s case next.
“If the court wants to go ahead with the trial, it won’t wait one minute, and if it doesn’t, it will ignore the case for years,” Pu said.
