DHARAMSHALA, March 15: Reports of continuing arrest of Tibetans by Chinese authorities in the month of March, which is considered a sensitive period, are coming out of Tibet.
March 10 is commemorated by Tibetans as the National Uprising Day in remembrance of the popular uprisings against Chinese rule in 1959 and March 14 is observed as the anniversary of the pan-Tibet peaceful uprisings of 2008.
On March 8, a Tibetan man was arrested by Chinese security personnel from the Serta region of eastern Tibet on charges of “taking part in political activities.”
Pema, 22, was earlier shot by Chinese armed forces during the peaceful protests in Serta on January 24, 2012 when hundreds of Tibetans had come out of the streets calling for freedom and the return of Tibetan spiritual leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Over 600 Chinese security personnel arrived at the scene of the peaceful demonstrations in the central town of Serta and began firing indiscriminately at the crowd.
Pema’s condition and whereabouts are not known at the time of filing this report.
According to exile sources, Pema, after suffer bullet wounds, escaped to the mountains and had been on the run for over a year. He is son of Tepo and Norgyun and a native of Kham Kardze.
Tibetans arrested earlier for taking part in the protests have been sentenced to prison terms of up to seven years.
In other report of arrest, a Tibetan man in Sog Dzong in Nagchu in eastern Tibet was arrested by the Chinese authorities for allegedly contacting the outside world.
According to the Dharamshala based Central Tibetan Administration, Dagyalm, 40, was forcibly taken into custody during a night raid by the local authorities in Sog Dzong on March 11.
His whereabouts and well-being remain unknown.
“The Chinese authorities have stepped up restrictions and surveillance on mobile phones in the region,” CTA said. “They had imposed restrictions on movement of nomads and farmers during the Tibetan New Year in February.”
