By Phuntsok Yangchen
DHARAMSHALA, July 7: The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) today released two reports titled “Nyamdrel Gyaltsog Ki Trim Yig Khag” (A Collection of United Nations’ Conventions) and “Sota Chen Ki Mangtso” (Monitored Democracy).
Nyamdrel Gyaltsog Ki Trim Yig Khag is a Tibetan translation of a collection of international human rights instruments. It comprises of Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment against Torture, International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, Declaration on the Right to Development, International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders.
TCHRD’s executive director Tsering Tsomo said, “As a member of the United Nations, the PRC is under legal obligation to educate its citizens, and implement within its territorial boundary, the laws, conventions and treaties of the UN. Instead of raising popular awareness about international human rights law, more emphasis has been put on repressive domestic laws promoted and propagated under forced education campaigns such as ‘legal education’ or ‘patriotic education’.”
Sota Chen Ki Mangtso is a special report on ‘village democracy’ in rural areas of Tibet and China. Tsomo further said that the special report shows that the institutionalization of village self-governance has done little to increase the genuine political participation and decision-making power of the rural grassroots communities.
TCHRD’s special report focused primarily on Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) and consists of interviews with new arrival Tibetans and their relatives inside Tibet who had experienced village democracy in their respective regions.
