By Phuntsok Yangchen
DHARAMSHALA, August 6: The Chinese authorities in Derge County have sentenced eight Tibetans up to nine years in prison for their involvement in a blast at a police station in 2012.
Yeshi, 36, has been sentenced to 9 years; Pema Norbu to 5years; Jiga to 4 years while Tsering Phuntsok, Bugoh, Gendun, Lhaksam and Sugoen were sentenced to 3 years in prison.
Chinese police allege that a Tibetan named Tashi hid explosives near a police station on February 24, 2012, leading to a blast and destroying it in an apparent protest against increasing number of police stations across Tibet after 2008 uprising. He also died in the blast.
Few days before Tashi died, sources said, he told his friends that he would destroy the police stations that were built in his region to closely monitor Tibetans.
Earlier in June, as a part of focus on policing monasteries that had been hotbed for anti – government protests including self immolations, China has established twenty-four police stations in monasteries across Labrang in Gansu province.
Following widespread unrest against Chinese rule, largely led by monks and nuns, in 2008, Chinese government launched renewed and intensified “Patriotic Education” campaign covering almost every sections of society and mainly targeting the monastic institutions.
