Health of Lobsang Tenzin, 23 years in prison, worsening
The Tibetan dissident’s health conditions are cause of concern. He has become practically blind from a debilitating bout with diabetes. Arrested in 1988, he continued to fight for justice and his people’s human rights inside prison.
Dharamsala (AsiaNews) – The health of Tibet’s longest serving political prisoner is deteriorating rapidly. Lobsang Tenzin is currently detained in Chushul Prison, West Lhasa, where his health conditions are going from bad to worse, local sources report. A diabetes sufferer, his eyesight has sharply weakened causing long periods of blindness. News about his conditions comes from the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy.
Lobsang Tenzin was arrested on 5 March 1988 for participating in a protest for Tibetan freedom in Lhasa. In his mid-20s, the Tibet Autonomous Region University student was initially sentenced to death for his role in the protest but was given a two-year reprieve in Drapchi Prison.
Under strong international pressure against the Chinese government, Lobsang’s death sentence was commuted in 1991 to life imprisonment. However, even in prison he pursued his struggle for justice and rights.
On 31 March 1991, he and a fellow inmate, Tenpa Wangdrak, were caught attempting to hand over a petition to the then US Ambassador James Lilley.
In their letter, they listed all the names of prisoners who had been tortured with details of prison torture and maltreatment, and sought help from the US government. For this, the two men were brutally beaten and kept in a dark isolation cells for three weeks.
Lobsang was eventually transferred to Powo Tramo Prison in Kongpo, eastern Tibet and from there to Chushul Prison.
In 1994, his sentence was reduced to 18 years for “good behaviour”, which means that he is eligible for release next year 2012. Yet, he remains in Chushul Prison, West Lhasa.
This is Lobsang’s 23rd year in prison since his arrest in 1988, making him the longest serving Tibetan prisoner still alive.
Lobsang Tenzin was arrested on 5 March 1988 for participating in a protest for Tibetan freedom in Lhasa. In his mid-20s, the Tibet Autonomous Region University student was initially sentenced to death for his role in the protest but was given a two-year reprieve in Drapchi Prison.
Under strong international pressure against the Chinese government, Lobsang’s death sentence was commuted in 1991 to life imprisonment. However, even in prison he pursued his struggle for justice and rights.
On 31 March 1991, he and a fellow inmate, Tenpa Wangdrak, were caught attempting to hand over a petition to the then US Ambassador James Lilley.
In their letter, they listed all the names of prisoners who had been tortured with details of prison torture and maltreatment, and sought help from the US government. For this, the two men were brutally beaten and kept in a dark isolation cells for three weeks.
Lobsang was eventually transferred to Powo Tramo Prison in Kongpo, eastern Tibet and from there to Chushul Prison.
In 1994, his sentence was reduced to 18 years for “good behaviour”, which means that he is eligible for release next year 2012. Yet, he remains in Chushul Prison, West Lhasa.
This is Lobsang’s 23rd year in prison since his arrest in 1988, making him the longest serving Tibetan prisoner still alive.
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