China to Try Tibetan Education Advocate Detained for 2 Years
- 6 years ago
China to Try Tibetan Education Advocate Detained for 2 Years
In December 2016, the United States ambassador to China at the time, Max Baucus, released a long statement on political prisoners
that noted Mr. Tashi was "in jail for his peaceful advocacy of Tibetan language education." Human Rights Watch called on China to drop the charge against Mr. Tashi.
Yet Mr. Tashi told Times journalists that he did not support Tibetan independence or separatism
and was instead merely pushing for the Tibetan language to be properly taught in local schools, which prioritize Chinese language education, and for Tibetan to be used in government offices.
International human rights supporters and Tibet advocacy groups denounced the upcoming trial after Liang Xiaojun, one of Mr. Tashi’s lawyers, wrote online this week
that officials at the Yushu Intermediate Court in Qinghai Province had scheduled Mr. Tashi to appear in court on Thursday.
The Times video, produced by Jonah M. Kessel, showed Mr. Tashi traveling to Beijing to try to
bring a lawsuit against Yushu officials to compel them to expand Tibetan language education.
The police in Yushu were especially angry at Mr. Tashi over his interviews for the
Times video on the Tibetan language, Mr. Liang said in an earlier interview.
30, 2017
Chinese officials are planning to put Tashi Wangchuk, who advocates broader Tibetan language education, on trial next week for "inciting separatism," a charge
that could result in a sentence of up to 15 years in prison, according to his lawyers.
In December 2016, the United States ambassador to China at the time, Max Baucus, released a long statement on political prisoners
that noted Mr. Tashi was "in jail for his peaceful advocacy of Tibetan language education." Human Rights Watch called on China to drop the charge against Mr. Tashi.
Yet Mr. Tashi told Times journalists that he did not support Tibetan independence or separatism
and was instead merely pushing for the Tibetan language to be properly taught in local schools, which prioritize Chinese language education, and for Tibetan to be used in government offices.
International human rights supporters and Tibet advocacy groups denounced the upcoming trial after Liang Xiaojun, one of Mr. Tashi’s lawyers, wrote online this week
that officials at the Yushu Intermediate Court in Qinghai Province had scheduled Mr. Tashi to appear in court on Thursday.
The Times video, produced by Jonah M. Kessel, showed Mr. Tashi traveling to Beijing to try to
bring a lawsuit against Yushu officials to compel them to expand Tibetan language education.
The police in Yushu were especially angry at Mr. Tashi over his interviews for the
Times video on the Tibetan language, Mr. Liang said in an earlier interview.
30, 2017
Chinese officials are planning to put Tashi Wangchuk, who advocates broader Tibetan language education, on trial next week for "inciting separatism," a charge
that could result in a sentence of up to 15 years in prison, according to his lawyers.