Tibetan monk jailed for 18 months over Dalai Lama’s speech

Read RFA coverage of this story in Tibetan.

A Tibetan monk has been sentenced to over 18 months in prison on charges of sharing a speech by Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on social media, Tibetans living in exile told Radio Free Asia.

Chinese authorities arrested Jampa Choephel of Penkar Thang Monastery in Rebkong county, Qinghai province, shortly after he shared a speech by the Dalai Lama on March 10, they said.

The date marks Tibetan National Uprising Day, the start of a failed Tibetan rebellion against Chinese rule in 1959.

Possessing or sharing photos or videos of the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader who has resided in northern India since 1959, is considered an act of separatism and has been a punishable offense in Tibet for decades.

Choephel’s case is part of a broader crackdown on Tibetan Buddhist clergy and intellectuals, many of whom are imprisoned in undisclosed locations for extended periods. Most have been arrested for expressing their views or sharing information about conditions in Tibetan areas under Chinese rule.

The monk was held in the county’s Gurathang Prison until his “secret” trial in August when he was sentenced, said the sources, both of whom declined to be identified so they could speak freely without reprisal.

Choephel’s family was not informed about the trial because Chinese authorities considered it politically sensitive, the first source said. 

Following the trial, Choephel was held for an additional month in the same jail, and the total six months he spent in detention were counted as part of his sentence, according to the sources. 

Authorities monitor family

In the meantime, Chinese authorities are closely monitoring the monk’s family, the second source said.

“This constant surveillance has created a climate of fear and anxiety for them, preventing them from inquiring about his well-being,” he said. 

On Sept. 22, Choephel was transferred to a prison in Xining, capital of Qinghai province, where he will serve the remainder of his sentence, the sources said.

Chinese authorities tightly control Tibetans who live in Rebgong, called Tongren in Chinese, a restive area of Malho, or Huangnan, Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, restricting their political activities and peaceful expressions of cultural and religious identity.

Choephel, originally from Rebgong Medpa, went into exile in India in 1986. He spent 10 years studying at a Tibetan monastery in Dharamsala from which he graduated in 1996. 

Upon returning to Tibet, he resided at Penkar Thang Monastery in Rebgong, where he devoted himself to meditation. 

A master of Tibetan calligraphy, Choephel also taught writing and English.

But he remained under constant surveillance by the Chinese authorities, with police frequently monitoring and issuing warnings around his residence during significant occasions. 

Additional reporting by Dechen Wangmo. Translated by Tenzin Dickyi and Dawa Dolma for RFA Tibetan. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Joshua Lipes.