Sentencing of Mr. Adruk Lopoe to ten years in prison

November 20, 2007

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), has received new information and requests your urgent intervention on the following situation in the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

New information:

The Observatory has been informed by The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) about the sentencing of Mr. Adruk Lopoe, a 45-year old monk and human rights activist, to ten years in prison.

According to the information received, on November 20, 2007, the Kardze Intermediate People’s Court, in the “Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture” (TAP) Sichuan Province, sentenced Mr. Adruk Lopoe to ten years’ imprisonment for “colluding with foreign separatist force to split the country and distributing political pamphlets”.

Mr. Adruk Lopoe had been arrested by members of the Lithang County Public Security Bureau (PSB) on August 21, 2007 and his whereabouts have since then remained unknown.

As of issuing this urgent appeal, no information could be obtained regarding his physical condition and where he was taken after the court verdict was delivered.

The Observatory expresses its deep concern about the sentencing and forced disappearance of Mr. Adruk Lopoe as it seems to merely aim at sanctioning his human rights activities. Indeed, Mr. Adruk Lopoe is a very strong proponent of the need for education of the youth and a leading advocate against deforestation, lumbering and wildlife hunting in Kardze.

The Observatory further recalls that the National People’s Congress amended the Chinese Constitution in 2004 to include that “the State respects and safeguards human rights” and that in April 2006, China submitted a document to the UN in order to support its candidacy to the Human Rights Council’s first election[1], in which it affirmed that the amendment to the Constitution was aiming at “defining the position of human rights in the overall national development strategy”. The Observatory further wishes to point out that, as a member of the Human Rights Council, China “shall uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights”[2].

Background information

On the evening of August 21, 2007, a large number of Lithang County Public Security Bureau (PSB) officials and members of the People’s Armed Police (PAP) stormed into the Yonru Kharshul Village (Ponkar Township, Lithang County, Kardze “Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture” -TAP- Sichuan Province), and arrested Mr. Adruk Lopoe along with Messrs. Adruk Gyatso and Adruk Nyima, two of his brothers, after they had called for the release of their uncle, Mr. Ronggye A’drak[3].

Whereas Messrs. Adruk Gyatso and Adruk Nyima were released six hours after their detention, Mr. Adruk Lopoe was transferred to an unknown location shortly after his arrest.

Actions requested:

Please write to the authorities in the People’s Republic of China, urging them to:

1. i. Guarantee in all circumstances the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Adruk Lopoe as well as of his family’s members;
2. ii. Take prompt action in order to locate Mr. Adruk Lopoe, make public his whereabouts, and ensure his immediate release since his detention is arbitrary as it merely aims at sanctioning his human rights activities;
3. iii. Put an end to the harassment against all human rights defenders in China;
4. iv. Conform with the provisions of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 9, 1998, especially its Article 1, which states that “everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the protection and realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels”, and Article 12.2, which provides that “the State shall take all necessary measures to ensure the protection by the competent authorities of everyone, individually and in association with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred to in the present Declaration”;
5. v. Ensure in all circumstances respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with international human rights standards and international instruments ratified by the People’s Republic of China.

Addresses:

• President Hu Jintao, People’s Republic of China, c/o Embassy of the People’s Republic of China; 2300 Connecticut Ave., NW, Washington, D.C., 20008, USA, Fax: +01 202 588-0032;
• Minister of Justice of the People’s Republic of China, Buzhang Sifabu, Wu Aiying, 10 Chaoyangmen Nandajie, Chaoyangqu, Beijingshi 100020, People’s Republic of China, Fax: +86 10 6529 2345;
• Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, Buzhang Waijiaobu, Mr. Yang Jiechi, 2 Chaoyangmen Nandajie, Beijingshi 100701, People’s Republic of China, Fax: +86 10 6588 2594, Email: ipc@fmprc.gov.cn;
• Ambassador Sha Zukang, Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China, Chemin de Surville 11, P.O. Box 85, 1213 Petit-Lancy 2, Geneva, Switzerland, Fax: +41 22 7937014, E-mail: mission.china@ties.itu.int;
• Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Brussels, Avenue de Tervuren, 463 1160 Auderghem, Belgium, Tel: + 32 2 663 30 10 / + 32 2 663 30 17 / +32 2 771 14 97 / +32 2 779 43 33; Fax: +32 2 762 99 66 / +32 2 779 28 95; Email: chinaemb_be@mfa.gov.cn.

Please also write to the diplomatic mission or embassy of the People’s Republic of China in your respective country.

Geneva - Paris, November 20, 2007

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.

The Observatory, a FIDH and OMCT venture, is dedicated to the protection of Human Rights Defenders and aims to offer them concrete support in their time of need. The Observatory was the winner of the 1998 Human Rights Prize of the French Republic.

To contact the Observatory, call the emergency line:
E-mail: Appeals@fidh-omct.org
Tel and fax FIDH + 33 (0) 1 43 55 20 11 / +33 1 43 55 18 80
Tel and fax OMCT + 41 (0) 22 809 49 39 / + 41 22 809 49 29

[1] See http://www.un.org/ga/60/elect/hrc/china.pdf.

[2] See OP9 of the General Assembly Resolution A/RES/60/251.

[3] Mr. Ronggye A’drak was arrested on August 1, 2007, and detained at the Lithang PSB Detention Centre after speaking about the importance of the Dalai Lama’s return to Tibet to a large Tibetan crowd gathered for the horse-race festival earlier in August. On November 20, 2007 Mr. Ronggye A’drak was sentenced to eight years of imprisonment with deprivation of political rights for four years, on four counts of 'crimes' ranging from disruption of law and order to state subversion (See OMCT Urgent Appeals CHN 310807, CHN 011007 and CHN 310807.1 and issued respectively on August 31, October 1 and November 7, 2007).