In mid-February, authorities seized the two businessmen, Di-Di and Tabo, in Lithang, a mountainous town in a predominantly Tibetan area of Sichuan province. The two were arrested in connection with the cases of Lobsang Dondrup, a Tibetan executed in late January, and the lama Tenzin Delek, also sentenced to death but given a two-year reprieve. Lobsang Dondrup and Tenzin Delek were convicted of alleged participation in a series of explosions and for "incitement to separatism."
"Chinese officials do not want credible reports of torture to surface," said Brad Adams, executive director of the Asia division of Human Rights Watch. "China often bases convictions on forced confessions, which makes our concern about the whereabouts and welfare of Di-Di and Tabo all the more urgent."
Officials in the region have not acknowledged that the men are in custody. Human Rights Watch called on diplomats posted in Chengdu, Sichuan and in Beijing to urge the Chinese government to disclose the pair's whereabouts, make public any charges against them, and ensure they have immediate access to legal counsel.
Four monks closely associated with Tenzin Delek, himself a locally renowned lama, are still in custody. A fifth man, Tserang Dondrup, who organized a petition in support of Tenzin Delek, has already been sentenced to a five-year prison term. Five others were detained and released, and two boys reportedly have disappeared. Numerous reports of torture, severe beatings and serious injury have surfaced about Lobsang Dondrup and the released men. To prevent access to Tenzin Delek, the authorities have refused to disclose where he is imprisoned.
"The crackdown in Lithang may be bigger than we know, and the authorities evidently don't want the international community to find out," said Adams.
Tenzin Delek, in a tape smuggled out of his cell, has repudiated his confession. "China doesn't want any more leaked tapes, either," said Adams.
Unofficial sources have reported that Tabo was detained on suspicion of passing information about the case to foreign journalists. Di-Di, a wealthy businessman and relative of Tenzin Delek, was present at the December 2, 2002 court hearing when Tenzin Delek was convicted. Although that hearing was closed to the public, reports later appeared in the international press describing how Tenzin Delek criticized the court and shouted out his support of the Dalai Lama.
Human Rights Watch has also learned that in an effort to restrict information from reaching the international community, local officials have placed restrictions on the use of fax machines and on the placing of long distance telephone calls.
Tenzin Delek had long been a thorn in the side of officials in Lithang, a town of some 50,000, of whom more than 90 percent are Tibetans. He was a religious and social activist who, with the help of funding from Di-Di, set up monasteries, established schools, supported orphanages, and built roads. He was vocal in his opposition to logging practices in the region. Twice between 1998 and 2000 he had to go into hiding to avoid detention.
Human Rights Watch called on the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, which convenes in Geneva on March 17, to adopt a resolution condemning widespread and systematic abuses in China, including arbitrary detentions, arrests, torture and executions.
