SFT calls for immediate and unconditional release of Tibetan education advocate Tashi Wangchuk
By Lobsang Tenchoe
DHARAMSALA, Jan 27: Students for a Free Tibet (SFT)-India held an urgent action campaign to press China for immediate and unconditional release of Tibetan education advocate and entrepreneur Tashi Wangchuk.
The 31-yr-old Tibetan advocate, Tashi Wangchuk was arrested a year ago by the Yushu police on Jan. 27, 2016, two months after the publication of his video and the first article on The New York Times about his language rights campaign for the Tibetan people where in he advocated Tibetan language education to be taught in schools across Tibet, SFT said in their press release.
Tashi Wangchuk’s case is an example of the severity of the persecution Tibetans face for simply calling for their rights, rights that are perceived as a threat by the Chinese government despite the fact that they are protected by international human rights laws and under the Chinese constitution,” Tenzin Tselha, SFT National Director said.
Tashi Wangchuk was indicted by court officials recently for inciting separatism and could face up to 15 years in prison if found guilty.
His only crime was that he sought to promote Tibetan language education, which is guaranteed under Chinese and international law and to use Chinese law to pressure officials to faithfully implement Tibetan language rights.
SFT has organized both online and offline signature campaigns to launch global call for Tashi Wangchuk’s immediate release.
“Today we are organizing this public campaign in Dharamsala to join global call for his immediate release and sending an urgent message to Foreign Ministers and their embassies in Beijing urging them to press for his immediate release with Chinese leaders,” Tselha concluded.
Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have both issued statements recently asking China for his immediate release.
SFT India network is also joined by the SFT global network by organising urgent protests outside Chinese embassies and calling on 18 Foreign Embassies & Consulates in China to raise his case urgently with the Chinese government.
