05 Jul 11 | Asia and Pacific, China
A few days ago the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) reported that China had sentenced Tibetan writer Tashi Rabten to four years in prison for separatist activities. He had been one of several writers who penned pieces on the 2008 Tibetan unrest for a banned literary magazine, Eastern Snow Mountain (Shar Dungri in Tibetan).
So who is Tashi Rabten?
Tashi was born Ruo’ergai (Dzorge in Tibetan) in Aba prefecture in the west of Sichuan province. He was a student at Northwest Minorities University in Lanzhou in Gansu province when he was first detained last year. He is in his early twenties. According to the Tibetan Review he was due to graduate last year.
As well as editing Eastern Snow Mountain, Tashi wrote poetry and co-authored a collection of political essays called Written in Blood. It was promptly banned after it was published underground in 2009. His pen name was Theurang.
To give us a taste of his writing, I quote Tashi’s introduction to Written in Blood (courtesy of ICT).
Given my [young] age and [lack of] qualifications, the appearance of this little book may be premature. After an especially intense year of the usual soul-destroying events, something had to be said, and after pondering on whether to speak out, I finally produced this humble little book between 2008-09, shed like a drop of blood.
11 Feb 11 | Asia and Pacific, China
Tibetan singer Tashi Dhondup, who was sentenced to 15 months hard labour in January 2010 for recording political songs, has been released a few months early, according to Radio Free Asia.
RFA’s source, who was not named but who is cited as a close relative, added that locals and friends came out to welcome him home. There was no police interference. In other parts of China, police often prevent any kind of public welcome for newly-released dissidents, often keeping them under house arrest or in further secret detention for a time. (See the curious case of Hada).
The radio station said a document smuggled out of China last year claimed the 30-year-old had “violated laws” by singing songs about Tibetan independence and their exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama. Two of his songs were singled out, Torture without Trace and 58. The latter referenced a failed 1958-59 uprising against Chinese rule which sparked the Tibetan exodus to India.
Thousands of C’s of his controversial songs spread through markets in the Tibetan areas of Qinghai province which may have prompted Dhondup’s arrest, media said at the time.
Index on Censorship magazine recently published an article by Beijing-based Tibetan dissident writer Woeser headlined Tradition in Protest. She quotes from 58:
The year of 1958
Is when the black enemy entered Tibet
Is when the lamas were put in prison
That time was terrifying …
The year of 2008
Is when innocent Tibetans were beaten
Is when people of the world were massacred
That time was terrifying.
Woeser describes the young singer. “Someone sent me a photo of Dhondup. Round-faced, with long narrow eyes, he appeared fashionable, dressed in black hunting gear with lightened hair.” A poet friend of hers later revealed he was a relative of Dhondup’s. “The Dhondup he spoke of was a wayward youth who liked to get drunk, sing, and chase grassland girls”, but “He’s a hero now. When I ask at roadside stalls in Xining [capital of Qinghai province] if they’ve got his songs they make sure I’m not police or undercover, then pull out a big bag full of his recordings. They’re all copies of course.”
Dechen Pemba, a London-based Tibetan activist blogger said she welcomed the news of his release. “People all over the world have come to know of his thoughts, feelings, musical talent and great courage,” she told Uncut. “We hope he will be able to recover from his experiences in prison and return to making music.”
High Peaks Pure Earth has posted some of his English-subtitled music videos here.
12 Oct 10 | News and features
Woeser, author of “Notes on Tibet”, was one of many signatories of a letter to the Chinese government calling for the release of Nobel Laureate Liu Xiaobo. Writing for Index on Censorship magazine, she celebrates Tibetan singer Tashi Dhondup
(more…)
16 Jul 10 | Events
The Sun Behind the Clouds
Ritu Sarin/Tenzing Sonam I UK/India 2009 79 mins
Tue 20 July @ 7pm, Free Word Centre, London EC1R 3GA
After an amazing international film festival run, including Palm Springs International Film Festival in January 2010 where the film was the centre of a controversy instigated by the Chinese Government, The Sun Behind the Clouds presents a timely account of the reality of the Tibet struggle today.
The screening will be followed by a panel discussion featuring Sun Shuyun Senior Adviser on China for the Institute of Strategic Dialogue, and Tsering Topgyal, Tibetan academic working in the field of international relations.
Official selections – DMZ Korean International Documentary Film
Festival 2009, Human Rights Watch International Film Festival 2010
Winner – Václav Havel Award, One World International Human Rights
Documentary Film Festival 2010
Venue: Free Word Centre, 60 Farringdon Rd, London EC1R 3GA
tel: 020 7324 2570 / [email protected]
tickets on door: £5 full / £4 conc
Further information: www.day-for-night.org/tibetfilmfestival
