Monk sentenced to three years “re-education through labour” for political journal

Tashi Gyaltsen was born in 1964 in Yagel Hrongbu Village. He studied Tibetan grammar, history and poetry during his early ages.

In 1986, he joined the Drakar Trezong Monastery where he was ordained as a monk by his teacher, Kelsang Tsultrim Woeser Rinpoche. Over the years, Tashi mastered in all the Buddhist text and successfully completed the five annals of Tibetan Buddhism.

In 1993, he was acclaimed as a candidate for the reincarnation of Kyabje Arol Dorjee Chang.

Tashi was on the editorial team of the monastery’s journal “Great Rays of the Sun and Moon” (Tib translit: nyi dai’ gzi byin). The Chinese authorities deemed the content of the journal to be politically sensitive and on 14 January 2005, “PSB” officials from Tsegorthang County and Tsolho “Tibet Autonomous Region” (“TAP”) arrived in the monastery. Tashi Gyaltsen along with four other monks on the editorial team were arrested and led to the local “PSB” Detention Centre.

He was interrogated about the journal and the reasons for publishing it. During the interrogations, he was booted and slapped by the officials.

After sixteen days in detention, Qinghai Provincial “PSB” sentenced him to three years’ “re-education through labour”. Tashi Gyaltsen is currently imprisoned in a “re-education through labour” facility in Hongdung County near Xining Municipality.

Drakar Trezong Monastery located 20 kilometres to the South West of Tsegorthang County houses around 400 monks.  The Chinese authorities deem the monastery to be politically active. Apart from Tashi Gyaltsen and four other monks arrests, six monks were arrested for forming a clandestine organisation in July 2002.

 

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