The release of writer Dhi Lhaden after four years of imprisonment raises concerns regarding his physical and mental well-being, exacerbated by the limited accessibility of information about his current situation. Having endured two years of incommunicado detention since 2019, he was charged with “disrupting social order,” a common accusation against human rights activists, and secretly sentenced to four years in 2021. Despite his expected release this year, it was delayed by two months, perceived as a result of cautious measures by Chinese authorities to control information flow. Lhaden’s unjust trial, preceded by isolation, potential coercion, and torture, further adds complexity. As a former monk and writer, his works illuminated the Tibetan perspective, encompassing hopes, wishes, and the overall plight.
The Chinese Party-state is targeting and silencing influential Tibetan writers, intellectuals and cultural leaders that it views as hindrance to its cultural assimilation campaign. New information obtained by TCHRD revealed the ongoing detention of four other writers on top of the four recently sentenced to four to ten years in prison.
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) condemns the unjust sentencing of Tibetan writer Lhaden (Pen-name: Dhi Lhaden) to four years in prison and calls on the Chinese authorities to end all restrictions on free speech and dissent in Tibet.
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) demands the immediate and unconditional release of the noted Tibetan writer and intellectual Mr Lhaden (pseudonym: Dhi Lhaden) who has been in arbitrary detention for two years at an undisclosed location in Chengdu city, Sichuan Province.
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) released yesterday the second book written by underground Tibetan writer Dhi Lhaden, the courageous former monk and intellectual based in Amdo, Tibet.
Originally composed in Tibetan and titled Tungol Trimtug (‘Resistance Through Cooperation With Law’), it has been translated into English with a new title ‘The Art of Passive Resistance’. This is Lhaden’s second book, translated and published by TCHRD.
In this book, Dhi Lhaden explores themes such as the rule of law, freedom, peace, equality, non-violence, and looks to public figures known for their approach of peaceful resistance such as the Dalai Lama, Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., and George Washington.
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) is pleased to present an exclusive preview of Dhi Lhaden’s new book titled ‘The Art of Passive Resistance’, now translated into English.
Dhi Lhaden is a Tibetan monk, intellectual and writer born in 1980 at Dida Village in Pema (Ch: Baima) County, Golog (Ch: Guoluo) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture (Qinghai Province), in the Tibetan province of Amdo. Originally named as Lhaden (popularly called Dhi Lhaden), he is also known by his ordained name, Thubten Lobsang Lhundup. At 11, he was admitted to his local monastery and four years later joined Serthar Buddhist Institute in Serta County, Kardze (Ch: Ganzi) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture (Sichuan Province). At 28, he went to Lhasa for further studies at Drepung and Sera Monastery but had to cut his studies short.