UN seeks whereabouts of the Panchen Lama and Tibetan detainees

File photo of Gedun Choekyi Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama

Geneva: The United Nations' Committee against Torture (CAT), an independent body of experts has asked China to provide a complete list of all Tibetan detained following the March 2008 demonstration in Tibet.

The Committee also sought information on the whereabouts of Gendun Choekyi Nyima, the six-year-old boy identified by His Holiness the Dalai Lama as the 11th Panchen Lama, disappeared on 17 May 1995. The Chinese government later admitted to holding the boy and his family in "protective custody".

This request also includes information on their current location, convictions, etc. The independent body of experts monitors the implementation of the UN's Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment by its State parties.

The experts questioned China about what the secret regulations were applied in these cases and why? It further said "In view of allegations that lawyers who offered to defend Tibetan protesters were warned that they would have their professional licenses suspended if they attempted to do so, please clarify what counsel was provided and whether the defendants were permitted to meet with that counsel in private, in advance of their trials."

The experts also questioned why a detainee does not have the right to access to an independent doctor during pretrial detention or after conviction.

They also sought information from China about the 30 Tibetans who were sentenced between three years to life imprisonment. The experts asked China to clarify the basis of the sentences and how many cases involved confessions from the defendants. And whether the Tibetans had opportunities to appeal against the verdicts and if independent review or oversight board were assigned to these cases.

The UN's independent body also sought information on any investigations into those deaths and whether there will be a transparent public inquiry into a number of deaths in connection with the unrest in the Tibetan Autonomous Region and neighboring prefectures and counties. Concerning administrative detention for re-education through labor, the committee sought information on other administrative detention centers as well as on persons detained under the 1997 Law on Administrative Penalties.

During the UN Human Right session in November 2008, China's fourth periodic report is schedule to review by the Committee. Tibetan NGOs will submit a shadow report on China's violation of the convention's articles. China as a signatory of the convention is obliged to submit its report to the Committee every four year on how the rights are being implemented.

--Report filed by Tenzin Samphel Kayta, The Tibet Bureau, Geneva

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