Founder of a Tibetan Website Sentence to 15 YearsWednesday, 18 November 2009, 1:59 p.m.

Konchok Tsephel founder of a Tibetan web site tibetcm.com sentenced to 15 years imprisonment for displaying information against the PRC government on 12 November.

Dharamshala:
An educated and young Tibetan, Kunchok Tsephel, was given a 15-year
sentence and his political rights are suspended for 5 years by the
Chinese government. Tsephel was tried by the Intermediate People’s
Court in Kanlho Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu Province on 12
November.He was earlier arrested by Gansu Province Security Department personnel on 26 Febuary.Tsephel
was charged of carrying articles and photos in his website that ran
counter to the views of the Chinese government. Beijing also accused
him of storing pictures of the 2008 peaceful protests in Tibet in his
camera and computer.Born in Machu County, Gansu Province in
1970, Tsephel attended a local school. In year 1989, he came to India
and studied at Tibetan Children’s Village School in Suja near
Dharamsala for three years.Tsephel returned from India to Tibet
in 1994. A year later in 1995, he was arbitrarily arrested and detained
by Gansu Province Security personnel.In 1996 Tsephel attended
Beijing Nationality University and later Kanlho Northwestern
Nationality University to study foreign language and the Tibetan
literature. He later became a Tibetan language teacher at a primary
school in Machu County, where he received the outstanding teacher’s
award.In year 2005, Tsephel along with a friend founded Chodme
or Butter Lamp, a website promoting Tibetan literature. Despite
restrictions from the Chinese authorities in 2007 and 2008, they
managed to run the website continuously. At the same time he took the
responsibility at Machu County’s Environment Department.At the
time of his sentencing he was denied access to lawyer. Only two of his
family members were allowed to attend the trial which clearly shows
that the trail was unfair and unjust.