Video: Tibetan Website Founder Sentenced to 15 Years in

[Peter Terpstra]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laVTNDPi-uk

A Chinese court has sentenced the founder of an influential Tibetan website to
15 years in prison. It comes after a closed-door trial on November 12th.

The court found 39-year-old Kunchok Tsephel guilty of so-called divulging
state secrets. Its a vague charge Chinese authorities often use to punish
dissidents.

The charges probably relate to content posted on his website, Chodme—a site
that seeks to promote Tibetan culture. He had posted information on the site
about last years protests in Tibet, according to the International Campaign
for Tibet—or ICT.

ICT said his family saw him for the first time in nearly nine months last
week. They were called to the Intermediate Peoples Court of Gannan prefecture—
in Gansu Province—to hear the jail sentence.

Kunchock Tsephel had been detained since February 26, when police ransacked
his home and whisked him away in the early hours of the morning, according to
ICT. His friends are said to be worried for his health after nine months of
detention and interrogation. One of them told ICT that hed been denied access
to a lawyer.

The heavy prison sentence came just days before U.S. President Obamas visit to
China. Obama has called on leader Hu Jintao to improve the Communist Party's
treatment of ethnic minorities.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laVTNDPi-uk

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Amnesty International Report 2009 on China:
http://report2009.amnesty.org/en/regions/asia-pacific/china