Popular Tibetan singer Lo Lo sentenced to six years for singing politically charged songs.
DHARAMSHALA, March 13: A Chinese court in eastern Tibet has sentenced a
popular Tibetan singer Lo Lo, 30, to six years in prison for his
‘crimes’ of singing politically charged songs calling for Tibet’s
independence. According to Lobsang Sangyal, an exiled monk in
south India, the court sentencing came days after the singer was
re-arrested on February 23. “Lo Lo’s current condition and his whereabouts are not yet known,” Sangyal told Phayul. The popular Tibetan singer was first arrested
on April 19, 2012 following the release of his album titled “Raise the
flag of Tibet, sons of the snow.” However, he was released after a short
detention. The title song
of the singer’s album calls for independence of Tibet, the “return of
the saviour” and reunion of the Tibetan people – messages that are
common to the slogans raised by the 107 Tibetans who have self-immolated
since 2009. “To promote loyalty to the Land of Snows, For the
complete independence of Tibet, With a realised understanding of our
objectives, Raise the flag of Tibet- sons of the snow,” a portion of the
lyrics reads. Lo Lo is a native of Dragkar in Keygudo region of eastern Tibet. He is son of Jamyang Choegyal and Choekyi Dolma. Tibetan
singers, writers, and artists promoting Tibetan national identity and
culture have been the target of China’s ongoing crackdown on
intellectuals, especially after the 2008 Beijing Olympics. In February last year, Tibetan singer, Ugyen Tenzin
was arrested by Chinese authorities for praising His Holiness the Dalai
Lama and the elected leader of the Tibetan people Sikyong Dr Lobsang
Sangay. Another singer, Chogsel, was also arrested and banned from singing on charges of threatening social stability. In
August last year, the exile Tibetan administration submitted a detailed
profile of 64 Tibetan intellectuals to the UN Special Rapporteur in
Geneva and urged for necessary inquiry into their cases. Calling
the ongoing crackdown on Tibetan artists and intellectuals the
“harshest” since the Cultural Revolution, the Central Tibetan
Administration said that at least 24 Tibetans intellectuals have been
given sentences ranging from few months to life imprisonment for
exercising their freedom of expression. “This new generation of
young Tibetans born and educated under Chinese Communist rule have
edited banned magazines and are tech-savvy bloggers imprisoned for
gathering, expressing and sharing information about conditions in Tibet
especially after the March 2008 demonstrations across Tibet,” CTA said. The
exile Tibetan administration noted that the whereabouts of about 37
Tibetan intellectuals remain unknown, while 12 intellectuals were
released on fear of custodial death after excessive torture during
detention by the Chinese authorities.
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