Gartse Jigme, Freelance
Medium:Print
Charge:Anti-State
Imprisoned:January 1, 2013

Police arrested Jigme, a Tibetan author and monk, in his room at the Rebgong Gartse monastery in the Malho prefecture of Qinghai province, according to news reports. His family was unaware of his whereabouts until a Qinghai court sentenced him to five years in prison on May 14, 2013. The charges have not been officially disclosed, but the Independent Chinese PEN Center says he was accused of "inciting split"-trying to break away from the Communist Party.

The conviction was in connection with the second volume of Jigme's book, Tsenpoi Nyingtob (The Warrior's Courage), according to Voice of America and Radio Free Asia. The book contained chapters expressing Jigme's opinions on topics such as Chinese policies in Tibet, self-immolation, minority rights, and the Dalai Lama, according to news reports.

Jigme had also been briefly detained in 2011 in connection with the first volume of his book, Tsenpoi Nyingtob, according to the Hong Kong-based group Chinese Human Rights Defenders and Tibetan rights groups. He had written the book as a reflection on widespread protests in Tibetan areas in the spring of 2008, Tibetan scholar Robert Barnett told CPJ. China has jailed scores of Tibetan writers, artists, and educators for asserting Tibetan national identity and civil rights since widespread protests swept the region in 2008.

Authorities did not disclose any information on Jigme's health or whereabouts. According to the Independent Chinese PEN Center he may be in prison in Xining, a city in Qinghai province.

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