Lodroe Gyatso
POLITICAL PRISONER- Does it have an image?
- No
- Gender
- Male
- Origin County Level
- Origin County Geolocation
Latitude: 31.8867299
Longitude: 93.7855599999999
- Origin County Geolocation (linked POLITICAL PRISONER)
- Sog County(སོག་རྫོང་། )
- Origin Province
- Tibet Autonomous Region
- Origin Prefecture
- Nagchu (Ch: Naqu) Prefecture
- Date of Detention
- 20/04/1994
- Date of arrest
- 17/01/1993
- Detention Centre/Prison
- Drapchi Prison
- Description of event
Lodroe Gyatso (born 1961, Sog County, Nagchu) was a Tibetan weightlifting champion known for strong political convictions.
In 1993, his sister was killed in a car accident involving a Chinese government official, but no justice was pursued. In January 1993, during a public confrontation in which the official allegedly tried to shoot him, Gyatso stabbed the official. He was arrested and sentenced on 20 April 1994 to 15 years in prison for attempted murder.
While imprisoned in Drapchi Prison, Gyatso openly expressed pro-Tibet political views. On 4 March 1995, he shouted independence slogans, distributed pamphlets, and prayed publicly for the Dalai Lama. He was immediately beaten and subjected to severe torture, including prolonged interrogation and physical abuse that left him seriously injured.
Authorities reportedly planned his execution, but international intervention following information leaked by fellow prisoners forced them to abandon the plan. Instead, in May 1995, his sentence was extended by six years, and his political rights were revoked.
As of October 2002, Lodroe Gyatso remained imprisoned in Drapchi Prison, serving a 21-year sentence and facing continued punishment for the peaceful expression of his political beliefs.
- Violations Faced in Detention
- No Fair Trial: No family meet ups
- No Fair Trial: No legal representation
- Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment: Solitary Confinement
- Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment: Use of Tiger Chairs
- Types of Human Rights Violations
- Legal and Procedural Rights Violations: Right to Fair Trial
- Civil and Political Rights Violations: Right to Freedom of Expression and Opinion
- Civil and Political Rights Violations: Right to Liberty and security of person
- Sentencing Court
- Lhasa Intermediate People's Court
- Date of sentence
- 20/04/1994
- Length of Sentence
- 21 years
- Prison Location
- Consequences of Detention After Release
Not only did prison officials planned to execute him. Even while imprisoned in Drapchi Prison, Lodroe Gyatso was subjected to severe and prolonged torture for expressing political views. After shouting Free Tibet slogans in March 1995, he was beaten with belts and ropes, stripped, and repeatedly tortured, including blows to his genitals and abdomen. He was strangled, kicked unconscious, and interrogated for nearly a month. Despite serious injuries, he refused to confess and continued to voice his beliefs, enduring solitary confinement and ongoing abuse as punishment for his peaceful political expression.
- Type of Sources
- Primary: TCHRD field sources
- Torture
- Torture
- Published
- Published