By Kalsang Rinchen
Phayul
April 7, 2009

Dharamsala, April 7 -- A lone protester was
arrested in Kardze on Sunday by Chinese police,
Dhondup Tashi, a Tibetan living here with contacts in the area told Phayul.

Jampa Sonam, aged 21, shouted slogans calling for
"Dalai Lama’s long life" and "Tibetan
independence" outside the government
administrative building near the Kardze monastery in Kumbum village, Kardze.

Chinese police immediately arrived at the protest
site and beat him up severely, said the source.
"He was then taken in a vehicle by the police but we don’t know where."

In another incident, Chinese police beat up 3
teenagers on the night of March 23, 2009 in
Kardze. 12-year-old Dhondup Rinchen from Dokham
village and two friends pasted handwritten
posters calling for ‘free Tibet’ and ‘long life
for Dalai Lama’, according to Gelong, a monk of
Sera monastery. The three boys were beaten up
severely and expelled from school for 10 days.
The families of the boys had been charged monetary penalty by the authorities.

Meanwhile, peasants in Tibetan areas of Kardze
continue to defy government orders to begin farming activities.

However, the exile Tibetan government’s Prime
Minister Samdhong Rinpoche yesterday urged the
Tibetans in Kardze to comply with the government orders and start farming.

Talking to Voice of Tibet radio service, Rinpoche
said though he acknowledges the boycott being a
non-violent approach and deserving of praise he
fears it might provoke violent crackdown on Tibetans.

"I urge the Tibetans to begin farming
activities," said the Tibetan Prime Minister.