Tibetan human rights defender and former political prisoner Golog Jigme meets German government, parliament representatives – “Appalling Chinese policies in Tibet must be challenged”

Berlin, February 18, 2016. Tibetan Buddhist monk and human rights activist Golog Jigme this week met representatives of the German government and parliament and gave testimony on his persecution and on the repressive policies of the Chinese government in Tibet. Golog Jigme, also known as Jigme Gyatso, was jailed and tortured for making the documentary “Leaving Fear Behind” in 2008 together with Dhondup Wangchen.

In a meeting with members of the Human Rights Committee of the German parliament, the Bundestag, Golog Jigme said: “China’s denial of real freedom of expression and freedom of movement for Tibetans in Tibet as well as strict limitations of access to Tibet for foreigners, have resulted in the outside world not knowing what the real conditions of the Tibetan people are. Yet, the appalling Chinese policies in Tibet must be challenged.”

The former political prisoner also met with German Human Rights Commissioner Christoph Strässer (SPD): “I urge the German government to continue to pay attention to the situation inside Tibet. For the future of Tibet, it is very important to break the ‘lockdown’ that the Chinese Government has imposed around the Tibetan people. As human beings, we Tibetans deserve the right to express freely without fear of being arrested or tortured. We deserve the right to move and to freedom of religion and China should be held accountable when this does not happen, as in my case and in many others”, Golog Jigme said.

Golog Jigme also spoke at a public screening of “Leaving Fear Behind” and was received by the Association of Tibetans in Germany. The visit in Berlin was jointly organized by the Tibet Initiative Deutschland and the International Campaign for Tibet Deutschland in Berlin, Germany.

Background Golog Jigme

Golog Jigme, also known as Jigme Gyatso, is a Buddhist monk and human rights activist who was jailed and tortures for making the documentary “Leaving Fear Behind” in 2008 together with Dhondup Wangchen. He was arrested in March 2008 and released after months of torture. In 2009, he was arrested again, without charge, and kept in custody for several months. However, he suffered from continued harassment by the police and then disappeared in 2012. A few months after he escaped a police detention centre, the police started a hunt for him under false charges. Golog Jigme was listed by Reporters Without Borders among their list of “100 Information Heroes” on World Press Freedom Day.