Even in death he continues to generate controversy: to the dismay of his family and fellow Tibetans, who wanted funeral arrangements honoring their religious traditions, Chinese authorities cremated his body and moved swiftly against those trying to protest his treatment.
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“We request the United Nations and every government around the world to organise an independent investigation inside Tibet so that we can find out about the murder of Tenzin Delek Rinpoche”, said Dolkar.
He was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve in 2003 after being found guilty of masterminding five bombings in Sichuan province, Xinhua said.
Delek was cremated on Thursday before Tibetan burial rights could be carried out, according to Students for a Free Tibet (SFT). The state news organization also said doctors came to rescue, sending the monk further to the hospital’s intensive care unit from the emergency center, but was declared dead after an hour.
The 65-year-old died in the Dazhu County People’s Hospital in southwest China’s Sichuan province, near the prison where he had been serving a life sentence for “crimes of terror and incitement of separatism”.
The officials, however, allowed only around 30 Tibetans from his immediate family and students to see the body before the cremation and perform a short prayer.
Last year, the monk’s family had applied for medical parole for him on the grounds that he suffered from a heart condition, high blood pressure, dizzy spells and problems with his legs that had caused him to fall down frequently.
The U.S. State Department said this it hoped Chinese authorities would investigate and make public the circumstances surrounding Tenzin Delek Rinpoche’s death at the age of 65 on Sunday [12 July 2015]. Tenzin Delek, who was one of China’s most prominent political prisoners, died in jail, a relative said on Monday. Human rights groups said his relationship with Chinese officials took a turn for the worse when he rolled back attempts to clear forests and because of his support for the Dalai Lama, who is considered a separatist by the government.
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With files from Reuters and New York Times News Service.
