TCHRD Statements

Human rights empower people to overcome subjugation and oppression. Regardless of who we are, where we live or what we do, we all want...

On the occasion of the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) honours the...

17 May 2025 marks the 30th anniversary of the enforced disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama of Tibet, Jetsun Tenzin Gedhun Yeshi Trinley Phuntsok...

Call for Independent and Impartial Investigations into the Suspicious Death and Secret Cremation of Tibetan Tulku Hungkar Dorje in Vietnam The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights...

A Tibetan village leader has died from severe torture inflicted during seven months of detention by Chinese authorities, raising grave concerns about the fate...

The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) extends its wholehearted support and solidarity to the Canada Tibet Committee as it came under...

Intense Lobbying Campaign Produces Many Weak Recommendations  The Chinese government’s rejection of recommendations to end its deepening human rights crisis reflects its disdain for international...

Last Tuesday, China retained its membership in the Human Rights Council, the UN’s premier rights body responsible for protecting and promoting human rights globally. China received 154 votes in its reelection bid, up from 139 it received in 2020. This is the sixth time China has been elected to the Council.  “That China, with its long and egregious human rights record, can get itself elected to the Human Rights Council time and again is symptomatic of the deep ills that plague the UN human rights system,” said Ms Tenzin Dawa, executive director of TCHRD.

Every year on 26 June, the United Nations observes the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, explicitly focusing on torture's lasting generational impact and consequences. Recognising torture as the deliberate infliction of severe physical and mental suffering without justification, the United Nations General Assembly designated this day as an urgent call to eliminate this abhorrent practice, serving as a platform to promote the eradication of torture and to urge governments worldwide, including China, to fulfil their obligations under the UN Convention Against Torture. Recent cases, such as the severe torture endured by a Tibetan monk and the testimonies of Dorje Tashi, shed light on the systematic use of torture by Chinese authorities to suppress freedom of expression and assembly. These distressing incidents underscore the pressing need for the international community to take a firm stand and demand an immediate end to all acts of torture against Tibetans in Tibet.

On the 28th anniversary of the Chinese government’s arbitrary detention and subsequent enforced disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama Jetsun Tenzin Gedhun Yeshi Trinley Phuntsok Pal Sangpo, widely recognised by his lay name Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) reiterates its call to the Chinese government to immediately and unconditionally release the Panchen Lama, his family members, and all the Tibetan political prisoners. TCHRD emphasises that without ensuring the Tibetan people’s fundamental human rights, including freedom of belief and religion, Chinese authorities can never hope to win the hearts and minds of Tibetans, let alone earn any legitimacy for its repressive policies and campaigns in Tibet.