China detains Tibetans for mourning Buddhist leader’s mysterious death

Chinese officials have interrogated and detained local Tibetans who shared photographs and posts on social media mourning the death of a prominent Tibetan Buddhist leader, who reportedly died while in custody in Vietnam, as reported by Radio Free Asia (RFA).

Authorities in Gade county of Golog prefecture, located in Qinghai province, have placed the monastery of Tulku Hungkar Dorje, who passed away at the age of 56, under constant police surveillance, conducting random checks on locals’ phones to limit the dissemination of information concerning his death, according to RFA report.

On April 3, Lung Ngon Monastery in Gade county verified that its abbot, Tulku Hungkar Dorje, had died in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City on March 29. His supporters claimed that the Buddhist leader, who had been missing for over eight months, fled to Vietnam to evade persecution from the Chinese government due to his advocacy as an educator and promoter of Tibetan language and culture, RFA reported.

Officials from Golog prefecture and Gade county have been inspecting the monastery and neighbouring villages since April 2, implementing strict measures and prohibiting public memorial services for the abbot.

“Following Tulku Hungkar Dorje’s death, local Tibetans have undergone extensive restrictions. Numerous residents who expressed sympathies or shared images of the Rinpoche on social media have been called in for questioning by Chinese authorities,” RFA quoted a resident as saying.

Tulku Hungkar Dorje was widely recognised as a philanthropist, educator, and environmentalist who advocated for Tibetan language and culture. According to RFA, his followers and human rights organizations assert that he was a victim of transnational repression by China and have urged the Vietnamese government to permit an independent inquiry into his death, which they believe occurred under questionable circumstances after he was detained in a coordinated operation involving local Vietnamese police and Chinese government officials.

Monks from Lung Ngon Monastery who accompanied with Chinese officials visited Vietnam on April 5 to retrieve the Tulku Hungkar Dorje’s body were initially not allowed to see the body of Buddhist leader and from participating in meetings held at the Chinese embassy in Vietnam, Tibetan rights groups said, citing sources familiar with the matter in the region, RFA reported.

On April 10, the monks were permitted to see Tulku Hungkar Dorje’s face but not allowed to see the rest of his body, said Ju Tenkyong, director of the Amnye Machen Institute, a Dharamsala-based Tibetan centre for advanced studies. Tenkyong said, currently, there is no information regarding the status of Tulku Hungkar Dorje’s body, which is reportedly at Vinmec Central Park International Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City.