Gonmo Kyi resumes protests for brother Dorjee Tashi

Gonmo Kyi has continued her protests against the ongoing imprisonment of her brother, the businessman Dorjee Tashi.

Dorjee Tashi has already spent more than 15 years in prison but his family, including his elder sister, Gonmo Kyi, have maintained that he was never given a fair trial.

The latest protest took place on Monday 24 April  in front of Tibet Higher People’s Court in Lhasa.

In videos received by Tibet Watch on 25 April, Gonmo Kyi can be seen holding up a sign as police try to hide her from view by surrounding her with black material.

In the background of one video, Dorjee Tseten, brother of Dorjee Tashi and Gonmo Kyi, can be heard saying: “Today, my sister is forcibly covered into this black cloth, because she refuses to leave and keeps protesting in front of the court.”

This is followed by two more videos, in which Dorjee Tseten says:

“She [Gonmo Kyi] protests for a fair trial for her brother’s case but the court opposed his fair trial. Some Chinese security personnel concealed her with black cloth”, and:

Hello everyone, just take a look, this is Dorjee Tashi’s sister Gonmo Kyi. She keeps calling for fair trial for her brother, but Tibet Higher People’s Court not only defined the fair trial but also covered her with black cloth and detained her.”

Prior or to his arrest, Dorjee Tashi was a successful businessman. He was detained in July 2008, charged with loan fraud and ultimately sentenced to life imprisonment. This is despite the Beijing-based Zheng Xin Law Firm stating that Dorjee Tashi’s loan fraud conviction was false and his lawyers asserting that he had committed the lesser crime of capital misappropriation.

Gonmo Kyi has carried out at least six protests for her brother. On previous occasions she has been detained by police and beaten.