Dharamshala: After his arrest on July 29, a well-known Tibetan singer has since "disappeared". His family and friends have no knowledge of his current where-abouts or his health condition.
Known as Chuksal; he hails from TashiDarthang Village in Driru County of Kham region, eastern Tibet. He was arrested at 10:00 am on 29 July 2012, at a cyber café in Siling City, Amdo region.
Chuksal for the last two years moved between Siling city and Chendu city in Sichuan province. Police officials initially searched for him in Driru County, but couldn't find him. Thus, a warrant was issued for his arrest in the whole region.
Before he was taken away by authorities the Tibetan singer managed to publish four video albums that dealt with the Tibet Movement. His first album was well received, as it sang praises to His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
However, Chinese officials claimed that it threatened the very stability of society and was thus imperative that they ban selling copies of his albums.
Despite the ban, a shop in the capital city of Lhasa continued to sell many copies of his second and third albums. The police soon found out and confiscated them, warning the shop not to try to sell any more of his literature.
In another incident, in Driru County, a restaurant playing Chuksal's fourth album was fined 500 Yuan and the police also took away their album copy.
China has followed a strict policy of detaining prominent artists that assert Tibetan national identity and civil rights.
Since widespread protests swept the region in 2008, officials have jailed scores of Tibetan writers, artists, singers, and educators.
Another popular Tibetan singer, TashiDhondup, was released from jail in 2011 after serving 15 months in prison for recording songs that spoke about Tibetan independence.
Meanwhile, the singer, Ugyen Tenzin, was sentenced to two years in prison on 20 March 2012 for singing Tibetan patriotic songs, obstructing [Chinese] mining and for being a ringleader of mass protests in Nangchen, Kham region.
With the passing of each day, the human rights situation continues to deteriorate inside Tibet. The Chinese government refuses to take responsibility for safeguarding Tibetan's rights, resulting in increased tension and unrest in the region.
