Tsongon Tsering, a resident of Tsaruma village in Kakhog County, Ngaba, Amdo, was sentenced to eight months in prison on 27 October by the Qiongxi County People’s Court on charges of “disrupting social order.”

On 14 October, Tsongon Tsering posted a five-minute video on WeChat that accused Anhui Xianhe Construction Engineering Co. of causing extensive environmental damage to the Kyungchu River, including severe soil erosion and reduced water levels.

Tsongon Tsering filmed himself holding his ID card while describing his complaint and the violations he was concerned about. Filming his complaint is a method that is well used in China to report abuses by officials or companies suspected of corruption, bribery, dereliction of duty, and abuse of authority. The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) has since loaded the video to YouTube – full transcript translation can be seen below

Two days after his public appeal—a rare action in Tibet, where speaking out against authorities or state-approved projects often leads to reprisals—officials summoned Tsongon Tsering, along with several of his family and other villagers, for questioning. The group was all initially released, but Tsongon Tsering was later re-detained a few days later (believed to be around 20 October).

TCHRD reports that a trusted source states Tsongon Tsering is imprisoned at Kyungchu County Prison.

Tsongon Tsering has not been given access to his family, which deepens concerns about his safety.

FURTHER INFORMATION:
In early May 2023, Anhui Xianhe Construction Engineering Company started sand and gravel mining operations along the river in Tsaruma village, which resulted in severe damage to the local ecosystem, pollution of nearby waterways, and increased risk to homes near the river.

A group of villagers filed complaints with the Tsaruma Township, Kakhog County Discipline Inspection Commission, Kakhog County Environmental Protection Bureau, Kakhog County Water Affairs Bureau, Ngaba Prefecture Water Affairs Bureau, Ngaba Prefecture Environmental Protection Department, and other relevant departments regarding environmental destruction, soil erosion, and risks to local homes.

Despite submitting photographs and videos documenting the damage done to the local area, none of the relevant offices took any action or responded. However, Tsongon Tsering’s online video exposing the concerns about the mining was widely circulated on Chinese social media, leading to the Ecological Environment Bureau of Kakhog County responding, stating they would look into the matter.

Tsongon Tsering and several other local Tibetans have repeatedly petitioned and appealed to the authorities, but the issues remain unresolved.

We call on Foreign Ministries to call on Chinese authorities to:

• Immediately and unconditionally release Tsondon Tsering, who has been detained and sentenced solely for exercising his right to freedom of expression, and seek immediate guarantees for their safety;
• Pending his release, ensure that he has regular, unrestricted access to his family and lawyers of his choice without delay, medical care on request or as necessary, and is protected from torture or other ill-treatment;
• Cease all harassment, intimidation, or collective punishment directed at his family or local residents of Kakhog County and seek immediate guarantees for their safety.

Full translation of the statement in the video clip

My name is [name withheld], and I currently reside in Tsaruma (Chinese: Chá’ěrmǎ) Township, Kakhog (Hongyuan) County, Ngaba (Aba) Prefecture, Sichuan Province. I am reporting this under my real name. Anhui Xianhe Construction Engineering Co., Ltd has illegally excavated sand and gravel from the river way during the road construction in Tsaruma Township. Since May 2023, the company’s illegal sand mining activities have severely damaged the local ecological environment. Large amounts of sand have been recklessly excavated from the river, leading to serious soil erosion near residents’ homes and endangering house foundations. The excavated Tsaruma River is a tributary of the upper Yangtze and Yellow River. This destructive behavior seriously threatens the safety of water resources of the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers. The issue of pollution of tributaries of these rivers closely related to the local ecological environment and biodiversity protection, directly affecting the Asian Water Tower and wetlands on the plateau. Therefore, strengthening ecological protection and governance is crucial.

Regarding such serious ecological destruction and its profound impact on local residents, some villagers spontaneously reported to the local government of Tsaruma Township, Kakhog County Discipline Inspection Commission, Kakhog County Environmental Protection Bureau, Kakhog County Water Affairs Bureau, Ngaba Prefecture Water Affairs Bureau, Ngaba Prefecture Environmental Protection Department and other relevant departments, providing a large number of on-site photos and videos of the damage. However, the relevant departments turned a deaf ear and remained indifferent, neglecting their duties in the handling process, failing to thoroughly address environmental issues, and allowing the harm to local people to persist. This has left complainants with nowhere to turn to and no one to manage the situation. Although good ecological environmental protection policies were introduced many years ago, there are still problems in implementation in our area.

In April 2024, although the Ecological Environment Bureau of Kakhog County, Ngaba Prefecture, Sichuan Province issued a petition response to me, confirming that “the illegal excavation of sand and gravel from the river by Anhui Xianhe Construction Engineering Co., Ltd. in Tsaruma was true and had been filed for punishment and closed”, this is a cover-up and protection of the relevant enterprise, using fines as a substitute for management, and downplaying the issue. In the end, the restoration of the ecological environment and the treatment of soil erosion were not carried out. Only low-cost, perfunctory measures were taken to address areas where house foundations were endangered. The threat of soil erosion in the surrounding area continues to exist, the situation of soil erosion is becoming increasingly serious, and the situation is getting more severe. The consequences of ecological destruction are all borne by the local people. According to the Environmental Protection Law, in addition to necessary penalties for damage to the ecological environment, the damaged environment should also be restored. However, the Ecological Environment Bureau of Kakhog County failed to effectively fulfill its responsibilities in handling this matter and failed to effectively stop and correct the behavior that damaged the environment.

In addition, the Ecological Environment Bureau of Kakhog County claimed in its petition response that “after receiving the first petition in September 2023, it reported to the Kakhog County Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Kakhog County People’s Government. The main leaders and deputy leaders of the county committee and county government led teams multiple times to verify and investigate relevant issues, arranging multiple departments and townships to verify and investigate. The transportation and water affairs departments handled the matter according to laws and regulations. The results of the investigation and handling have been relayed back to the pastoralists of Tsaruma Township in writing or in person many times.” This issue was subject to multiple re-examinations by departments such as the Ngaba Prefecture Water Affairs Bureau from October to December 2023.

In early 2024, the Discipline Inspection Commission and Development Committee of Kakhog County also re-examined the relevant issues and handling, and claimed no one raised objections. However, as the complainant, I am completely unaware of and unfamiliar with the above statements, and no Tsaruma Township pastoralists have ever received any relevant feedback. The so-called “no objections raised” is purely fictitious. This kind of deceptive response is extremely irresponsible and seriously desecrates and tramples on the petition system, causing it to operate in vain. Due to the low cost of violations, illegal activities have become rampant. Over time, environmental damage issues will become increasingly serious and frequent, and the consequences will be beyond imagination. When the environment is damaged to a certain extent, the collapse of the ecosystem will be an irreversible disaster. We have lived on this land for generations after generations, and the quality of the ecological environment is directly related to the health and life safety of our future generations. If environmental problems are not resolved according to law, similar problems will follow.

I hereby implore the leadership of the Central Government to pay attention to this issue, adhere to the concept of ecological protection that “ blue waters and green mountains are golden mountains and silver mountains”, uphold the spirit of “seeking truth from facts”, conduct on-site investigations of the damaged local ecological environment, thoroughly investigate the legal responsibilities of illegal enterprises according to law, hold accountable the dereliction of duty of relevant department leaders, thoroughly investigate and rectify possible official-business collusion, rent-seeking and other corrupt practices, and restore an environment where people can live and work in peace and contentment, returning prosperity to the region.