Cell punishment for activist Tibet after interview

beijing - A Chinese court sentenced a Tibetan activist to five years in prison. The authorities had accused the 33-year-old Tashi Wangchuk of inciting separatism after he had given a critical interview to the newspaper The New York Times in 2015.

Wangchuk expressed in the interview the fear that future generations of Tibetans will no longer master their language, because more and more Standard Mandarin is spoken. 'In politics it is said that if a country wants to eliminate another country, it first has to eliminate the spoken and written language,' he said.

The Chinese authorities arrested the activist in early 2016. Prosecutors referred to the interview during the trial, said one of the man's lawyers against The New York Times. Wangchuk stressed not to argue for an independent Tibet. He said he would only work for the rights of minorities, including the right to speak their own language.

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