Tibetan lama's body not released, says family

15-07-2015

Tenzin Delek Rinpoche died in Dazhu county jail in Sichuan province. Photo: ReutersMainland authorities have refused to release the body of a Tibetan lama who died in a Sichuan prison, prompting a sit-in outside the prison by more than 100 Tibetans, a pro-Tibet rights group said Monday. The family was informed Sunday that Tenzin Delek Rinpoche, 65, died 13 years into a life sentence on charges of financing and supporting a series of terrorist bombings and secession activities.

The prison has not produced the lama's body after two days of negotiations between the police and the monk's immediate family, the New York-based Students for a Free Tibet said.

The family wants to perform Tibetan Buddhist funeral rites on the body. "Our only request is to have his body," said Dolkar, the monk's sister, who was in Dazhu county in southwestern Sichuan province.

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