Associated Press
July 14, 2015
U.S. lawmakers held a moment of silence and expressed anger and sadness over the death in custody of a prominent Tibetan monk, saying the fundamental rights of Tibetan citizens remain under attack by Chinese authorities.
House members called for a tougher U.S. policy to pressure China at a hearing of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission. They demanded the body of Tibetan lama Tenzin Delek Rinpoche be returned to his family members.
Audience members held up photos of Tenzin Delek, who died 13 years into serving a sentence for what critics say were false charges that he was involved in a bombing.
American actor and activist Richard Gere attends a hearing on Tibet with the Tom Lantos Juman Rights Commission, Tuesday, July 14, 2015, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Movie actor Richard Gere, an advocate for Tibetan freedom, said the monk’s death in Chinese government custody was a “stark reminder of who we are dealing with here.”
