Tashi YangtsoFrom the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy, May 21:

Three Tibetan nuns from Tehor Nyagay Nunnery, in Kardze County were arrested by the County Chinese security forces for staging a peaceful protest, according to reliable sources within Tibet.

At around 1:00 AM (Beijing Standard Time) on 20 May 2008, three nuns from the Nyagay Nunnery, situated in Kardze County, Kardze "Tibet Autonomous Prefecture"("TAP"), Sichuan Province, started marching from Tehor Nyagay Nunnery towards the Kardze County which is around 20 Kms away from the Nunnery. The Nyagay Nunnery is very close to the famous Kardze Tehor Dargay Monastery. The three nuns, Achoe from Rida Village, Soe Choekyi from Lamna Village and Taga a.k.a Tashi Yangtso from Noekab Village under Kardze County were said to have reached Kardze County, their preplanned destination of the protest before morning dawn sets in. The reason cited for the three nuns was to launch their march in the wee hours of the morning so as to avoid being blocked and arrested by the heavy security presence and severe restriction imposed on the movement of the people in that area.

According to the source, the three nuns started their protest at around 9:00 AM (Beijing Standard Time) near Kardze County headquarters when people begin to gather for their daily lives in the county. The three nuns shouted slogans calling for "Freedom in Tibet", "Dalai Lama should return to Tibet", and "Immediate release of the political prisoners imprisoned by the Chinese authorities". The three nuns were immediately detained by the County Security forces and taken away to unknown location. There is no immediate information on their whereabouts and conditions.

The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) calls for the immediate and unconditional release of the three nuns who were detained by the Chinese authorities for voicing opinion in a non-violent manner and exercising their freedom of expression.

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