Tibetan filmmaker escapes from China to arrive in US

29, Dec 2017 | CJP Team

The Guardian reported that Dhondup Wangchen, a Tibetan filmmaker and activist, received political asylum in the United States following an “arduous and risky escape” from China. Dhondup Wangchen was convicted of subversion, and, according to Reuters, was imprisoned in 2009 in China’s Qinghai province after he filmed a documentary featuring ordinary Tibetans praising the Dalai Lama, and saying their culture had been destroyed. Reuters said the film, ‘Leaving Fear Behind’, included Tibetans saying they did not think the 2008 Beijing Olympics would do much to better their lives, and was secretly screened for some foreign journalists during the Olympics. Filming for Tibet, a group that, according to the Guardian, was formed to push for Dhondup Wangchen’s release, said he was released from prison in June 2014 but was still subjected to close surveillance, with his movements and communications being followed. “Dhondup Wangchen was able to successfully evade the authorities and flee from his home area in Tibet and then the People’s Republic of China altogether,” the group said of the filmmaker’s escape, according to Reuters.