A group of United Nations human rights experts has expressed crucial concern over the enforced detention and reported torture of Tibetan activist Namkyi, urging China to explain her treatment and uphold international human rights standards, as reported by the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA).
According to CTA, a joint communication dated July 16, 2025, six UN Special Rapporteurs and Working Groups questioned China over Namkyi’s case, noting that her ordeal reflects serious breaches of international protections against torture, enforced disappearance, and unfair trials. The communication followed months of growing attention to Tibetan political prisoners and Beijing’s clampdown on freedom of expression.
Namkyi was only 15 when she was arrested in Ngaba (Aba) Prefecture in October 2015 after participating in a peaceful march with her cousin, while carrying portraits of the Dalai Lama and Kirti Rinpoche. Within minutes, Chinese security forces detained the teenagers without a warrant. During custody, Namkyi was allegedly beaten, denied sleep, and exposed to extreme heat during interrogations. Her family did not know her whereabouts for more than a year, amounting to enforced disappearance.
In November 2016, she was sentenced to three years in prison on charges of “separatist activities” after a trial that UN experts said fell short of international fair trial standards. While serving her term at Sichuan Province Women’s Prison, she was forced into hard labour, deprived of medical care, and isolated from fellow Tibetan inmates. Even after her release in 2018, she remained under constant surveillance, and her family endured ongoing intimidation, as reported by CTA.
Earlier this year, Namkyi joined an advocacy campaign in Geneva ahead of the UN Human Rights Council’s 58th session, sharing her testimony with diplomats and UN officials. The Central Tibetan Administration highlighted that her story shed rare light on China’s treatment of Tibetans and helped push for accountability through the present UN communication.” The UN experts’ intervention is an acknowledgement of the injustices Namkyi faced,” said Thinlay Chukki, the Dalai Lama’s Representative in Geneva.