China Says 30 Protesters Jailed Over Riots in Lhasa (Update 1)

The number of jailed Lhasa protesters now roars to 30. From Bloomberg:

Chinese authorities in Tibet said 30 people were jailed yesterday for taking part in pro-independence riots in Lhasa last month.

Three protesters were sentenced to life imprisonment and the shortest jail term was three years, the official Xinhua News Agency reported, citing the Intermediate People’s Court of Lhasa in the Tibetan capital. Seventeen people were sentenced yesterday morning and 13 in the afternoon, Xinhua said.

From AFP:

Chinese authorities on Tuesday jailed 17 people for between three years and life for their role in last month’s Tibetan unrest, state press reported.

The 17 were involved in violence on March 14 in Tibet’s capital, Lhasa, the Xinhua news agency said, announcing the first verdicts for anyone connected with the unrest that has embarrassed and angered China ahead of the Olympics.

A court in Lhasa handed down the verdicts on Tuesday, Xinhua said, giving few other immediate details.

Update: Other media reports say 30 people have been sentenced. From the Washington Post:

A Chinese court Tuesday sentenced 30 people to jail for their alleged participation in last month’s deadly riot in Lhasa, the first convictions following an aggressive manhunt to find the leaders of anti-government protests that swept through Tibetan areas on China’s western plateau.

Those convicted will serve terms that range from three years to life in prison, state media reported. More than 200 people attended the “open trial,” according to the state media, although it was unclear if any of the accused had legal representation. Foreign journalists are barred from reporting in Tibet.

See also this story from the Associated Press.

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