Colours idbits from around the world ibet hinese authorities in Tibet ave sentenced Ngawang hoephel, 30, to eighteen ears in prison for spying. e sentence is one of the ost severe to be handed own in Tibet since gawang Phulchung and ampel Changchup, both onks, were jailed for ineteen years in 1989 for a ariety of political crimes ncluding advocating a emocratic Tibet. Choephel is a scholar and usician arrested more than year ago and whose hereabouts were only ently acknowledged by hinese authorities. hoephel was researching ibetan Folk music and ance on a Fulbright scholarship. The Chinese government asserts that Choephel was a spy sent by the Dalai Lama with the aid of the United States. Amnesty International accuses China of committing “gross violations of human rights” in Tibet, which was invaded in 1949. Indonesia Political trials have begun in Indonesia as nine pro- democracy activists and a prominent independent trade unionist have been charged with subversion, a crime which carries the penalty of death. The charges result from the unrest of July 27, 1996 when Jakarta saw the largest anti- government protests in three decades. At least five people were killed and hundreds injured. The riots were sparked by the storming of the head- quarters of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), one of three officially recognized political parties. The head- quarters had been occupied by the supporters of Megawati Sukarnoputri who was ousted as PDI leader in a government-backed meeting she claims was illegal. Nine defendants are from the unrecognized Demo- cratic People’s Party (PRD), which is a leftist group with a membership of only a few hundred. Party leader Budiman Sudjatmiko, 26, and his colleagues are accused of taking actions that could “distort, under- mine or abuse” Indonesia’s state ideology known as Pancasila. Muchtar Pakpahan, 43, is the head of an independent labour union and the tenth defendant. In his indictment he is said to have taken actions that “clearly could lead to toppling or destroy- ing or undermining” the government. Pakpahan has disagreed with Indonesia’s “integration” of East Timor. He was a guest of the Canadian Labour Congress at its bi-annual convention last May in Vancouver. All defendants were arrested shortly after the July 27 protests and have been in detention ever since. Student Rush i wEXGlusive savings of 30% off for Canucks & Grizzlies — IT ON. Vancouver Canucks vs. San Jose Sharks - Thu., Mar 20 e 7:00 pm Vancouver Canucks vs. Los Angeles Kings Vancouver Canucks vs. Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Wed., Mar. 26 @ 7:00 pm Tickets start from just $20.50 a. un., Mar. % e 12:00 noon VS. -~ Vs. 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Vietnamese authorities were acting to “reclaim” farmland in order to begin construction of a luxury golf course. They were met by over 500 protesters who hurled stones and set two bulldozers and another vehicle on fire. Five people were reported injured. Violence also erupted last May at the commune when police began ripping up rice plants from a field appropri- ated for a golf course. One woman was killed and scores injured. According to the Hanoi Moi Daily—the official paper of the Communist Party—villagers had agreed to vacate their land and were praised for their district's traditional revolutionary fervour. The luxury golf course is part of a $177-million (US) joint-venture with South Korea’s Daewoo Group, which is the biggest single investor in Vietnam. China China’s crackdown against young dissidents continues as former Beijing University INTERNATIONAL WOMYN'S ép DAY !! c student Guo Haifeng was sentenced to five years in prison for “hooliganism” in January. The Chinese government claims that Guo helped fellow dissidents to flee abroad. Guo’s sentencing comes shortly after the secret trial and conviction of Wang Dan, 27, to 11 years in prison for “conspiring to subvert the government.” Wang was a prominent student leader of the Tiananmen Square Movement of 1989. East Timor East Timorese independence leader José Ramos-Horta plans to form a “shadow government” in exile, according to Lusa, the Portuguese news agency. Horta has said that the jailed Timorese resistance leader, Xanana Gusmao, has already designated the names of those to serve in the government in exile. Gusmao is serving a 20 year jail sentence in Indonesia and was the leader of the East Timorese guerrilla army known as Falintil. Horta, who lives in exile in Australia, has declined to disclose the names of those in the government but will do so later in the year. Last year he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize along with the Bishop of East Timor, Carlos Belo. Reprinted from Asia Connexions. The Other Press February 17 1997 11