Drapchi Prison

Drapchi Prison is the largest prison in Tibet. It is located within the Lhasa city limit. An old military garrison, the building was converted into a prison in 1959. Under normal circumstances, the prison has an estimated population of 1,000 prisoners, at least 600 of which are political prisoners. Drapchi Prison is notorious in Tibet for its rumored strict rule and brutality. It was reported that, following the Riots in Lhasa in March, 2008, Drapchi Prison reached maximum capacity.

• Wikipedia: Drapchi Prison
• TCHRD: Drapchi Prison : Tibet's Most Dreaded Prison
• Google News: Drapchi Prison
• Times Online: 1,000 Tibetans Arrested in Chinese Crackdown (March 18, 2008)
  • "Sources in the city said that 600 people had been detained on Saturday and another 300 had been picked up on Sunday. They said it was not clear where those rounded up were being detained because the main Drapchi Prison in Lhasa is believed to be virtually full."
• Tibet Custom: Drapchi Nuns to Lead March in London (March 7, 2008)
• International Campaign for Tibet: 'Song of Sadness' from Drapchi Prison... (March 31, 2006)
  • "They were known as the 'singing nuns' after they secretly recorded songs about the Dalai Lama and Tibet's future on a tape cassette that was smuggled out of prison and reached the West."
• Asia Human Rights News: A Prisoner Flees from Drapchi Prison Hospital (January 7, 2003)
• The New York Times: Dissident Monk Said to Die in Prison in Chinese-Controlled Tibet (July 28, 1996)