A joint statement released yesterday by Ambeyi Ligabo, the Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression; Leandro Despouy, the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers; and Hina Jilani, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on human rights defenders, called for the re-trial of Tenzin Deleg Rinpoche.

The experts said Tenzin Deleg Rinpoche was sentenced to death on 2 December 2002 - that sentence has since been suspended until 2 December 2004 - after being accused of "causing explosions" and inciting the separation of the state. He denies the charges. His co-accused, Lobsang Dondrup, was executed in January last year.

Tenzin Deleg Rinpoche is a Tibetan Lama who had been doing social work for the Tibetan community in the Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Sichuan province and had promoted the re-establishment of Tibetan Buddhism in that region, according to the statement.

The UN experts said "numerous and credible reports" indicated serious procedural flaws during Tenzin Deleg Rinpoche's trial. These included ill-treatment during the pre-trial period, being kept incommunicado during detention, the failure to allow an open trial, the accused's inability to choose his own lawyer, and the violation of the accused's right to know and study the evidence presented against him in court.

Saying they feared Tenzin Deleg Rinpoche could be executed at any point after 2 December this year, the experts urged Chinese authorities to grant a new trial that respects international norms.