BEIJING, June 5 (Reuters) - Che Dalha, the former government head of the Tibet Autonomous Region, has been sentenced to life in prison over corruption, China’s official Xinhua news agency reported on Friday.
Che Dalha, or Qizhala, 67 and of Tibetan ethnicity, illegally took in more than 158 million yuan ($23.35 million) from 1999 to 2025 while he worked in the country’s southwestern border regions of Tibet and Yunnan, as well as during postings in Beijing, a court in the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing found.
He had served as the Communist Party chief of Tibet’s capital, Lhasa, and then as chair of the Tibet Autonomous Region’s government as the region’s second-highest ranking official. The top official in Tibet is the regional Communist Party chief.
China’s anti-graft watchdog announced a probe into Che Dalha in January 2025. He was formally removed from public office and expelled from the party six months later.
Leveraging his official positions, Che Dalha provided assistance to individuals and organisations “in matters concerning real estate development, project contracting, administrative approvals, and job promotions” while receiving properties and valuables in return, the court said.
His actions “caused particularly serious losses to the interests of the state and the people,” the court found. It ordered deprivation of political rights for life, and confiscation of all personal assets.
Che Dalha admitted guilt and expressed remorse during the court proceedings, state media said.
Beijing has exerted greater institutional control in Tibet since Xi Jinping became the country’s leader in 2012. Human rights groups and exiles describe China’s rule in the region over the decades as “oppressive”, an accusation that Beijing rejects. ($1 = 6.7668 Chinese yuan renminbi)
(Reporting by Beijing Newsroom; Editing by Alex Richardson)
