By Duncan Harley.
Dr Choje Akong Rinpoche, the founder and abbot of the Samye Ling Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Scotland, has reportedly been “assassinated” in the south west Chinese city of Chengdu.
Dr Akong was aged 73 and had lived in Britain since 1963. He co-founded Samye Ling in 1967 in a former nurses home in Eskdalemuir.
It was the first Tibetan Buddhist monastery in the West and is currently home to a community of around 60 monks and lay-people.
A statement from police in the Chinese city of Chengdu said Choje Akong Rinpoche, his nephew and his driver were killed in a residential area and that three suspects had stabbed the men to death in a dispute about money. The usual suspects have been arrested by Chinese Police.
A statement posted on the Samye Ling website by Akong’s brother Lama Yeshe Rinpoche said:
“To all dear friends of Samye Ling and Choje Akong Rinpoche, I am very, very sorry to inform you all that tragically, my brother Choje Akong Rinpoche, my nephew and one monk who was travelling with them were all assassinated in Chengdu today.”
The Foreign Office said:
“We can confirm the death of a British national in Chengdu, China on 8th October and we stand ready to provide consular assistance.”
Akong Rinpoche will be missed.
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It goes without saying that the killing of Dr Rinpoche and his companions is very sad and concerning. What also makes this upsetting for me, is that our First Minister Alex Salmond refuses to listen or acknowledge the human right abuses by the Chinese government, but instead falls over himself like an excitable lap dog as he ingratiates himself to any Chinese dignitary.
A year on, his brother speaks.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtJfR50EWTM&feature=youtu.be
There is an update to this story as follows:
12 OCTOBER 2012
PRESS RELEASE FROM LAMA YESHE LOSAL RINPOCHE, ABBOT OF KAGYU SAMYE LING MONASTERY, SCOTLAND
RE: THE DEATH OF CHOJE AKONG TULKU RINPOCHE
Now that the Chengdu Police have released the names of the men who killed Choje Akong Tulku Rinpoche, his nephew and attendant, we are in a position to confirm that one of the suspects named by the police, Tu Dan Gu Sha also known as Thubten Kunsal, had previously spent more than five years in the UK, and returned to China two years ago.
Whilst residing in the UK he made religious statues at our monastery in Scotland and our London centre. He left very happy and there was no question of any economic dispute. My brother, Choje Akong Tulku Rinpoche had always been very kind to Thubten Kunsal and welcomed him into the heart of our community.
According to an official microblog post by the Chengdu police force, the three suspects confronted my brother and the other two victims, with knives, at his home in Chengdu in what is being described as an “economic dispute.”
We strongly refute any claims that Thubten Kunsal was owed money by Akong Rinpoche, the monastery or our London centre. When he was with us in the UK we supported his living expenses as agreed in writing, and there was never any dispute about that.
We are therefore very shocked that two years later he came demanding money, knowing that Akong Rinpoche was about to send funds to the ROKPA charitable projects in the Tibetan areas of China. As we have already stated, Akong Rinpoche died defending those funds.
It has been reported in the press that the driver who was killed was a monk from Samye Ling. This is not correct. It was Akong Tulku Rinpoche’s Tibetan attendant, from his Monastery Dolma Lhakang, who has not been to the UK.
I hope this statement will clear up any misunderstandings,
With thanks for your prayers and kind wishes,
Lama Yeshe Losal Rinpoche
Abbot of Kagyu Samye Ling Monastery, Scotland.