Shimla, Dec. 18 -- Raising concern over mass arrests and communications blackout following protest against gold mining in Kashi, Kham Zachukha, eastern Tibet, the Tibetans in Exile seek government intervention. Deputy director and environmental researcher at the Tibet Policy Institute (TPI), Tempa Gyaltsen, during a press conference held on Tuesday in Dharamshala said that Chinese authorities in Kashi village have detained around 80 Tibetans following a protest against illegal gold-mining activities, with the whereabouts of seven individuals still unknown. He said the detentions were carried out on November 6 at approximately 6:50 pm after local Tibetans confronted the miners and alerted township authorities to gold extraction discovered a day earlier, on November 5 at 2:11 pm, in an area known locally as Serkhok (Gold Valley). He said that following the confrontation, Chinese authorities launched what residents described as "systematic, door-to-door arrests" in Kashi village. Those detained were reportedly transported to Sershul County for interrogation. The arrests were accompanied by a communications blackout, heightened security deployment, and severe restrictions on movement throughout the area. He added, "Security forces are said to have entered homes, confiscated mobile phones, and carried out invasive searches. Armed police and military personnel have reportedly been deployed across roads and public spaces, detaining individuals even for perceived opposition to the mining activities". Zamlha said that the situation in Kashi township has been described by locals as "extremely tense," with villagers expressing fear for the safety of detained family members amid ongoing arrests, restricted movement, and communication. Providing an update on the situation in December, Zamlha relayed accounts from sources alleging severe mistreatment of detainees during interrogation. According to these accounts, those detained were allegedly denied sleep and access to toilets, and were given only minimal food consisting of cold tsampa (barley) mixed with water once a day. Some detainees reportedly sustained broken ribs, developed kidney-related illnesses following severe beatings and torture in detention centres, or suffered serious physical and psychological trauma following intense interrogations. "Detainees were forcibly compelled to sign written pledges committing them to remain silent and refrain from sharing information with the outside world, constituting coerced confessions and restrictions on freedom of expression," said Zamlha. He said the gold-mining incident is not isolated and mining activities in the region have reportedly occurred repeatedly since the 1990s. "Under the guise of "development," authorities have also built dams and opened additional mining sites that residents say have caused severe ecological harm to local rivers, grasslands, and sacred landscapes", said Zamlha. "This is not an isolated incident. Tibetans face ongoing exploitation and environmental destruction across Tibet. The Chinese government's occupation of Tibet has created a situation where Chinese companies and officials are going into Tibetan areas and taking whatever profit they can. Tibetans who protest face arrest, prison time as well as torture and all kinds of repression," Dorjee Tseten, Member of Tibetan Parliament in Exile and Asia Program Manager, Tibet Action Institute, said....