Published by: World Tibet Network News, Wednesday, March 6th 1996

BEIJING 03/05 (AP)-- Moving to quash Buddhist support for Tibetan independence, the Chinese government has closed at least one monastery and one nunnery in Tibet, a monitoring group said Tuesday.

The Tibet Information Network, quoting unofficial reports, said most of the buildings of the Shongchen nunnery were demolished, indicating that the retreat would be permanently closed.

The 20 nuns at Shongchen, about 212 miles southwest of the Tibetan capital Lhasa, were ordered to return to their homes and resume farming, the London-based organization said.

Lama Khedrup Gyatso, who was in charge of the nunnery, was taken away and possibly arrested, it said.

Ten monks at the nearby monastery of Doglho also were ordered to return to their homes, it added.

It was not possible to immediately confirm the report on the closures, which occurred in a remote part of China's most isolated region.

China has recently tightened controls over the Buddhist retreats, many of which are clandestine centers of support for Tibetan independence from China.

Shongchen had only recently been reconstructed after being destroyed during anti-religious campaigns between 1959 and 1979, the report said.