Under the Chinese legal system, the presumption of innocence until proven guilty is not applied. In the majority of cases reported, children detained without trial are simply issued with an administrative detention order and usually sent to labour camps to serve their term. Gyaltsen Pelsang , a 16 yea-old nun from Garu Nunnery, was 13 at the time of her arrest for her participation in a peaceful demonstration. Lobsang Gyatso , a 17 year-old monk from Chamdo Monastery was arrested in February 1995 and has been detained since then without any formal trial. He is reportedly still detained in Silthang Prison.
Juveniles released from prison are black-listed and put under strict surveillance.
After their release from prison, these children are refused re-admission into their schools. Tibetan children are thereby being denied opportunities which have a profound effect on their adult lives. Young prisoners and adults alike are subjected to beatings, electric shocks, solitary confinement and deprivation of sleep, food or drink as punishment. Gelek Jinpa , a 14 year-old monk of Ganden Monastery, was beaten six times by police during his interrogation, following the crackdown on Ganden Monastery in May 1996. This incident of police brutality against a minor occurred even before he was taken to prison.