Political prisoner Yeshe Choedron Honoured on Tibetan Heroes Day

By Lauren Chaplin / July 15, 2016;

Inauguration of Tibetan Heroes Day
Photo: Tibet.net

Tibetan political prisoner Yeshe Choedron has been awarded the inaugural Tenzin Delek Rinpoche Medal of Courage. This award commemorates the first anniversary of Tulku Tenzin Delek Rinpoche’s death and also marks the launch of Tibetan Heroes Day. Organised by several Tibetan non government organisations, including the International Tibet Network, the Tibetan Women’s Association and Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) India, this award recognises Choedron’s courage and dedication to promoting justice and human rights for Tibetans.

Yeshe Choedon

Yeshe Choedron, a retired doctor, was sentenced to 15 years in prison by the Chinese authorities for allegedly providing state secrets to the Central Tibet Administration, formerly known as the Tibetan government-in-exile. The Chinese government has not responded to frequent questions about her case, and in April 2016 a reliable Tibet Post International (TPI) source reported that her health was in weak condition. Choedron has not seen her children since her prison term began in 2008.

Dolma Yangchen, President of the Tibetan Women’s Association, received the award on Choedron’s behalf. “By honouring Yeshe Choedron we pay tribute to her courage and the courage of thousands of other Tibetans in or from Tibet who have spent years of their lives unfairly imprisoned or detained for the important role they have played in the struggle for Tibetan freedom,” said Yangchen.

The award is named after Trulku Tenzin Delek Rinpoche, a highly respected Tibetan spiritual teacher who died under mysterious circumstances on July 12, 2015. His relatives allege that he might have been poisoned, claiming that they saw his skin and nails turned black. At the time of his death he was serving a life sentence in Chuandong Prison in the Chinese city of Chengdu. Prior to his death, the Chinese had ignored repeated calls made by Tibetans and international bodies to release him on medical parole.

Rinpoche was popular among Tibetans for his campaigns to protect Tibetan culture and religion from repressive Chinese policies, and also for his efforts to protect Tibet’s fragile environment by opposing illegal mining and river pollution.

The announcement of this award was accompanied by the launch of Tibetan Heroes Day which is to be an annual event to mark and celebrate the continued courage of the Tibetan people.