Dolma Choezom was one of the first interviews for this project. She’
s the mother of Tsering Wangchuk one of the staff at the
communications office (DIIR) where I worked. Another person from
our office, Lobsang Yeshi, interpreted for this interview. A short
summary of her account from our office records, not completed,
had also been given to me. Parts from that account are included.
Dolma had protested on March 10, 1959, on a call from the Tibetan
Women’s Association in Lhasa. They shouted, “Tibet is
Independent,” “Forbid Colonial Rule over Tibet,” at the doorsteps
of the representatives to India and Nepal. When anti-China riots
broke out in Lhasa on March 17, 1959, she had supported some
members of the Tibetan army with equipment, including guns, and
kerosene oil. On March 19th, she helped a few who were trying to
escape after they had fled their stand at the Norbulinka. She said
that they later safely escaped to India.
All of this information was informed to Chinese officials by her
neighbor. On March 22, a contingent of twelve men, Chinese
soldiers with some Tibetans, ransacked her house, and she was
seized. First she was taken to the neighbor’s house and forced to
write a ‘confession’ that confirmed the neighbor’s verbal report. The
Chinese also forced her neighbor to put her thumbprint on the
confession. Then Dolma along with one other Tibetan lady,
Jangchub, were taken by jeep to Taring prison.
After some days of imprisonment, she was taken out of her cell for
interrogation to a house where the ‘the instructor of politics’ was.
His name was Te Tao Yen. Yen was seated by a large table with
other persons sitting in chairs along the sides. There was a sign
written in Chinese and Tibetan that said: ‘A lenient policy will be
applied on those who confess their wrong deeds, and a violent
punishment will be given to those who stubbornly seek to defend
the old order.”
She remembers what this man said to her: “Where did your
husband go? Where is your monk-brother? Your monk-brother was
elected as the leader of the people during the Tibetan uprising.
From your house, seven family members have joined the Chushi
Gangdruk (Tibetan resistance force). You have to admit all of this!
Since you are young, if you admit this we can send you back to
your home. You have two children and you can meet them. But if
you don’t tell us truthfully…you see those whips and chains? They’ll
be used for you…and you won’t have the opportunity to meet your
children. That’s why you have to tell the truth.”
At that time, she knew her husband had gone to join the resistance
force. Seven members of her family had gone to join. “My brother
went to the Norbulinka (-palace), but I wasn’t sure whether he was
elected for anything, as a ‘leader’. Only after the uprising she came
to know from others that her brother died at the Norbulinka. Other
than that she didn’t know anything. Then the Chinese supervisor
then said, “You have to think very carefully…you have to agree
that your brother was the so-called representative of the people.
You have to agree! Since your husband is a ‘counter-
revolutionary’, tell what correspondence you had with him, since
your husband is one of the main correspondent leaders. Other
than this your relative ‘Dukyong’ has resisted the People’s Republic
many times and has killed many in the People’s Liberation Army.”
He continued to accuse her and her family for doing things in this
lama’s name. He said that she would have to tell everything very
clearly, including where they kept all the wealth, money, etc.
“Where did you hide all your family’s treasure?” He said if she
refused to tell about all of this very clearly, that they would chain
her hands and legs and torture her. He gave her a few days to
think about this matter, and then she would have to report back. He
said this in a very threatening way to scare her. Then after a few
days again, the Chinese prison supervisor and the Tibetan man
who helped interrogate her took two Tibetan men, chained by legs
and hands, and beat them. “If you don’t tell us the truth, we will beat
you just as we beat these male prisoners.” And that is how she was
threatened many times.
Whatever she did know she admitted and whatever she didn’t
know, she just stated that she didn’t know. She said this to the
supervisor and said that whatever her husband and relatives have
done, she did not do herself. She said that she was not responsible
for any of those acts. She repeated this many times.
They decided to send her to a prison camp located where the
Chinese wanted to build an Electric Plant, “Ngachen Electric Plant’—
for reformation. This meant forced hard labor, --work without pay.
They had to wake up early while the stars were still in the sky. Then
they had to carry stones on their back, had to dig trenches, all with
out any rest. Chinese guards with guns in their hands watched
over. Dolma said this was such a hell to have to suffer all of this.
Besides this, the Chinese requested the local Chinese community
to instigate and beat them. She recalls one prisoner from Lhoka,
named Yunden Phunstso, who was beaten twice in front of all the
prisoners. Another Tibetan prisoner, Topshi Tashi said out loud
one day that it would be better to commit suicide by jumping in the
river than to eat food in the prison that wasn’t fit for even pigs. For
saying this, they punished him by tying a rope on his hands and
feet. They then tried to pull his limbs with ropes which caused his
eyes to bulge outwards, causing too much pain – he cried out,
became unconscious, and fell on the ground. When they took off
the ropes his eyes came back into place. During all this work there
were also landslides with falling boulders injuring many prisoners,
causing some to become crippled, some to die.
Previously before going to the above mentioned prison labor camp,
Dolma said that she was in Taring Prison. There was one nun
whose name was Galingchar. The Chinese jail officials said that
she was one of the main persons participating in the uprising. They
had chained her and interrogated her many times, stamped on her
and beat her. Dolma also heard that there was one man who had
been the care taker of the Jokhang Temple in the prison, and
another, the manager of the Gatuk monastery. But she couldn’t see
them and Dolma believes that these men were killed. After nine
months in this prison she reached Ngachen Electric Plant’s prison
camp.
After the labor camp, one Chinese official called on her and told
her that since she has two small children at her home, she will be
released with some other prisoners. But she would be restricted.
She would not have freedom of movement and would be required
to get permission from the office of surveillance if she wanted to
travel to places. She was sent to a Chinese police official who told
her that since she had taken all the political rights of the people,
she’s a counter-revolutionary. He told her, “since you have taken
the political right of the people, you are now a woman with a ‘cap’.
You should struggle physically to work hard and respect the
people.”
When she reached her home, the house was almost empty. She
had forty trunks of belongings taken away by the municipal office.
All valuables were gone. She had little left and had a difficult time to
make a livelihood. She tried to start a petty business.
Her husband had joined the voluntary security force to protect the
Dalai Lama but was later betrayed and captured while on an
intelligence mission in 1960. He was imprisoned until 1979 and died
in the Nyethang labor camp.
In 1960, the municipal office gave orders for her to work at a dam.
The dam was located on the southeast of Lhasa, and she was
ordered to carry stones for constructing buildings there. This
consisted of hard work, poor food, and no pay. Because of these
problems, both her eyes, one already failing, began bleeding.
When she checked this at the hospital, she was told that if she
continued to do more labor work she might become blind. Since
she had two young children, and no husband, they allowed her to
leave and later to start up a petty business again. She was then not
ordered to do hard labor with a few exceptions. She had to go if
they required it on occasions. It was only when the dam was almost
completed that they paid her one Chinese won for the day.
In 1961, there was an office that was installed that was called,
“General Selection Committee”. That committee pinpointed all the
counter-revolutionary people and kept track of all of the so called
‘counter-revolutionary’ people. They also appointed some pro-
Chinese Tibetans to work at that office. And people like Dolma who
were considered to have a ‘cap’ on their head, had to go see these
officials every week and also once a month had to give a report.
If they wanted to meet their relatives they had to get permission.
Without permission they could not go. They were required to clean
the office rooms, inside and outside, drainage, everything in detail.
If they didn’t follow orders, then the committee would inquire why
they didn’t perform their duties. Sometimes when they had to go to
a meeting they were not able to fulfill what they were told to do and
they would be beaten and scolded. In Dolma’s case, since one of
her eyes were damaged, they asked her to clean the committee’s
office by sweeping and cleaning. For that she didn’t get any salary
or wages. They would measure the performance of these jobs,
monthly, and have meetings semi-annually. Those people such as
herself would be scolded and beaten during the meeting. The once
a year meeting would go on for four or five days.
On the pretext that Dolma did not fulfill what she had been ordered
to do, she was scolded and tied to a pillar. They took off some of
her hair and beat her. This caused her to be very sick. This was in
1965, the same year that the Chinese communist government
made a five-point decree that consisted of: 1) change the thought;
2) hard labor; 3) obey the laws of the country; 4) respect the
people; 5) rectify one’s mistakes. She was told to remember all of
these and follow these regulations. She said that they said that if
she didn’t fulfill these then they will be beaten.
During the Cultural Revolution people with caps continued to
receive harsh treatment. They were often housed together with
what was called the committee’s communist security force. Those
with the caps were asked to do all kinds of jobs at the whims of the
Chinese officials. Dolma said, “While doing these jobs –getting
water, building fires, etc.—we didn’t get time to rest or get our own
food. Even for little mistakes, we were beaten and scolded.” This
went on for five or six years without receiving any pay for the work.
During the Cultural Revolution, in June 1966, there were many
‘communist league students” who came to Lhasa and started their
‘campaigns’ such as ‘Defend the Communist’ organization. They
came from China in large numbers. Many of these students with
many of their Chinese cadres in Lhasa (those people who worked
in the municipal committees destroyed the temples, monasteries,
statues, and idols. They took away valuable items. They destroyed
all the stupas on the main roads of Lhasa. They destroyed the
‘mani stones’ (stones with prayers engraved and painted on them).
They paraded all the lamas (monks who were religious teachers)
and geyches (teachers of the highest academic qualification) on
the road, beat and scolded them. They asked the people to spit on
them. Likewise, those Tibetans who have been put in caps, the
Chinese announced that “these Tibetans kept the four old things”
(old thinking, old tradition, old culture, and old thought) and that
they “didn’t wash all these old things leaving them still.”
After this program to destroy the ‘four old ways’ was finished, once
again the municipal committee called her. They told her that
Nechung Tulku and T. Ngawan Norbu had escaped abroad from
Lhasa secretly. They said that these men were helped by Pema
Tulku, his wife, the ex-board of Sera-jey monastery, Lhundup
Thopgey and one other man, Senshup Ngodup. They insisted that
she knew about all of this while being interrogated many times
before. Dolma denied this repeatedly and said that she knows
nothing about it. She was beaten many times. After that, others who
were accused of helping them escape were interrogated and
beaten. Pema Tulku’s wife was so frightened that she became
mentally ill and eventually died. Senshup Ngodup was tortured and
eventually died too. While this campaign went on many people
died, committing suicide by jumping into the river.
Dolma said that there was one lady from central Tibet whose name
was Sunchou. Her daughter and she were accused of attempting to
conceal their class. They were interrogated so many times and so
frightened that both of them, together, chose to end their lives by
jumping into the Kilchou River. A lady named Achor, had been
accused of following religion ‘blindly’. She also committed suicide by
jumping in the river. There was a Muslim mullah who was accused
of following religion and they beat him numerous times. He couldn’t
bare the physical torture, so he took his life by jumping in the river.
One man, Parbu Lingchuzu and his wife had been tortured so much
that hey couldn’t bare it—he took her life and then his own with a
knife. Another lady, Yudon, one of her neighbors, was to be taken
for schooling in China but instead of going, chose to end her life.
Dolma discussed about her past as a business woman in Lhasa.
After returning from the prison labor camp in 1961 she found that
all of her belongings were gone in here home (as mentioned
above). The Chinese government in that year had postponed the
commune system in Tibet for another five years. They permitted
Tibetans to do business as before in order to develop the
economy. Dolma got permission to visit her relatives and she went
there. She went in order to borrow money from some of her
relatives to help her start a business. They were residents at the
Tashilhunpo (monastery of the Panchen Lama).
She first started doing business in Shigatse and Drignund. Then
she went to see her relatives at the Tashilhunpo. She stayed at the
Panchen Lama’s temple. When she returned to Lhasa she found
out that the Chinese authorities were aware of the details of her
trip, including who she had met. She was accused of trying to
‘spread poison’ so she was not allowed to travel back based on that
accusation. Since she could not go back to Shigatse, that meant
she could not get her merchandise.
In 1962, she bought some wool from the market and sold it to the
Nepalese businessmen who were in Lhasa. She tried to do some
other business within the city. At the end of that year, there was an
annual meeting for all those doing business, and at that time
business statements were made and representatives from the
Chinese government’s business bureau were there. There were a
number of Muslim businessmen and their wives present. The
Chinese accused the Muslims of doing business tricks and said that
they made more than they said they had made. They were then
taxed and told to pay a greater tax on their profit. Dolma was
accused of black marketing. After that she was told that she had a
lot of profit from the business and they charged her heavy taxes.
Eventually she lost a lot of her capital. Due to this, she had to go
for hard labor.
In 1964, there was a Chinese campaign called, “The Great Lesson
Campaign,” in which all the medium businessmen were asked to do
their business together, and that was the end of individual
businesses. In this year, all the businessmen and many other
people were taken to the ‘teachers training school’ and in that they
have been show exhibitions about the Panchen Lama and the
‘crimes he committed by revolting against the Chinese.’ After that
they were taken to the Chinese municipal office and shown how the
Panchen Lama raised a guerrilla force against the Chinese. The
Panchen Lama had written a 60,000 worded document accusing
the Chinese communists. These Chinese then asked the audience
to rise against the Panchen Lama and said that the people should
‘take out the Panchen Lama’.
At that time, while the anti-Panchen Lama campaign was going on,
Dolma was called for again. The Chinese supervisor then was
named, Fuji Go Tar. He was there with his interpreter. He told her
that she is related to the Panchen Lama’s staff’s member’s wife and
has had dealings with them. He said that when she went to
Shigatse in 1961, she went with them in their automobile, drank and
ate with them, and also had been eating and drinking with the
Panchen Lama’s parents. He said, “these things are known by all.”
He started interrogating her asking, “What about Jigme’s (staff) wife
who escaped to India? What about this! What about the Panchen
Lama’s revolutionary students? What about the lamas who have
dealings with the Panchen Lama in Lhasa? You know all about this
community!” She was interrogated and beaten many times. Since
she didn’t know about all of these things, she replied that she didn’t
know. They later asked her relatives' daughter, Choyon, about
these things and they frightened her on this account. On top of all
of this, they called people who were living with her to the municipal
committee and she was ordered to stand in front of all those people
and confess. These people were told to say that they were ‘helping
her’. Then she was interrogated, and again said she didn’t know
anything about it. She said if she had known this she would have
told them before and to all the people. Dolma said that she then
said, “If you don’t believe this, you can bring Jigme himself here
and I will repeat exactly this in front of him. If at that time Jigme says
that I have lied about this, you can kill me.” Once again, she was
told to think carefully and go home. After that the staff of the
municipal committee kept strictly observing her activities.
In 1976, one of the Chinese cadres from the industries and
business department tried to investigate her business capital. He
told her that she had been ‘a big business woman before with big
capital.’ He said that it was suspicious that now she still wasn’t even
then a middle-level business woman. He said, ‘surely you want to
be a big business woman again.’ Dolma replied to him that in the
past Tibetan society she was a ‘big business woman’ and at that
time she used to do business with India, China, Chamdo, and
Lhasa – all over these places. She said to him, “I had capital worth
100,000 Chinese won, one store in Lhasa—Thekchen Ropchin, I
had one store in the Barkor. I sold a lot of Chinese merchandise. I
had one hundred and twenty gold coins, silver and gold butter
lamps, religious objects, seven porcelain, Tibetan currency, silver
coins, a gold amulet, two golden bracelets, two dzi stones(very
rare), about one hundred thirty yaks and dhrey, some horses, and
merchandise stock in Chamdo and Tarzido. These have all been
confiscated by the Chinese government in 1959.”
She went on that after the Tibetan national uprising, her house was
sealed, her two children were left with only quilts, a mattress, and a
table. All the leaders and people came to hear about what Dolma
had said and because of this ‘outburst’ she was categorized as a
middle-level business woman.
In 1977, she had a hard time making a living and she started selling
potatoes. She had to first get permission to do this. Then she was
selling three or four bags of potatoes every day but still had a very
difficult time. After only one year of doing this, she was told by the
authorities that she was taking advantage of other people by doing
this potato business. She was asked to stop doing this business. In
short from 1959 to 1979, the Chinese government did all of these
things to her with out her ever having committed a crime. For no
sound reason, she was imprisoned for one year and after that lived
much like a prisoner under the Municipal Committee. She had been
categorized as a counter-revolutionary, punished, tortured,
scolded, put in forced labor without receiving pay. Her wealth was
forcibly confiscated and her house, her shop, also taken. Using the
pretext of tax collection, the Chinese officials took whatever she
had earned from her. Even her two children were categorized as
‘counter-revolutionary’ and discriminated against both at school
and later at the workplace. Also her sister, Choyon, had been
forcibly taken to distant places to work..
With all of these sufferings, during all of these years, she says that
there was no person to report this to. Now that she is in a free
country, it is finally as a refugee that she can tell all of this without
omission. As the Chinese forces continue to violate people’s human
rights, she appeals to the United Nations and the free world to
investigate – to tell the Chinese government to stop all of this at
once.
In 1983, she came with her son to India. Her daughter Tsering
Yangzom, fell ill and died in Tibet in 1986. She and her son now
reside in Dharamsala, India(1991).
CYBEReTOWER™ LLC. All text and photographs above are copyrighted by the artist, David F
Shever, all rights reserved.
