Venerable Jampa Tenzin is a monk that worked in the same department
that I was volunteering at. I saw him often and got to know him a little
because the department personnel traveled and worked together during
the Kalachakra Teachings (December 1990). But I never knew about his
biographical account until I decided to begin this project. This is one of
three persons that my friend, Sonam Tenzin introduced me in support of
my investigative project. I had trouble with some chemicals in developing
this negative and then had Jampa back to photograph him again. The
second round was technically fine, but didn’t capture the moment the way I
felt this portrait did. Jampa gave me direct insight into what was happening
through his experience of events leading up to the Chinese communist
takeover. He also discussed his experience of being imprisoned for many
years. While some parts from my interviews with him are left out, I included
a good portion of it here as I felt that his first hand experience of the times
helps add to the account of the case for revealing a story that should be
known.
Jampa at the age of eight went to study Tibetan language at school.
Situated in Lhasa city, his family was very poor, so some of his other
relatives sponsored the traditional tea-party for his teacher on his first day
of school. Jampa said that there were no fees to pay for school as part of
a free educational system. In 1951, at age sixteen, there was a rumor that
the coming of the Chinese meant that all the young men would be
recruited into the Red Guard. On fearing being enlisted, he became a
monk at Sera-che monastery (Sera had two monasteries). He did well in
his studies and at age twenty-three, one of his teachers introduced him
into the Tibetan civil service. To be selected for service, however, involved
a competitive process in which he had to take a test which would be shown
to His Holiness the Dalai Lama who then gave final approval and
appointed him to head the Tibetan staff in an office called, “The Tibetan
Autonomous Office”. This office was comprised of half Tibetans and half
Chinese officials. The creation of this office was one of the seventeen
point agreements with the Chinese. Jampa said that the Tibetans
considered the office as a tool for dividing the Tibetans. He said that the
Chinese rationalized that the office’s purpose was to develop Tibet and
alleviate the Tibetan people. There was an immediate conflict of interests.
His Holiness was said to be the head of this office. But in reality, all matters
of policy were decided by the Chinese, and the function of this office was
to turn Tibet into a communist system. At this time, Tibetans openly
expressed how they were not willing to accept the imposed changes, that
policy decisions should be decided by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and not
from a foreign authority. Tibetans started sending letters to Tibetan
organizations requesting to stop China’s reforms. The Tibetan leaders of
these organizations then sent letters to Tibetan government
representatives and many even wrote to the Chinese officials. Rather than
listening to these views, the Chinese would later prosecute and imprison
the letter-writers.
One aspect that Jampa wanted to point out about his life is that he serves
as an example that challenges the Chinese accusation that Tibetan
society works on a feudal set-up. Given Jampa’s economic background,
with no link to a feudal lineage, how could the son of a poor family rise to
be granted such a position of authority heading an administrative staff? He
said that the Chinese entered Tibet with the slogan “to help modernize
Tibet” and stated that as soon as Tibet is modernized, that they will return
to China. At the initial stage, many Tibetans believed what the Chinese set
out to do in Tibet. Eventually what the Chinese really did can be seen in
their so called, “democratic reforms” in which they abruptly took peoples’
belongings and abused and oppressed anything related to religion (they
consider religion as a poison). Actually in 1956, when Tibetans were
outspoken about their views of the Chinese ‘democratic reforms’, the
Chinese proclaimed that they would not carry on such reforms for the next
six years. But once again, in reality what they said and what they did were
two completely opposite things. They started pampering a few selected
Tibetans that they would use as neophytes. They started introducing their
communist policies which included torture sessions involving using
servants against masters and confiscating properties and valuables. This
was happening outside of Lhasa at the time, and the Chinese officials
denied that those things were going on. By 1958 they started propaganda
through loud speakers denouncing religion and were ordering the people
coming in (escaping) from eastern Tibet to go back for those were the
people who had seen what was happening.
In 1959 Jampa started attending meetings for Tibetan Independence. He
voluntarily joined the force to protect the Jokang Temple before it was
bombarded. He was one of countless Tibetans, he said, arrested and
imprisoned. He and three others were put in a room that was so small that
they could not find a way to sleep and had to stand. The food was no
more than a cup of rice and cup of water for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
There was a shortage of water and they had to survive for two months in
this room. Young people like himself who spoke for Tibetan Independence
were identified and he experienced a great amount of torture.
On January 15, 1960, his hands and his legs were chained and he was
taken in front of the public as the Chinese officials read the charges
against him and labeled him a counter revolutionary. He was then
sentenced to twelve years of imprisonment and three more years in
addition as one deprived of all rights to be enjoyed by civilians. (Even after
this period he was not to become a free man, but was instead subjected to
forced labor. Under this forced labor he worked fifteen hours a day in the
construction of what is known today as the “Peoples’ Playground” in
Lhasa. “We were driven like animals and forced to fetch stones at the
banks of a river. The ‘glorious’ playground that has been constructed is
actually a production of the festered wounds of our legs and feet. Wangdu
Tsewond was one of the many prisoners I worked with who died as a result
of the forced labor. As a mark of protest on the day of his death, we
prisoners during our dinner time all cried. After that we saw a small bit of
improvement in the situation.”
His second phase of forced labor involved him as part of a group of 260
prisoners. They were forced to construct the Chinese army hospital near
Sera where they were to work for some twelve hours a day. “This was also
a time when China was hampered with an economic crisis which meant
that we had a tough time to manage physically and mentally. With only a
cup of tsampa in the morning and afternoon, and a very light soup for
dinner, I witnessed the people dying of starvation in large numbers.
People started eating any vegetation available in order to keep alive. I was
able to survive mainly due to the very little food that my parents were able
to sneak in to me. Compared to other places in Tibet we were a little better
off. Still, my group witnessed 60 out of 260 die of starvation.
“In 1963, the Chinese started highlighting the constitution of His Holiness
the Dalai Lama written in exile. I took it upon myself to explain it to others
and the illiterate that this testament is the hope of a future independent
and democratic Tibet. The prison authorities came to know about my
activities in propagating the hope of future independence and thereafter
my movements were restricted. Guards were posted at my cell. The
interrogation started for me.” He was able to stand his ground he says, as
he was pressed to give out names of others involved but did not disclose
any information. The Chinese involved in trying to re-educate the Tibetans
in his prison, constantly used propaganda that blamed the Dalai Lama as
the cause for all the ills of “old-Tibet”. He had to spend twelve years of his
life in such a situation.
In 1971, Jampa’s term of being a civilian without any rights ended but this
only meant that he was shifted to “Ordidi prison”, was paid a minimal sum
to maintain clothing and food, and was forced into rock breaking, cement
making, and brick laying. This he felt was his life at its lowest. Until 1979,
he had been listed as a “black hat person”. However thanks to His
Holiness the Dalai Lama’s worldwide effort to highlight the agony in Tibet,
the Chinese were forced to liberalize Tibet, temporarily. He became a “free
man” under communist Chinese rule only in 1981. Jampa said, “the
Chinese were able to subdue us physically no doubt, but were not able to
kill our spirit, even when the struggle for freedom at many times seems so
far and faint.”
He took advantage of the situation in the early 1980’s where Tibetans
were given more freedom of movement, and was able to travel to India in
1983, to see his relatives after a long time. He also had an audience with
the Dalai Lama after arrival, which was a dream come true—“the
culmination of all of my prayers, and my desires fulfilled.” It was during the
audience with His Holiness, that he was appointed as editor of Sheja
magazine. The magazine is an important tool, Jampa says, “to counter the
force of the propaganda of the communist regime and to unmask the lies
churned out by the Chinese government”. He devotes himself
wholeheartedly to this publication. He also said that he shares his feeling
and believes that the non-violent struggle advocated by the Dalai Lama is
the best path to take.
This is both a sad yet beautiful story. It is the story of a young boy from a
poor family who through his own disciplined effort, studied Tibetan
language in his youth advancing to a position of responsibility based on
the merits of his achievements. It is the story of the survival of a dedicated
public servant through a long term, politically based persecution and
through life threatening situations. It is the story of freedom and a renewed
use of his early studies of Tibetan language now being implemented to
heighten awareness and counter the false picture projected by a powerful,
but brute force, currently occupying the land of Tibet.
CYBEReTOWER™ LLC. All text and photographs above are copyrighted by the artist, David F
Shever, all rights reserved.
