A Tibetan village leader has died from severe torture inflicted during seven months of detention by Chinese authorities, raising grave concerns about the fate of 20 other detainees, including the prominent religious figure Khenpo Tenpa Dhargye in Golok (Ch: Guoluo) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture.
Gonpo Namgyal, a village leader from Ponkor village, succumbed to injuries sustained during his seven months in Chinese custody on 18 December 2024, just three days after his release.
In May 2024, Chinese authorities detained Khenpo Tenpa Dhargye, a revered Tibetan religious figure, along with 20 other villagers, including the village leader from Ponkor village in Darlag (Ch: Dari) County, Golok (Ch: Guoluo) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. These arrests are believed to be connected to the “Language Protection Association,” an initiative led by Khenpo Dhargye to preserve the Tibetan language.
Of the 20 individuals detained, TCHRD has identified nine, including Ngaza Palden, Jigme Tenzin, Söchö, Wangchen Kyab, Lochö, Nordu, Purtsé, Namgyal, and Ridar. A source informed TCHRD that “Villagers fear that Khenpo Dhargye may face the same brutal treatment that led to Gonpo Namgyal’s death.” Khenpo was transferred to a detention center in Tsolho Prefecture and is now reportedly held in Siling (Ch: Xining).
The detainees have been held incommunicado since their arrest, with no information on their whereabouts or conditions. Khenpo Tenpa Dhargye, a revered figure in the region, is a close associate of the late Khenpo Jigme Phuntsok, founder of the Serthar Buddhist Institute (also known as Larung Gar). His efforts to promote Tibetan cultural and linguistic preservation have made him a target for Chinese authorities. Days before his arrest, Chinese authorities searched his monastic quarter and confiscated photographs of Khenpo Dhargye seeking an audience with His Holiness the Dalai Lama during pilgrimages to India in 2004 and 2005.
Khenpo Dhargye’s initiatives, including educational outreach and guidance for nomadic communities, have greatly benefited local Tibetans but have also drawn the ire of the Chinese government. His work has been instrumental in fostering Tibetan cultural resilience in the face of the systemic suppression of Tibetan language and culture.
The Chinese government has intensified its crackdown on private Tibetan schools and informal language preservation groups, particularly those led by religious figures. These measures are part of a broader strategy to suppress Tibetan cultural identity, coordinated from central authorities in Beijing down to local levels in Golok Prefecture. Policies and campaigns implemented since 2011, following the Fifth Tibet Work Forum (2010), have resulted in the intensification of China’s forced cultural assimilation policies, targeting education and language rights in Tibet. In recent years, several highly reputed Tibetan private schools have been forcibly shut down, including Sengdruk Taktse Middle School in Darlag (Ch: Dari) County and Jigme Gyaltsen Nationalities Vocational School in Golok County.
China’s intensified targeting of Tibetan cultural and religious figures, coupled with a broader crackdown on informal education and language initiatives, reflects a systematic effort to suppress Tibetan identity.
TCHRD calls on the Chinese government to immediately disclose the status and conditions of Khenpo Dhargye and the 20 detained individuals, ensure their immediate release, and initiate an independent investigation into the death of Gonpo Namgyal.
