Translated by TenGyal
Edited by kelsang Jinpa
24th September, 2024.
Venerable Jampa Choephel, a monk from Rebgong, has been imprisoned for posting a piece of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s teachings on his WeChat account on 10th March this year.
According to information received from a reliable source, with regarding online disseminating information to commemorate the 10th March Uprising this year, Ven. Jampa Choephel was arrested from his residence in mid-March. He had been detained in the Chinese government prison in Gura Thang, Rebgong since 22nd March, 2024. In August, China officially sentenced him to one and half year which includes the detention period too.
The same source said that Ven. Jampa Choephel was transferred to one of the Qinghai Provincial Prisons in Xining to serve the remaining one-year sentence from 22nd September. He was initially arrested and detained by the Tongren (同仁市) city police station in Rebgong. Later he was convicted by the Rebgong City People’s Prosecutor’s Office. Ven. Jampa’s family and relations were not informed or consulted during the prosecution. His relatives were even intimidated by threats of prosecution and punishment themselves. Therefore it is extremely dangerous for the relatives to inquire about his well-being in the related offices.
On 10th March 2024, Ven Jampa Choephel shared a post that cited a portion of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s teachings on his We-Chat account. He was subsequently arrested as sharing contents related to the Dalai Lama is illegal under Chinese law. It has also come to light that the Chinese government had been closely monitoring him with great suspicion and specially, his living quarters had been continually spied on and watched over during Tibetan festivals.
Venerable Jampa Choephel fled to India in 1986, where he pursued a decade of intensive study at the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics in Dharamshala. There, he earned a degree in Prajnaparamita, a key area of Buddhist philosophy, before returning to Tibet in 1996. Upon his return, Choephel settled at Penkharthang Monastery in lower Rebgong, where he focused on spiritual retreats and meditation. Known for his expertise in Tibetan calligraphy and fluency in English, he also taught both subjects to students, while frequently embarking on pilgrimages to sacred sites as part of his spiritual practice.
