PROFILES IN COURAGE: DAY 40 – JANUARY 30TH

Thupten Ngodup (1938-1998)
Tibetan patriot and martyr

On April 27, 1998 Thupten Ngodup committed self-immolation for the cause of Tibetan independence. His ultimate sacrifice became an image that symbolized the Tibetan people’s burning desire for freedom.

Thupten Ngodup was born in 1938 in Tibet in the village of Gyatso Shar, U-Tsang Province. As a young man he joined the Tashilhunpo monastery. After the 1959 Uprising he fled to India and settled in Bylakuppe.

In October 1963 Thupten Ngodup enlisted Tibetan military force. He was trained as a paratrooper and was involved in several missions along the Indo-Tibetan border. In Nov 1971 his company was stationed at the jumping-off point in north-eastern India, code name “camping ground”. He participated in the Indian war that liberated Bangladesh.

In 1983, Thupten Ngodup was discharged from his unit. He moved to Dharamsala, where he became a cook for Tsechokling monastery. He lived on a small plot next to the monastery. According to friends, he was a friendly but quiet man, who never missed a single demonstration for Tibetan freedom.

On March 10th, six Tibetans went on hunger strike to demand the United Nations take action to help end China’s occupation of Tibet. The hunger strike, organized by the Tibetan Youth Congress, went on for 49 days when Indian police forcibly removed three of the protesters. The raid occurred in advance of a visit by the head of the Chinese army to India.

Two days later they returned to remove the remaining three hunger strikers. A the age of 60, Thupten Ngodup joined the hunger strike in India, volunteering to be part of the second group of hunger strikers. One April 27, as Indian police returned to remove the remaining hunger strikers, Thupten Ngodup doused himself in gasoline and lit himself on fire.

Those who witnessed the event, describe how Thupten Ngodup, enveloped in flames cried out “Bod Rangzen – Independence for Tibet” and “Long Live His Holiness the Dalai Lama” as he ran. The police were able to extinguish the flames, but 90% of his body had sustained severe burns. He was taken to the hospital where he was visited by the Dalai Lama. Thupten Ngodup died on April 29th.

Shortly before he self-immolated, Thupten Ngodup was interviewed by Voice of Tibet radio:

“I joined the Hunger-Strike because I am a Tibetan and I have a duty to perform…. No, there is no fear in my heart at all. The Tibetan situation has become desperate… I am giving up my life to bring about peace and fulfillment to my unhappy people…. I have one hundred percent confidence that the people inside Tibet will not only continue the struggle but will intensify it.” – Thupten Ngodup, April 23, 1998

Read a moving tribute to Thupten Ngodup by the Tibetan scholar Jamyang Norbu.