Ani Pachen
Ani Pachen | |
---|---|
Born | 1933 Gonjo |
Died | February 2, 2002 |
Occupation(s) | Tibetan Freedom Fighter, Activist and nun |
Ani Pachen (1933 – February 2, 2002) was a Tibetan freedom fighter and activist.
Early life
Pachen Dolma was born around 1933 in
Pachen took
The
For the next few years, Pachen sat in on her father's administrative meetings with local chieftains. In 1954, Pachen and her mother spent 6 months in Gyalsay Rinpoche's monastery, during which she completed
Rebellion
By the end of 1956, tens of thousands of armed Khampas had taken to the surrounding hills in armed resistance. When her father died in 1958, she assumed her role as chieftainess of the Lemdha clan. In 1959, she rode at the head of their 600 resistance fighters into the nearby hills. Her clan joined with others from Derge and Lingkha Shipa.[1]
After news of eminent Chinese attack, Pachen returned to Lemdha to warn her family and gather their valuables. Their group grew to thousands as families from the towns of Derge, Lingkha Shipa and Markham fled with the ultimate plan of joining Chushi Gangdruk, the principal resistance group centered in Lhasa at the time. After rejoining the earlier Lemdha resistance fighters, Pachen aided in dividing the refugees into smaller, less visible groups, organized and dispatched defensive patrols, and actively engaged in armed warfare.[1] During this migration, her group was aided by CIA paramilitary support.
Their camp was attacked by overwhelming Chinese forces in the area around the Pelbar village in Tingri County in late 1959, shortly after they heard of Chushi Gangdruk's defeat. Pachen, her mother, aunt, and grandmother took refuge in a nearby forest. They successfully traveled towards India for the next 25 days, until they were captured by Chinese forces along with around 300 other refugees.[1]
Imprisonment
Immediately after being captured, Pachen and her family were held in nearby abandoned houses that served as temporary prisons. Over the course of a week, Pachen was interrogated and beaten. Soon after, many of the women, children and elderly people were released (including her mother, aunt, and grandmother), and Pachen was transferred to a 'collection center' in Lhodzong, where she was held for a month. She reported being the only woman held there.[1]
After that, Pachen was transferred to a monastery in
In 1963, she was moved to Silthog Thang, a prison 'where those...considered guilty of the most serious crimes were sent,'[1] located between the Mekong (known as the Zachu river in Tibet[3]) and Ngomchu river (a tributary of the Mekong[4]). At Silthog Thang, she was sectioned according to gender and level of devotion. She was also held in isolation for 9 months after refusing to denounce her religion and rebuking an officer.[1]
After hearing that her mother was living and working in
After
Release
After her release from
She advertised and participated in three
Autobiography
Ani Pachen's autobiography, Sorrow Mountain: the Journey of a Tibetan Warrior Nun, was
Death
Ani Pachen died in Dharamsala on February 2, 2002, of heart failure. She died peacefully at the age of 69.[5]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Pachen; Donnelley, Adelaide (2000). Sorrow Mountain: The Journey of a Tibetan Warrior Nun. New York: Kodansha International.
- ^ Cleland, Elizabeth Christine (2001). The Vajrakilaya Sadhana: An Euro-American experience of a Nyingma ritual (M.A.). Carleton University.
- ^ Leonard, Thomas M. (18 October 2013). Encyclopedia of the Developing World. Routledge. p. 1548.
- ^ Chellaney, Brahma (25 July 2013). Water: Asia's New Battleground. Georgetown University Press. p. 103.
- ^ Martin, Douglas (18 February 2002). "Ani Pachen, Warrior Nun in Tibet 21 Years, Dies". New York Times.