Dorje Tashi is a well-known Tibetan hotel-owner and businessman who was arrested by Chinese police during the 2008 Tibetan Uprising.

He is accused of sheltering Tibetan protesters in his hotel, donating to the Tibetan community in exile, and committing loan fraud of 1.5 million yuan. Dorje has been sentenced to life imprisonment after a secret trial in 2010 and is known to now be in extremely poor health due to his time in prison. 

Gonpo Kyi is the elder sister of Dorje Tashi, and has been advocating for his release, alongside her other brother Dorje Tseten and her husband Choekyong. Since Dorje Tashi’s sentencing, she has staged protests in front of the People’s Court in Lhasa. Due to her activism, she has been subjected to beatings, threats and interrogations in prison and denied medical attention. The violence and trauma Gonpo Kyi has endured for years has left her in urgent need of medical treatment. Despite this, she has said: “I will continue to protest until they kill me.”

Dorje Tashi and Gonpo Kyi are awarded the Tenzin Delek Rinpoche Medal of Courage by the Tibetan Women’s Association, the National Democratic Party of Tibet, Students for a Free Tibet – India, and the International Tibet Network. 

Gonpo Kyi and Dorje Tashi’s lives are a rare example of news about Tibetan resistance against Chinese occupation that has been able to make it out of China’s information blackout of Tibet. 

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