Brussels, 18 October 2002. Ngawang Sangdrol, the Tibetan dissident who holds the unfortunate record of being the woman imprisoned for the longest period in the People’s Republic of China, has been released from Drapchi prison no. 1 in Lhasa nine years before completing her sentence. Ngawang Sangdrol was first imprisoned at the age of nine, for nine months, for taking part in demonstrations for the freedom of Tibet. Tortured repeatedly, she still suffers from the consequences, especially in the use of her hands. In 1992, when she was fifteen, she was arrested again for trying to organise demonstrations and sentenced to three years in prison. In 1993, together with her fellow inmates she recorded some Tibetan national songs that she managed to smuggle out. This led to more torture and a further sentence of six years. In 1996 her sentence was extended once again because she had organised protests inside the prison against the appointment of an alternative Panchen Lama by the Chinese authorities. As a result of these extra sentences, she was now serving a total of 21 years, and was due for release in 2013. In September 2000, on the initiative of the Radical MEPs and the Tibet Intergroup, she was selected for the European Parliament Sakharov Prize.

Statement by Olivier Dupuis, Member of the European Parliament, Radical

“For me, and for many other people, I believe, Ngawang Sangdrol is a symbol, a wonderful symbol. The symbol of a person who has made the defence of freedom, with nothing to rely on but her bare hands and the strength of her convictions, a reason to live freely, always, even in the infernal conditions of Drapchi prison no. 1. Her release is therefore wonderful news. After the release of Nawang Choptel and Tanak Jigme Sangpo, after the visit by the two special envoys of the Dalai Lama to Beijing and Tibet, is this the beginning of what might turn into a Sino-Tibetan spring? It is undoubtedly still too early to say. What is certain, however, is that this hope should not allow us to lower our guard. We must redouble our efforts to ensure that all the crucial issues of present-day China, whether they be social, political or “national” (East Turkestan, Southern Mongolia, ...), become opportunities for dialogue, and above all for the conquest of justice and rights for all the citizens of the People’s Republic of China.”

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