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Penpa Tsering
Sikyong of the Tibetan Government in Exile From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Penpa Tsering (Tibetan: སྤེན་པ་ཚེ་རིང, Wylie: spen pa tshe ring་; born 1967) is a Tibetan politician based in India.[1] He is the second democratically elected Sikyong of the Central Tibetan Administration in India.[2][3] He succeeded the last Sikyong Lobsang Sangay on 27 May 2021.[2][4] Penpa Tsering was the speaker of the Parliament of the Central Tibetan Administration (Tibetan Parliament in Exile) for two terms between 2008 and 2016.[5]
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Early life
Penpa Tsering was born in a refugee camp in Bylakuppe in the Indian state of Karnataka in 1967.[6] After topping his schooling, he graduated with Honours degree in economics from Madras Christian College.[6] Following stints in the Tibetan Freedom Movement and the Nigerian-Tibet Friendship Association during his college days,[7] he went on to serve as the executive director at the Tibetan Parliamentary and Policy Research Centre (TPPRC) in Delhi between 2001 and 2008.[6] TPPRC is a joint project of the Friedrich-Naumann Foundation and Assembly of Tibetan People’s Deputies, with a mandate of "promoting the political programme of the Tibetan administration".[8]
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Political career
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Penpa was elected to the Parliament of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) for two terms from 1996 and 2006.[9] Following this he became the speaker of the 14th and 15th Parliament between 2008 and 2016.[5] In July 2016, he was appointed the 'North America Representative of the Dalai Lama, Representative to Office of Tibet, Washington, D.C.' for a year.[9][10][11] He formally took charge on 29 August 2016.[7] As Representative, his duties involved meeting leaders and officials,[12] chairing cultural events related to Tibet, and addressing Tibetans and Tibet related issues.[13][14]
Penpa was runner up in the Sikyong election in 2016.[15] He announced his candidacy for 2021 election on 3 September 2020.[16] During the 2021 CTA general election, Penpa secured 34,324 votes, 5,417 more than Kaydor Aukatsang (Kelsang Dorjee Aukatsang) who secured the second highest votes; a total of 63,991 Tibetans voted.[17][18] Penpa has spoken about "resolving the issue of Tibet", "taking care of the welfare of Tibetans in exile",[19] pursuing "all possible ways to communicate with China,"[20] "facilitat(ing) a visit of the Dalai Lama to China,"[21] and advocating for the release of "Panchen Lama Gedhun Choekyi Nyima and all other political prisoners".[22][23]
Penpa was sworn in as Sikyong on 27 May 2021 in the presence of the Dalai Lama who attended virtually.[24] The oath was administered by Chief Justice Commissioner Sonam Norbu Dagpo.[24] He often quotes the middle way and guidance of Dalai Lama.[24]
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References
Further reading
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