Escape of His Holiness
As the day of escape neared, the north banks
of the Kyichu River, which His Holiness' entourage was to cross
late in the evening of 17 March 1959, were guarded by three commanders
and their troops detailed from Gangkar Dzong, while the south
banks of the river were safely guarded by the Khampa volunteers
dispatched from Norbulingkha. Thus the escape of His Holiness
and a small number of his entourage was safe and smooth from the
most difficult and dangerous stage of escape. By the time the
Chinese started the bombardment intended to destroy the palace
along with His Holiness on the morning of the 20th, His Holiness'
entourage was safely heading towards Lhuntse Dzong escorted by
volunteers. Thousands of people got killed by shelling in Norbulingkha,
but many more crossed the Kyichu river and followed His Holiness.
Details were narrated and acknowledged in the pages of My Land
and My People by His Holiness.
Athar and Lotse, who had parachuted to the
Samyi, Lhokha, area in 1957, had maintained contact with the organization
since then. They had also contacted Phala, the Lord Chamberlain
of H.H., through Gonpo Tashi at an earlier stage. Now they were
part of the escorting team and had a much more important role
to play as they kept providing Washington with vital progressive
reports of His Holiness' journey and also served as a communications
link for the Dalai Lama. Through coded message, Washington gave
its assurance of any assistance that His Holiness might need;
our radio team also received advice for His Holiness to travel
in a small group and not delay reaching the border. From Lhuntso
Dzong our radio team transmitted a coded message to Washington
on their Rs-1 radio relaying the request from His Holiness to
Prime Minister Nehru for asylum in India. Washington decoded then
re-encoded to the U.S. embassy in New Delhi and there decoded
and then delivered the message to the Prime Minister. A positive
reply from the Prime Minister granting asylum for His Holiness
was sent via reverse route and received by our radio team at Mangmang,
a small border town. The coded message also included information
about a reception team of Indian officers waiting at the border
checkpost for His Holiness' entourage.
In accordance with the instruction given by
the CIA via radio with regard to His Holiness' travel, the escort
team travelling with His Holiness was made small so that it could
not be spotted from the air in case of searches by aircraft. But
volunteers troops in small groups were deployed everywhere and
every possible route of advance by the enemy was blocked. The
possibility of interception by the Chinese troops and of pursuit
by cavalry were also taken into consideration and appropriate
measures were taken.
Our organization's escorting
team escorted His Holiness and the entourage of
37 members safely till 30th March, when they crossed
the Indian border at Chu Tangmo, where they were
warmly received by the Indian reception team.
Our escorting team had at its disposal a sum of
Rs. 200,000/- which was contributed to His Holiness
to meet the expenses later on the journey through
India. His Holiness and the Cabinet embers were
very appreciative of the contribution and left
behind some Tibetan currencies in exchange. Thus
Chushi Gangdruk was able to foil the evil intentions
of the Communist Chinese and the escape of His
Holiness the Dalai Lama, often described as the
most dramatic flight of the century, actually
occurred.
After having received blessings and having
bid goodbye to His Holiness' entourage, our escorting team returned
to their respective posts. But in many front areas, the Chinese
troops crossed the Tsongpo river and attacked our posts everywhere
and in some places our volunteers had to withdraw from their holds.
Meanwhile having heard through
radio the news about the uprising in Lhasa, bombing
of the palace by Communists, and escape of His
Holiness from Lhasa, General Gonpo Tashi and volunteers
of the Northern regiment started from Shota Lhosum,
crossing Shargungla, Nubgangla, and forcing their
way through Lharigo, Shounang and Kongpo, where
the Derge and Amdo divisions were already deployed.
The new recruits in the local area formed a Kongpo
Division, and the forces of these three divisions
later engaged in full-force battles against the
Communist Chinese. The regiment kept moving through
Kongpo Gyadha towards Lhokha. They crossed the
Tsongpo at Lhukhangdu and came to Lhagyari, but
our headquarters was already in move then. In
the second week of April, General Gonpo Tashi
and the regiment made it to Lhuntse Dzong, but
by then news was also pouring in about defeat
and retreats of our troops from many strategic
positions. News about the capture of Tsona by
the enemy was heard when the regiment reached
Nyan Jhora, a focal point. The regiment considered
the recapture of Tsona but odds against it were
too great, so they gave up the idea and decided
to move northeast, first towards Magola and, after
crossing Magola, then back eastward to reach Mon-Tawang.
Before leaving from Nyan Jhora, General Gonpo
Tashi wanted to have a full-force battle against
the enemy as a parting shot, but his military
advisers advised him otherwise. By now the mass
exodus of Tibetans had already started, and the
only and best thing they could do was to keep
the escape routes safe for the masses of Tibetans
pursued by Chinese troops. So General Gonpo Tashi
thought that it was time to become refugees in
India. On April 21, 1959, General Gonpo Tashi
and volunteers of both the Northern and Southern
Regiments began crossing the frontier line at
Magola and entered into Indian territory with
heavy hearts. The volunteers in other border areas
followed suit. As they crossed the border, the
volunteers, including General Gonpo Tashi, had
mixed feelings of happiness and sadness. Happiness-the
Dalai Lama had safely escaped to India and they
were also now stepping into a safety zone without
the futility of fighting against the Communist
Chinese. Sadness-as they were now leaving behind
their beloved motherland and walking into an unknown
land with an unknown future as refugees.
In spite of enormous Chinese superiority in
numbers and in military equipment, the Chushi Gangdrug resistance
force inflicted terrible damage to the mighty Chinese army.
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