Kalsang Yarphel
Photo courtesy of Lhamo Kyab
Popular Tibetan singer Kelsang Yarphel, 37, was arrested in July in Lhasa, and was subsequently placed in a detention center in Sichuan Province’s Chengdu city. The singer was detained by Chinese authorities on alleged charges of performing a “politically subversive” song at a music concert. News of his detention has only recently reached the exile community.
Kelsang Yarphel’s song titled “Bhodpa Tso,” which translates into “Fellow Tibetans,” contains lyrics such as “…we must allow joy and suffering to speak up…Fellow Tibetans we must uphold our patriotism…” Since Chinese authorities proceed to strictly monitor and consequently castigate any public expression of Tibetan nationalism and cultural identity, Kelsang Yarphel’s song was immediately deemed a violation, and within a month the widely distributed DVDs of HIS performance were banned, and confiscated from Tibet’s Qinghai, Gansu, Yunnan, and Sichuan provinces. The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy, which is based in Dharamshala, India, confirmed the news by stating: “Chinese authorities have now banned the sale of DVD recordings of the Khawai Metok concerts at which Kelsang Yarphel performed.”
Kelsang Yarphel originates from Kalnho’s Machu County in the Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu Province. He is a father of three children and is married to Tsezin Palmo. Kelsang has released many albums, some of which are titled: “Modern Tibetans,” “Thunder of the Dragon,” “Yearning of the Snow Mountains for the Dawn,” “Dragon’s Thunder Welcomes the Spring,” and “The Homeland of the Gesar of Ling.” He is famous throughout Tibet, and often referred to as the “contemporary Tibet’s young nightingale” and also as “junior Dubey.” This latter is a reference to a Tibetan singer who has faced similar troubles in the past.
China is notorious for its many instances of human rights violations. After the 2008 protests that took place in Tibet, China has incarcerated a large number of singers, writers, educators, and artists for their public declarations of Tibetan patriotism, which are supposedly perceived as displays of “separatism” and aggression on the part of the Tibetan people.
Editor’s note:
An english translation of the words of Kelsang Yarphel’s song is included below:
We must learn Tibetan
Speak Tibetan
To learn them is our responsibility,
Fellow Tibetans
We must unite
We must unite
All the three traditional provinces of Tibet must unite,
Fellow Tibetans
We must build courage
Thinking about the years and months of joy and suffering
We must build courage,
Fellow Tibetans
We must allow joy and suffering to speak up
Thinking about Tibet’s future path
We must search for the path,
Fellow Tibetans
We must uphold our patriotism
Upholding patriotism
Let’s march forward
Together, shoulder-to-shoulder
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