'Singing nun' escapes from Tibet

Palden Choedron who became famous for recording songs in Drapchi prison escaped from Tibet and arrived in exile in India in September.

Palden, 34, was sentenced to three years imprisonment in 1990 at the age of 14, when she staged a peaceful protest with fellow nuns in Lhasa.

The nuns were imprisoned while in their teens or twenties and all of them suffered beatings, torture and solitary confinement during their imprisonment. They became known as the "14 singing nuns" after they secretly recorded songs about their suffering, the Dalai Lama and Tibet's future on a tape cassette that was smuggled out of prison and reached the West.

One of the nuns died at the age of 26 as a result of the torture she received as punishment for the recording.

Following the recording Palden’s sentence was extended by five years. The tape was smuggled out of prison and resulted in international awareness about their case. Free Tibet supporters helped campaign to secure the early release of two nuns, Phuntsog Nyidrol and Ngawang Sangdrol.

After her release in 1998 Palden made a failed attempt to escape from Tibet to India. She was arrested on the Tibet-Nepal border and sentenced to three years hard labour.

Five of the original 14 singing nuns remain in Tibet while eight now are living in exile.

Read more about the 'Drapchi 14'