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Chungdak Koren (; 12 April 1950 – 10 September 2024) was a Tibetan nurse and politician.


Biography

Born in
Phari Phari or Pagri (; ) is a town in Yadong County in the Tibet Autonomous Region, China near the border with Bhutan. The border can be accessed through a secret road/trail connecting Tsento Gewog in Bhutan () known as Tremo La. the town had a popul ...
on 12 April 1950, Koren studied at the St. Joseph's Convent School in
Kalimpong Kalimpong is a town and the headquarters of an eponymous district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is located at an average elevation of . The town is the headquarters of the Kalimpong district. The region comes under Gorkhaland Territo ...
and at another school in
Dehradun Dehradun (), also known as Dehra Doon, is the winter capital and the List of cities in Uttarakhand by population, most populous city of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous Dehradun district, d ...
. From 1967 to 1968, she volunteered at the Tibetan Transit School. From 1968 to 1969, she worked as a manager at the Tibetan Refugee Cooperative Society in
Sonada Sonada is a census town in the Jorebunglow Sukhiapokhri (community development block), Jorebunglow Sukhiapokhri Community development blocks in India, CD block in the Darjeeling Sadar subdivision of the Darjeeling District in West Bengal, India ...
. She moved to Norway in 1969 on a scholarship to study at university in a three-year nursing training program. She worked as a nurse for 19 years at the
Oslo University Hospital Oslo University Hospital (; OUS) is a university hospital in Oslo, Norway. With over 24,000 employees it is List of hospitals by staff, the largest hospital organization in Europe. It is affiliated with the University of Oslo Faculty of Medicine, F ...
. She was a co-founder of the Norwegian Committee for Tibet when it was established in 1988. In 1989, she was formally appointed by the
Offices of Tibet An office is a space where the employees of an organization perform administrative work in order to support and realize the various goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a position within an organization with specific du ...
in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
for coordination with the
Nobel Prize Committee A Nobel Committee is a working body responsible for most of the work involved in selecting Nobel Prize laureates. There are six awarding committees from four institutions, one for each Nobel Prize. Five of these committees are working bodies ...
to prepare for the awarding of the
Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish language, Swedish and ) is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the Will and testament, will of Sweden, Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobe ...
for the
14th Dalai Lama The 14th Dalai Lama (born 6 July 1935; full spiritual name: Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, shortened as Tenzin Gyatso; ) is the incumbent Dalai Lama, the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism. He served a ...
. She was then a founding member the Voice of Tibet radio in Norway and continued to serve on its board of directors. From 5 September 1995 to 15 September 2001, Koren was named representative of the Tibet Bureau in Geneva for the Dalai Lama. In this role, she assisted in the organization for the meeting between the Dalai Lama and
Prime Minister of Italy The prime minister of Italy, officially the president of the Council of Ministers (), is the head of government of the Italy, Italian Republic. The office of president of the Council of Ministers is established by articles 92–96 of the Co ...
Massimo D'Alema Massimo D'Alema (; born 20 April 1949) is an Italian politician and journalist who was the 53rd prime minister of Italy from 1998 to 2000. He was Deputy Prime Minister of Italy and Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2006 to 2008. D'Alema ...
in 1999 and with the Minister of Internal Affairs of Switzerland
Ruth Dreifuss Ruth Dreifuss (born 9 January 1940) is a Swiss economist, unionist and politician who served as a member of the Federal Council from 1993 to 2002. She served as Vice President of Switzerland in 1998 and as President of Switzerland in 1999 for t ...
in 2001. She also assisted in organizing a
Luciano Pavarotti Luciano Pavarotti (, , ; 12 October 19356 September 2007) was an Italian operatic tenor who during the late part of his career crossed over into popular music, eventually becoming one of the most acclaimed tenors of all time. He made numerou ...
concert with
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
to finance education for Tibetan children. In total, the event raised over US$1 million for the cause. In 2002, Koren organized a ''
Kalachakra ''Kālacakra'' () is a Polysemy, polysemic term in Vajrayana, Vajrayana Buddhism and Hinduism that means "wheel of time" or "time cycles". "''Kālacakra''" is also the name of a series of Buddhist texts and a major practice lineage in History of ...
'' in Austria. The following year, she appeared in the documentary ''
Wheel of Time The wheel of time or wheel of history (also known as '' Kalachakra'') is a concept found in several religious traditions and philosophies, notably religions of Indian origin such as Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism, which regard time as cyclical ...
'' to discuss the ''Kalachakra''. In 2002, she joined the Norwegian Committee for Tibet and a member of the
International Campaign for Tibet The International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) is a non-profit advocacy group working to promote democratic freedoms for Tibetans, ensure their human rights, and protect Tibetan culture and the environment. Founded in 1988, ICT is the world's larges ...
. In November 2008, she was awarded the
Ossietzky Award The Ossietzky Award () is a prize awarded by the Norwegian chapter of P.E.N., for extraordinary contributions to freedom of speech. The prize is named after writer and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Carl von Ossietzky. Recipients * Aziz Nesin (19 ...
by the Norwegian chapter of
PEN International PEN International (known as International PEN until 2010) is a worldwide professional association, association of writers, founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers everywhere. The association ...
for her dedication to
human rights in Tibet Human rights in Tibet has been a subject of intense international scrutiny and debate, particularly since the annexation of Tibet by the People's Republic of China. Before the 1950s, Tibet's social structure was marked by inequality and described a ...
. In 2011, she was elected to the
Parliament of the Central Tibetan Administration The Tibetan Parliament in Exile (TPiE), officially the Parliament of the Central Tibetan Administration, is the unicameral and highest legislative organ of the Central Tibetan Administration, the government-in-exile of the Independent Country ...
. She was replaced by Wangpo Tethong on 6 May 2014 for health reasons. Following a stroke, she recovered and continued her work for the Tibetan cause. Throughout her career, she was never granted a visa to return to Tibet. Koren died in
Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...
on 10 September 2024, at the age of 74.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Koren, Chungdak 1950 births 2024 deaths Tibetan politicians University of Oslo alumni Oslo University Hospital people People from Shigatse