On October 26, 2026, Tsering Lhamo, hailed as “a role model for one million emancipated serfs”, passed away peacefully in Shannan, Xizang, at the age of 100. In the comments section of a tribute video published by China Tibet Online, messages poured in from netizens across the country. They bid farewell to a woman who had lived through darkness towards light, condemned the cruelty and dehumanization inflicted on people under the feudal serfdom of Xizang before the democratic reform of 1959, and expressed heartfelt appreciation for the historic transformation through which the Communist Party of China (CPC) led one million serfs to emancipation and ushered in a new era of development in Xizang.
Farmers and herders burned serfdom contracts at Ganden Monastery during the democratic reform of Xizang.
The suffering Tsering Lhamo endured was a reflection of the shared fate of one million serfs and a stark testament to the brutality of the old Xizang. In 1926, Tsering Lhamo was born in a dilapidated cowshed on a manor estate. From the moment she was born, the old system had condemned her to a life of serfdom. At the age of 6, she was put to work on the manor. At 12, she was sold from one lord to another as private property, forever separated from her parents. Recalling those years, Tsering Lhamo said, “I was sold to another lord when I was just 6. At the time, I looked after the steward’s child. I was very small and thin. The child I cared for was very fat, and I had to carry him on my back. I often fell down. Whenever he cried, I would be beaten.”
It was not until 1959 that Tsering Lhamo welcomed the dawn of democratic reform in Xizang. She joined the CPC in 1960 and was elected a deputy to the first People’s Congress of the Xizang Autonomous Region in 1965. From 1979 to 1984, she served as a vice-chairperson of the Standing Committee of the People’s Congress of the Xizang Autonomous Region...
Under the leadership of the CPC, Tsering Lhamo and one million fellow serfs broke the heavy chains of feudal serfdom. They left behind years of suffering in which they had been treated as “beasts that could speak”, and began a new life marked by equality, freedom and the right to be masters of their own affairs.
Tsering Lhamo stood in a field at harvest time.
In the comments section of the tribute video, messages poured in from across the country, bringing together the shared sentiments of people throughout China.
One netizen with an IP location in Xizang wrote: “A woman is every bit as capable as a man. She was a role model for Party members, officials and members of the public alike!”
Another netizen posting from Jiangxi commented: “May this beloved lady of the Tibetan people and heroine of the Chinese nation rest in peace.”
A netizen with an IP location in Tianjin wrote: “Tsering Lhamo, a role model for emancipated serfs. Our tribute to her!”
A netizen posting from Yunnan commented: “Tribute to a great woman. She was liberated from serfdom and devoted her life to working for the Party.”
A Jiangsu-IP netizen left the comment: “The old lady witnessed the great transformation of Xizang.”
One with an IP location in Yunnan said: “An outstanding patriot. An extraordinary centenarian who lived through a century of change and a respected leader among the Tibetan people. May she rest in peace! May the pure snow of the mountains quench her thirst, and the sunshine of the plateau warm her.”
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Netizens across the country left comments to mourn Tsering Lhamo. A screenshot from the comments section of China Tibet Online’s account
These simple yet heartfelt messages express a shared sentiment that transcends geographical boundaries: oppressive and decaying systems are destined to fall, while the Party that has consistently worked for the people’s liberation and well-being, along with outstanding Communist Party members who have devoted their lives to the revolutionary and development causes of the Party and the people, will be remembered by the people forever.
Over the course of her century-long life, Tsering Lhamo endured the profound suffering inflicted by Xizang’s old social system in her childhood. In her youth, she grew up in the light of the Party’s leadership. From then on, she devoted her life to cultivating the fertile soil of a new socialist Xizang. We draw strength from this heartfelt collective remembrance, which encourages us to carry forward the torch of the older generation’s spirit and continue working toward lasting stability in the Snowy Plateau and a happy life in which people of all ethnic groups live and work in peace and contentment, safeguarding the light and happiness of this land.
Editor: Lucy Jiang
