Tenzin Nyidon
DHARAMSHALA, April 16: Former member of parliament Samten Choedon was officially sworn in as the newest member of the 17th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile (TPiE) from the Utsang constituency, on Wednesday following the resignation of fellow U-Tsang MP Dawa Phunkyi, who was elected as a Justice Commissioner during the ninth session of the 17th TPiE.
In accordance with Article 57, Clause 2 of the Charter of Tibetans in Exile, the Central Election Commission notified Samten Choedon—who was first on the waiting list from the 2021 parliamentary elections—to contact the Parliamentary Secretariat to initiate the oath-taking procedure.
The swearing-in ceremony was administered by Speaker Khenpo Sonam Tenphel, Deputy Speaker Dolma Tsering, and members of the Standing Committee at the Parliament hall.
Hailing from the Bylakuppe Tibetan Settlement, Samten Choedon holds a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce from Teresian College, Mysore, earned in 1992. She has over two decades of service to the Tibetan community across various administrative and advocacy roles. Her professional career began in 1993 as Assistant Accountant cum Secretary at the Finance Department’s Bylakuppe branch. From 1995 to 1997, she served as an Auditor at the Office of the Auditor General under the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA). In 1998, she joined the Lugsung Samdupling Tibetan Cooperative Society as an accountant and later rose to become its Manager.
Choedon was a member of the Tibetan Women’s Association (TWA) since 1990; she served as an executive member from 2003 to 2006 and was elected President from 2006 to 2009. In 2008, she contributed as chief accountant during the peace march from Dharamshala to Tibet, organized by five major Tibetan NGOs. She later served two consecutive terms (2009–2015) as Vice President of the Central TWA. She also served as a member of the 16th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile.
