Updates
In honor of Pawo Lobga Rangzen: Take the Tibet Pledge
July 3, 2026
SFT is calling upon every Tibetan and every friend of Tibet to make a pledge for the Tibetan cause. Write it down, share it, and honor it every single day until Tibet’s independence is restored.
What happened
On Thursday, July 2, 2026, 52-year-old Tibetan independence activist Lobsang Palden, widely known as Lobga Rangzen, self-immolated in front of the United Nations Headquarters and was later declared deceased at Bellevue Hospital. Since 1998, more than 168 Tibetan monks, nuns, and laypeople have self-immolated in protest of China’s rule in Tibet. He is the first known Tibetan self-immolation outside of India, Nepal, and occupied Tibet.
Born in Tibet, Lobga was a beloved Queens resident, a former monk, and President of the Tibetan National Congress NYNJ, who spent his life advocating peacefully for Tibet’s freedom.
Watch
His final words
His final words were a call to action:
I don’t want you to mourn for me, I want you to continue the struggle for Tibetan independence, because the lack of independence is the root of all our problems. Bhoe Gyalo, Bhoe Rangzen Gyalo
Free Tibet. བོད་རང་བཙན།
Bhoe Rangzen Gyalo. བོད་རང་བཙན་རྒྱལ་ལོ།