Yuthoks Rejoinder to The Noodle Maker

By Jigmie Dorji Yuthok

Lhasa 1936
Depon Yuthok Tashi Dhondup and De-tshap Taring Jigme
(Pitt Rivers Museum)
Mr. Gyalo Thondups book, The Noodle Maker of Kalimpong, has already been the subject of much
criticism, and rightly so. Indeed, even his co-author, Anne Thurston, expresses grave doubts about the
veracity of his story in the Introduction to the book, before you hear a word from Mr. Thondup. Again, in
the books uncommon Afterword section, she notes that some Tibetans who had read the manuscript
and her editors as well were suspicious of the motivation behind Mr. Thondups many allegations
against fellow Tibetans and his portrayal of His Holiness the Dalai Lamas views on Tibet. And how does
one excuse Mr. Thondups deliberately arrogant disrespect toward the 10th Panchen Lama, who once
he began to see the real nature of Chinas brutal occupation spoke against it and paid a very heavy
price in the form of many years of imprisonment and torture. Such gratuitous criticism coming from
someone who kept himself safely out of harms way was shocking and embarrassing to most Tibetans.
So, before publication, the co-author and publisher were at the very least suspicious that Mr. Thondups
version of history was tainted with bias and the twin motivations of self-aggrandizement a trait he has
exhibited throughout his life and clearing his name in a financial scandal by casting stones at everyone
else. Nonetheless they went ahead and published the book, defending Mr. Thondups right to tell his
story, and probably hoping that allegations that were known to be controversial and provocative would
sell books.
So it is that I must join those who have stepped forward to set the record straight. Mr. Thondups The
Noodle Maker of Kalimpong calls the then Tibetan Government incompetent and ignorant, maligns the
good name of many Tibetan patriots including my late father, Kalon Yuthok Tashi Dhondup and has
inaccuracies which cannot be left to stand without correction. This response is based on my personal
experience and documents, and it will concentrate on the things I know from having been at several of the
events that Mr. Thondup has portrayed, as well as those documents in my possession which provide a
more accurate and less egocentric account of this critical period of Tibetan history.

I will begin by addressing a general theme that pervades the book, the portrayal of Tibets government of
the period prior to Chinas invasion as absolutely incompetent. Mr. Thondup proclaims himself
ashamed of my government and further states the people running Tibet were incompetent not just
ordinarily incompetent but absolutely incompetent. The use of such harsh and cruel language not only
maligns those who were in office before and during the Chinese invasion of Tibet, it indicts a system of
government that in spite of its many flaws when judged through the lens of modern democracy had
in fact been quite successful in assembling, managing and defending a nation for more centuries than
most modern democracies have existed. His gratuitous dismissal of such accomplishments betrays an
arrogance that might be justified if it came from someone with a stellar record of competence himself, but
such is hardly the case. In Kundun, H.H. the Dalai Lama says of his elder brother, Mr. Gyalo Thondup,
He did some good things, but he also made many mistakes. He is stubborn and he creates controversy
wherever he goes.1
Now lets get down to specifics.
Mr. Thondup claims to have been in contact with many Indian government officials during the period
between Chinas invasion and His Holiness escape to India when, in fact, he was blissfully unaware of all
the decisions that were taken by the Tibetan government. So when Mr. Thondup claims that the Tibetan
government never asked the Indians or Americans for help, he couldnt be more mistaken.
The following are examples of the many occasions, before China's invasion, when Tibetan delegations
were sent abroad to bolster support for Tibet's status as an independent nation. In 1946, the then Tibetan
government sent a delegation to congratulate the Allied Nations for their victory in World War II.2 In early
1947, a Tibetan Delegation was invited to participate in the Inter Asian Relations Conference by Indias
Mahatma Gandhi and Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.3 The Tibetan delegation attended the conference as a
sovereign nation carrying the Tibetan national flag. In 1948, a Tibetan Trade Mission was sent by the
Tibetan Government to establish trade and diplomatic relations with India, China, the United States and
Great Britain. The delegation visited all countries with Tibetan passports.4 Then in July 1949, the Chinese
Mission in Lhasa was served by the Tibetan
Government with an order for the immediate
departure from Tibet of all its staff and all
Chinese nationals residing in Tibet.5 Clearly
Tibet was ending its historic isolation,
attempting to ward off China and gain
international allies as the decade came to an
end.
In 1950, I was called by the Tibetan government
to serve as an English interpreter to the Tibetan
Trade Mission.6 I was 18 years old and studying
at St. Josephs North Point, Darjeeling. The
officials in the Trade Mission were Rimshi
1950 Tibet Trade Mission: Left to right: Kenchung Losang
Surkhang Lhawang Tobgye and Kenchung
Tsewang, Yuthok Jigmie Dorji and Rimshi Surkhang Lhawang
Lobsang Tsewang. We met with Indias Prime
Tobgye (brother of Kalon Surkhang Wangchen Gelek).
Minister Nehru. This Tibet Trade Mission was in
reality a secret mission to request military arms from India, a request that Prime Minister Nehru turned
down. Later, Mr. Thondup, while virtually running the Tibetan government in the 1960s, was equally
unsuccessful in obtaining anything more than token outside support, so he should have known first-hand
that such support was hard to come by. Cold War political realities made intervention in a remote and

inaccessible Tibet a very low priority on the world stage. But whether one is speaking of the 1960s, or the
preceding decades, not achieving positive results does not constitute a lack of effort or a lack of
competence.
In March 1959, when we received word that His Holiness the Dalai Lama had fled Lhasa, my father,
Kalon Yuthok, and I were in Kalimpong. Some Kalimpong Tibetans Kalon Yuthok, Drunyik Chenmo, Alo
Chongze, and myself among others but not Mr. Thondup immediately went to Delhi to petition the
Government of India to help Tibet and to ensure that His Holiness did not fall into the hands of the
Chinese. The petition was submitted to Prime Minister Nehru, again to no avail. After waiting for a reply
which was never to come, we returned to Kalimpong. Again no one had the appetite to get into a hot war
with China on the Tibetan plateau, not a nascent India, nor more powerful and stable nations halfway
around the world such as Great Britain and the United States.
Later in the book, Mr. Thondup speaks about the April 1959 statement by His Holiness upon his arrival in
Tezpur, India. In his zeal to portray everyone but himself as incompetent, Mr. Thondup alleges that the
Dalai Lamas first statement to the international news media, who had assembled there following His
Holiness escape from the Chinese, was read to the press by an Indian official, implying Nehrus people
had even drafted it just as the Chinese Communist Government accused. He is mistaken on both counts.
The English translation of the Tibetan-language Tezpur statement was read to the press corps by a
Tibetan, namely me, not by a nameless Indian official as Mr. Thondup alleges.
Upon His Holiness arrival, the Government of India arranged temporary residence for the Dalai Lama in
Mussoorie. Khenchung Tara and I, as the English-speaking secretary, took care of the Tibetan
Government documents and correspondence as well as His Holiness private correspondence. On June
20, 1959, His Holiness gave a statement to the media and held his first western-style news conference.
I had prepared an English version of his statement which I then read to the media (A&E Biography 1997:
Dalai Lama The Soul of Tibet Part 3 of 5). During the questions and answers session of the press
conference I was assisted by another English speaking Tibetan official, Sandutsang Rinchen.
The next glaring inaccuracy of The Noodle Maker that I can correct concerns the vastly exaggerated loan
request that Tibet was alleged to have made to India. To begin with, when Prime Minister Nehru came to
see His Holiness in Mussoorie in April 1959, the subject of loans of any amount never came up. Mr.
Thondups suggestion that Kalons Surkhang Wangchen Gelek and Yuthok Tashi Dhondup had advised
His Holiness to approach Prime Minister Nehru for a loan of 200 million Indian rupees is ludicrous on its
face. As a matter of fact, Kalon Yuthok was not in Mussoorie at that time. Perhaps the subject of a loan
for 200 million Indian rupees did come up during Mr. Thondups private discussion with the Indian
diplomat, P.N. Menon. That would explain why no one else ever heard of it.
Returning to reality, the Kashag, the executive body of the Tibetan government, with the approval of His
Holiness, later did decide to approach the Government of India for a loan of just over 6.4 million rupees.
Kalon Surkhang, Kalon Liushar and myself as their interpreter travelled to Delhi to ask Indias
Foreign Secretary Subimal Dutt for this loan, which was unfortunately refused by him. Mr. Thondup, who
did not occupy any official role, was allowed to accompany us only as an observer. And it is particularly
important to note that at this time, Mr. Thondup, who was educated in China and in the Chinese
language, was not fluent in English. I translated the discussions back and forth between English and
Tibetan and I well know what the amount of the loan request was, and Mr. Thondup was so informed on
the spot.

When one talks about the influence of an elder brother of someone such as His Holiness, on government
and politics or even in the realm of financial matters, it is in a context that people everywhere probably
understand. Add to the political power of the person in question the religious and spiritual significance of
Tibets Dalai Lama and it is easy to understand how a family member might try to maneuver himself into a
position of power. For this reason, during an incarnation of a Dalai Lama, it was Tibets tradition that
family members while well provided for were usually kept out of the government, and their influence
was limited. The Chinese invasion and His Holiness escape to India provided an opening for change, and
Mr. Thondup did not miss this opportunity to assert himself into Tibetan politics.
After the invasion, as the 1960s began to unfold, Mr. Thondup, as His Holiness elder brother and
purporting to represent His Holiness wishes began to control all aspects of the reconstruction of the
Tibetan Government in Exile. He even founded a political organization called Chikdril Tsogpa (United
Party) to support his political agenda. Few dared to criticize Mr. Thondup because he was the elder
brother of His Holiness, and those who did challenge or question Mr. Thondup were ostracized. As a
result, Kalons Surkhang and Yuthok, along with Dzasa Pangdatshang, were not included in the formation
of the Tibetan Government in Exile. Having no official responsibilities, the three decided to officially resign
from government service and do what they could to advance Tibets interests as private citizens. Little
could they have imagined that Mr. Thondup, who whole-heartedly berates Tibets leaders for failing to
develop relations with foreign nations that might have come to their aid when China invaded, would do a
one-eighty and attack them for going out into the world and attempting to attract allies to the Tibetan
cause. But that is exactly what Mr. Thondup does.
But before returning to this subject, there is the little matter
of the missing Tibetan gold and silver that Mr. Thondup
goes to such great lengths to blame on others, despite his
responsibility as a trustee of these funds. I have some
direct knowledge that touches on this important issue.
First let me say that I personally believe that the reason
that Kalons Surkhang and Yuthok and Dzasa
Pangdatshang have been targeted by Mr. Thondup is
because all of them were members of the Tibetan
Government that, in the lead-up to the Chinese invasion of
1949, had expelled all Chinese nationals from Tibet: a
decree that applied to Mr. Thondups Chinese wife. And
there were several other issues where Mr. Thondup had
clashed with the Tibetan government both before and after
the Chinese invasion, beginning with the Kashags
displeasure with Mr. Thondups going to school in China
instead of India.7 At this time, sending ones children to
1941 Students of St. Josephs North Point,
China to attend school was unheard of in the aristocracy.
Darjeeling, India. Front Row (left to right): Yuthok
Those families who chose to send their children for a
Jigmie Dorji, Kalon Yuthok Tashi Dhondup, Yuthok
modern education (which was not possible to obtain in
Sichu Tsetan, Surkhang Jigme. Second Row (left to
Tibet)
all sent them to India..China..was ostensibly
right): Yuthok Rigdhen Tsetan, Sandutsang Rinchen,
Tibets
enemy.7 After His Holinesss and Mr. Thondups
Ma Tsering. Back Row (left to right): Kapshopa
Dondrup, Shalo Tashi Norbu and Taring George
father died, the Kashag also appointed trustees to sort out
Namgyal.
the familys finances, much to Mr. Thondups displeasure.8
So, in the midst of a number of intrigues that took place during the late 40s and early 50s, Mr. Thondup
returned to Tibet in 1952 full of ideas that were out of step with Tibets political leadership. His

controversial education in China made many doubtful of his recommendations. Thinking that he knew
more than them, and unhappy that his ideas were rejected as more red than the Red Chinese
themselves, he left for India.9 In other words, there was bad blood between the parties long before His
Holiness fled Tibet. Now add to that the fact that Surkhang, Yuthok and Pangdatshang had knowledge of
the gold and silver the Tibetan Government had sent to Sikkim in 1950.
The Kashag were responsible for shipping the gold and silver there via the Tibetan border town of Yatung
(Dromo), where Pangdatshang was Governor. And there was a lot of gold and silver. At the time of the
14th Dalai Lamas escape, In 1959, the arrival of this gold and silver in Kolkata (Calcutta) from Sikkim
became such big news that Mr. Desmond Doig, a journalist from The Statesman of Calcutta, interviewed
Mr. Thondup, who told him that the value of the gold and silver was worth 6.4 million Indian rupees. Yes,
by a strange coincidence that is the actual amount of the Tibetan loan request made earlier to India,
discussed above. How Mr. Thondup pulled that number out of the air is anyones guess. Perhaps it is just
a coincidence, or perhaps it was the first number that popped into his head, having heard it before. But
heres where it gets really interesting. Pangdatshang told Doig that the value of the gold and silver was
very much greater than what had been reported in his Statesmen article. When Doig went and asked Mr.
Thondup about this discrepancy, Mr. Thondup in a fit of anger told him that if he published any
further news about the value of the Tibetan gold and silver, Mr. Thondup would send thousands of
Tibetans to demonstrate in front of The Statesmans offices. How do I know this? I was the interpreter
during Pangdatshangs meeting with Doig, and Doig recounted Mr. Thondups threat to me after he asked
Mr. Thondup about the huge discrepancy. Add to this the fact that one of Mr. Thondups friends, Tashi
Tsering, says that literally millions of dollars worth of gold were loaded onto Dakota cargo planes and
flown to Calcutta10 and the mystery of what happened to the missing gold remains unsolved to this day.
According to Tserings book, Mr. Thondup seemed to be in charge of the disposition of these precious
metals, and it was Mr. Thondup who later charged Tsering with guarding the silver, which was put up in a
Tibetan merchants house for several weeks, melted down into ingots, and then taken away.11
But returning to the earlier mystery of the non-existent 200 million rupee loan request, Mr. Thondup says
in his book that Surkhang and Yuthok were so embarrassed when the Dalai Lama reported his
conversation (about the failed loan request) to the Kashag that they fled Mussoorie and suffered an
irreparable loss of face. Mr. Thondups notions of loss of face, like many other of his ideas, seem much
more Chinese than Tibetan. In fact, in his book on page 115 you will notice that he refers to Tibet as the
motherland, just as the Chinese do China; whereas Tibetans use the term fatherland exclusively.
Seasoned and patriotic Tibetan cabinet ministers would not get so embarrassed that they would shirk
their duty and flee. What actually happened is quite simple.
Kalons Surkhang and Yuthok did not flee or defect to Taiwan as Mr. Thondup portrays it. It was due to
their exclusion from the new Thondup-controlled exile government and subsequent inability to serve His
Holiness and work for Tibetan independence from inside India along with what proved to be a very
justified fear of danger for their families safety that Surkhang and Yuthok left India. Thinking that they
could continue to serve His Holiness and the Tibetan cause as private citizens, Surkhang and Yuthok
went to Taiwan, largely because, in March of 1959, President Chiang Kai-shek of the Republic of China
(Taiwan) had pledged his support for Tibetan self-determination.12 Upon their arrival in Taiwan, there
were already about 30 Tibetans being trained in Taiwan as paratroopers to fight the communists
alongside Chiang Kai-shek's troops.

In The Noodle Maker, Mr. Thondup accuses Surkhang and Yuthok of setting up what they called an
Office of the Kashag, going on to say they had no right to portray themselves as representatives of the
Tibetan Government. Once again, the facts bear
little resemblance to Mr. Thondups rhetoric.
Although the Government of Taiwan insisted that
they open an Office of Tibet suggestive of a
connection with the Tibetan exile government,
Surkhang and Yuthok refused on the grounds that
they could not and did not represent His Holiness
government and the Tibetan people. They decided
to open an office called The Kalon Bureau, and I
have copies of the letterhead which bears this
innocuous title, which drew upon their prior
government service without invoking the exile
governments name or authority.
Secretary Takla Phuntsog Tashi on his 1974 visit to Taiwan.
Left to right: Gelek Rinpoche, Sakya Dagchen Rinpoche,
Takla Phuntsog Tashi and Kalon Yuthok Tashi Dhondup.

Mr. Thondup further claims that Surkhang and

Yuthok had no contact with His Holiness after
leaving Dharamsala. This too is not factual. My late father kept letters from His Holiness, and from his
Private Secretary and Security Chief Taklha Phuntsog Tashi, written during the 1970s. In one of His
Holiness letters to Kalon Yuthok, he mentions that while touring Europe, he had met Surkhang, who had
explained everything in detail about the two former Kalons situation and work in Taiwan. His Holiness
assured Kalon Yuthok that he understood. Secretary Taklha even wrote my father, Yuthok Tashi
Dhondup, stating that His Holiness was quite pleased with their efforts, and that the Tibetan Government
in Exile was contemplating establishing relations with the Government of Taiwan and that, in this
connection Secretary Taklha would come to meet with Surkhang and Yuthok in Taiwan. The originals of
these letters and others are in my possession. Later, when the Government of Taiwan began showing
less of an appetite for liberating even mainland China, Surkhang and Yuthok saw no reason to remain in
Taiwan. Surkhang, who was ill, could not travel and passed away in Taiwan. After the death of Surkhang
The Kalon Bureau was closed. Yuthok immigrated to Canada and broke off all relations with the
Government of Taiwan.
Kalon Yuthok later had the privilege of
being granted a private audience with His
Holiness during his first visit to the US in
1979, and again in 1980 during His
Holiness visit to Vancouver, Canada. In
fact, His Holiness appears in a photo taken
with the extended Yuthok family during the
1979 visit to Seattle. So the notion that
Kalon Yuthok was persona non grata, and
even banished from His Holinesss sight,
does not hold up to the light of day, even if
Mr. Thondup may have wished it to be so.
His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama in Seattle, 1979 with Kalon Yuthok
Tashi Dhondup (right of HHDL) and Yuthok Jigmie Dorji (left of
HHDL), along with their families.

It is especially ironic to note the disdain Mr.

Thondup still bears with respect to Dzasa
Pangdatshang Yarphel. Pangdatshang, the governor of Yatung from 1943 to 1955, was a successful
businessperson who had the honor to host His Holiness mother, Gyalyum Chenmo, and her family, at his

home in Kalimpong. In fact, and this is where the irony is most acute, Pangdatshang was the one who
stepped forward in 1949 to extend a personal loan to Mr. Thondup when he found himself stranded in
India, after leaving China, when Tibetan government trustees in Lhasa declined to send him money. But
theres more. You would think having known Pangdatshang so well that he had stayed in his home at
that time and on many occasions had even borrowed money from him that the caption to the photo on
page 71 of The Noodle Maker would correctly identify Reting Regents trade representative for who he
was, namely Dzasa Pangdatshang Yarphel.
Another example of the extent of Mr. Thondups influence in the Tibetan community in the early days of
exile, and his disdain for anyone who thwarted his will, took place in 1966 when my wife and our two
daughters went to Darjeeling and Kalimpong where Mr. Thondups Chikdril Tsogpa (United Party) turned
his personal vendetta against the Pangdatshang and Yuthok families into organizing a demonstration
against my wife, Pangdatshang Rinchen Omo, and our two daughters, who were only seven and nine
years old. The demonstrators chanted that Pangdatshangs are not Tibetans and they should be
eliminated from the Tibetan race and put in jail. Local police found the mob so hostile that they took my
family into police protection and escorted them to Siliguri airport. The Indian authorities in Kolkata wanted
to investigate the incidents, however we considered the events which took place in Darjeeling and
Kalimpong to be a Tibetan matter and told them that we preferred to take our case to the Tibetan
Government in Dharamsala.
And that is what we did. In Dharamsala, we encountered a new element of mob behavior, but that was
also where Mr. Thondup learned that he had, once again, overplayed his hand. On the evening of our
arrival in Dharamsala after having an audience with HHDL, my wife and I were surrounded by a hostile
crowd. Tibetan Government officials came and dispersed the crowd and local police arrived intending to
arrest the persons who had surrounded us, but we again declined to press charges since they were just
pawns being manipulated by the leaders of Chikdril Tsogpa for their own political ends.
Another Chikdril Tsogpa crowd called for the dismissal of Private Office Secretary Khenchung Tara
because he had arranged an audience with His Holiness for my wife and me. After the audience, we
informed the Tibetan Exile Government that we were prepared to answer any questions that the
government may have about the Yuthok family and Pangda family. The investigation commission said I
was excused since I was a Yuthok and they only wanted to question my wife about the Pangdatshang
family. Her inquisitors did not have a clear agenda as to the line of questioning. So they began with what
Americans call a fishing expedition. They ended the investigation sessions with a statement that the
commission was fully satisfied with all the answers given by Omo Pangdatshang whom they concluded to
be a patriotic Tibetan.
Following these and other similar incidents the Chikdril Tsogpa organization gradually became unpopular
among the exile Tibetan community. Others who had been similarly mistreated came forward and told
their stories and the Chikdril Tsogpa faded into obscurity.
Hopefully that is the fate that awaits Mr. Thondups purported biography. Although it pretends to be
historically accurate, The Noodle Maker of Kalimpong is clearly a blend of fact and fancy. I have only
addressed a small portion of its contents, addressing inaccuracies and falsehoods about which I have
some personal knowledge. And, while these alone would justify the co-authors warnings about The
Noodle Makers authenticity, I am not the first to offer such corrections, and I probably will not be the last.
They say you must suspend your disbelief in order to enjoy a work of fiction; but The Noodle Maker
pretends to be factual so I advise the reader not to give in to the natural human desire to be told a good
story and instead to understand that non-fiction should be held to a much higher standard.

NOTES:
1. Mary Craig, Kundun, (Counterpoint, 1997), Page 353.
2. Warren W. Smith, Jr., Tibetan Nation, (Westview Press, Inc., 1996), Page 254.
3. Tsepon W.D. Shakabpa, Tibet: A Political History, (Potala Publications, 1988), Page 291.
4. Ibid, Page 295.
5. Ibid, Pages 297-298.
6. Tsering Shakya, The Dragon in the Land of Snows, (Columbia University Press, 1999), Page 22.
7. Melvyn C. Goldstein, A History of Modern Tibet: Volume 2 The Calm before the Storm, 1951-1955,
(University of California Press, 2007), Page 234-236.
8. Ibid, Page 238.
9. Ibid, Page 375.
10. Tashi Tsering, The Struggle for Modern Tibet, (M.E. Sharpe, Inc., 1997), Page 58.
11. Ibid, Page 58.
12. Warren W. Smith, Jr., Tibetan Nation, (Westview Press, Inc., 1996), Page 503. (Department of State
Outgoing Telegram, 6 November 1959, National Archives, 793B.00/11-659).