The Bhutanese Leading the way.
On 17th December 2024 a 43-year-old Sonam Tobgay, from Katsho Gewog, Haa, was caught by Chinese border guards in Tibet (China) carrying a tightly wrapped package.
The package was later found to be around 900 grams of ‘brown-sugar’ or heroin, and Sonam now faces either the death sentence or a very long time in prison in China.
Sonam’s family members in Haa insist that Sonam had no idea what he was carrying, evidenced, as they say, in the fact that the package given to him was tightly wrapped and could not be opened. They say he was told that it was some kind of traditional medicines sought by someone in Tibet.
A family member said that Sonam, a new father, was reluctant to go but he was repeatedly pressurized by a relative to take the consignment to the border, saying that it is only traditional medicines.
They say another evidence is that he was promised only Nu 15,000 to 20,000 for delivering the package at the border, which is quite a low rate if it was hard drugs.
Sonam has two children with the younger daughter being only 9 months old, and his son being 1 year 10 months old when he was arrested in December last year. The daughter is now one year three months old and his older son is now 2 years four months old.
His wife is a housewife and was dependent on Sonam for running the household.
Sonam is a yak herder with around 80 heads of yak who used to spend the summer in the highlands and come back in the colder months.
Now, in his absence there is no one to look after the yaks which is the sole source of income for the family.
At the moment, the family is using a help to herd the yaks, but the person has no particular knowledge about the yaks and how to milk them.
As a result, the family is unable to economically utilize the yaks. The young mother has to take care of her two young children.
Sonam is also survived by an 87-year-old father and 80-year-old mother, both of whom are very worried about their son’s fate.
The mother has already approached the Prime Minister Dasho Tshering Tobgay two times about her son’s case, and she was assured all possible help by the PM. Other family members also approached the Foreign Minister D.N Dhungyel and Home Minister Tshering for help on the case.
The wife has also slipped into depression as she is very worried about her husband. She wonders what will happen to him and how her two young children may grow up without a father.
The family members insist that Sonam was tricked by the relative into carrying the drugs. The relative and his associates, numbering 7 in total, are out on bail.
A family member said that Sonam was never into smuggling drugs or contraband at the border, and this is perhaps why he even got caught.
In fact, Sonam’s father and son were both sick, and Sonam did not want to go to the border but the relative kept insisting and pressuring him saying it is only a matter of one night. Sonam gave into the pressure of relative.
Sonam’s family say it was this relative who insisted that Sonam cross the border with the package and hand it over to a counterpart at the call of ‘Dorji, Dorji,’ at a specific location.
However, in reality Sonam was walking into a well laid trap with the Chinese border guards who instead said, ‘Dorji, Dorji,’ and once Sonam crossed the border he was apprehended.
It has been learnt that the Prime Minister took up the matter of Sonam with the Chinese Ambassador when there was a Cultural Troupe that visited Bhutan a few months ago.
The prayer and request from the family to the government and also to the Chinese Government is to show leniency in the case of Sonam who did not know what he was carrying and had been duped by a relative. They say he is a young father with old parents and the sole bread earner for the family.
It has been learnt that Sonam is currently in detention in Shigatshe and his case trial is on.
According to sources, the Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) arrest and interrogation of his accomplices in Bhutan show that Sonam and the two others who went to Tibet were not aware what was in the tightly wrapped package.
Two accomplices, aged 27 and 34, who were traveling with him, managed to evade arrest and returned to Haa the following day.
The arrest came to light when the suspect’s sister lodged a complaint with the Haa police on 19th December, after learning about her brother’s detention from the two accomplices who had returned.
In response, Haa police arrested the two accomplices.
Upon interrogation, they revealed the names of others involved, which led to the arrests of 7 individuals connected to the case. The arrested individuals included those responsible for procuring the illicit substance from India, coordinators, and carriers— all of whom are Bhutanese nationals.
Later, after the initial interrogation, many of them revealed that they were not aware of the content inside the package. The two individuals revealed that they were asked by two other coordinators that the small consignment which was tightly packed was to be delivered in Tibet.
Among those arrested was a 40-year-old suspect who confessed to receiving orders from a 23-year-old man, believed to be the mastermind behind the smuggling operation. According to the RBP, a total of 9 individuals have been identified in connection with the case. So far, 7 have been arrested, excluding the individual detained at the border and the alleged ringleader, who remains at large.
A Foreign Ministry official said that Bhutanese Embassy in Delhi had raised the matter with the Chinese Embassy in Delhi more than a month ago, but the Chinese Embassy has said that they have informed Beijing but no reply has come yet.
If there is no mercy shown and Sonam is executed or undergoes a lengthy prison sentence then he would be the first recorded Bhutanese to undergo such a fate abroad.
