On 15 June 1994, Dhondup Tsering took part in a peaceful demonstration demanding religious freedom in Tibet and respect for His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Four days later, at around 6 p.m., two police officers and a Dingri County official came to his home and arrested him without any formal notice or warrant. He was taken to the Shekar Sub-County police station, where he was interrogated and forced to stand for two hours. During questioning, he was asked who had inspired him to raise slogans for Tibet; he replied that his actions were motivated by his respect for the Dalai Lama.

The police compelled him to sign a document prohibiting him from participating in future demonstrations or crossing the border. He was initially allowed to stay at a relative’s house in Shekar. However, the following morning, police took him from his relative’s home, placed him in a van, and transferred him to Shigatse Prison. There, he spent one night in a filthy cell with five nuns from Thupten Choeling Nunnery in Solokhumbu, Nepal, who had been arrested while visiting their families in Dingri for allegedly refusing to pay land tax. The conditions were so poor that detainees were unable to sleep.

The next day, all were transferred to Nyari Prison near Shigatse, where Dhondup Tsering was detained for five months without any formal court sentence. During his imprisonment, he observed at least 75 other detainees and met Dhargay, a resident of Tashi Zom village in Dingri County, who had been arrested upon returning to Tibet after completing his twelfth-grade education in India.