Sonam Choedak, also known as Namdrol, was a 21-year-old monk from Taglungdrag Monastery in Phenpo Lhundrup County. He was detained on 10 March 1999 for participating in a pro-independence protest in Lhasa and later sentenced to four years’ imprisonment on charges of “incitement and propaganda.”

He protested alongside Phuntsok Legmon, a 16-year-old monk who was sentenced to three years. Disguised in lay clothing, the two demonstrated near the Jokhang Temple, shouting slogans such as “Free Tibet” and “Chinese go back to China,” before being arrested and beaten by police. Authorities later denied that either monk had been sentenced.