Penpa, a 22-year-old small businessman from Lhasa, Tibet, participated in a protest held in Lhasa on 6 March 1989. During the subsequent police crackdown, he witnessed widespread arbitrary detention, arrests, and killings of protesters. On the evening of 7 March 1989, his home was stormed by approximately 17–18 police officers, and he was arrested.

He was detained at Sangyip Prison for 15 days, during which he underwent approximately 40 rounds of interrogation accompanied by severe torture. The Lhasa Intermediate People’s Court later convicted him and sentenced him to three years’ imprisonment at Drapchi Prison, along with the deprivation of political rights for one year. Although his scheduled release date was 7 March 1992, prison authorities denied his release and detained him for an additional 12 days.