In the spring of 1988 Soenam Jamyangling and a delegation with representatives from five European countries traveled to Tibet. Soenam had not been in his home country in 28 years, and although there had been major changes over those years, the standard of living was very low, especially in rural areas. The children had no opportunity to learn, to read and write in an ordinary primary school.
The delegation was deeply moved by the poverty they had seen – and was compelled to take action. No child should be kept from the opportunity to learn how to read and write. According to the UN Convention on the Rights, all children in the world have the right to attend school. Before the delegation left Tibet, they contacted the authorities in Lhasa to investigate the possibility of starting a school in Soenams home village Katsel. A school that could also receive orphans from surrounding villages.
In December 1988, dedicated exiled Tibetans and Swedes formed the Swedish-Tibetan School and Cultural Society (Swedish Tibetan Society for School and Culture), a politically and religiously independent association. The main purpose of the association was to build and operate a boarding school in the village of Katsel, and to create cultural ties between Sweden and Tibet. That same year the United States Tibetan Society for School and Culture was formed, the Swedish Association’s sister organization, to help raise money for the project.
It would take about four years, from when the association was formed, until an agreement could finally be closed. A delegation of three representatives from the authorities in Lhasa came to Sweden. The agreement was signed March 28, 1993 in Stockholm by two Tibetans, Mr. Gyatso, Vice Mayor of Lhasa and Soenam Jamyangling, chairman of the Swedish-Tibetan School and Cultural Society. The association was able to finally begin construction of the first school. Grants were awarded by SIDA for an elementary school (grades 1-6) in Katsel. The school was planned to provide training to fifty residential child and fifty children from the same village.