10 facts about Tibet (Updated March 2010)
Below are 10 key facts that give background and context to the Tibet issue and the position of Tibet and its people today.
1. China’s invasion of Tibet began in 1950, in part, to expand its territory and gain control over Tibet’s natural resources. China’s occupation has resulted in the death of hundreds of thousands of Tibetans, the destruction of over 6,000 monasteries, nunneries and temples, and the imprisonment and torture of thousands of Tibetans.
2. The Dalai Lama, Tibet’s political and spiritual leader, escaped from Tibet in 1959 to Dharamsala, India, followed by over 100,000 Tibetans and established the Tibetan government in exile, which has evolved into a democratically elected body. In 1989 the Dalai Lama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his steadfast dedication to non-violence and in 2007 he received the highest US civilian honour, the Congressional Gold Medal.
3. Tibet, before occupation, was a nation with an established sovereign government, currency, postal system, language, legal system, and culture. Prior to 1950, the Tibetan government signed treaties with foreign nations, including the United Kingdom. The Chinese government claims that Tibet has always been part of China, yet its invasion of Tibet resembles the same imperialist aggression that China accuses other powers of exhibiting.
4. China refers to Tibet as the ‘Tibet Autonomous Region’ (TAR). However, the TAR only comprises a small part of traditional Tibet: U-Tsang and the western area of the Kham region. The region of Amdo and the rest of Kham were incorporated into the Chinese provinces of Sichuan, Qinghai, Gansu and Yunnan. Traditional Tibet has an area roughly equal to that of western Europe.
5. Fundamental human rights such as freedom of expression, assembly and religion, all internationally accepted within the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, are routinely violated in order to suppress the Tibetan way of life and prevent opposition to the occupation. Tibetans are frequently arrested on an arbitrary basis. There are currently at least 700 known political prisoners in Tibet, many of whom are subject to barbaric methods of torture.
6. The Chinese government increasingly encourages Han Chinese to migrate to Tibet by offering high wages and other inducements. This policy is threatening the survival of the Tibetan people. Tibetans are becoming a minority in their own country. Each year, hundreds, if not thousands, of Tibetans still choose to flee from Tibet, making the hazardous journey over the Himalayas into exile.
7. Tibet is the source of five of Asia’s largest rivers, providing water for over one billion people. Tibet is known as the world’s “Third Pole” as, after the North and South Poles, it holds the third largest quantity of glacially stored water. Currently the Tibetan plateau is experiencing global warming at double the rate of the rest of the world. Its fragile environment is endangered by Chinese government policies of strip-mining, nuclear waste dumping, extensive deforestation, and the damming and diverting of rivers.
8. The Chinese government claims to have “developed” Tibet. However, these developments mainly benefit the new majority Chinese, with little or no regard for Tibetans. Millions of Chinese Yuan have been spent building infrastructure; many roads, buildings, and power plants that directly support heavy militarisation, allowing China to maintain Tibet as a police state.
9. The traditional Tibetan nomadic way of life is being dangerously threatened by the Chinese government’s aggressive policy of re-settling nomads in inappropriate and unfeasible new roadside estates, stripping them of any means of livelihood. This further marginalises Tibetans and engenders hopelessness and despair. Little is spent on education, healthcare or retraining the thousands of Tibetans whose livelihoods have been lost.
10. The United Nations and international community have done little to address the core issue of China’s illegal occupation of Tibet. Because China represents an enormous market and cheap labour force and its associated businesses have a strong lobby, officials are reluctant to take substantive measures. In the 1990s many western countries adopted policies of “constructive engagement” with China, whilst remaining committed to protecting and improving human rights in Tibet and China. Currently these policies have not yet yielded any improvements in human rights for Tibetan people. Governments must be encouraged to stand firm within their policies on their commitments to human rights. As much as the West sees opportunities in trading with China, China also needs to have access to the markets and expertise of the West.
Other useful background facts
• Tibet covers an area the size of Western Europe and is the world's highest plateau.
• Tibet's culture is magnificent and unique. Until 1950 Tibet retained that ancient culture and was revered by Buddhists throughout the world.
• Tibetans (6 million) are now outnumbered by Chinese (7.5 million) within Tibet.
• It is believed that around one million Tibetans have died as a result of Chinese occupation, through imprisonment, torture and executions and fleeing persecution.
• Over 100,000 Tibetans have fled their country, risking their lives, for uncertain lives as refugees in India, Nepal and elsewhere.
• There are between a quarter and half a million of occupying Chinese troops or security police stationed in Tibet.
• China currently permits no news media in Tibet. Tibetans in Tibet are liable to interrogation, imprisonment and torture for having unofficial contact with foreigners.
• China has looted Tibet's enormous mineral wealth, natural resources and priceless art treasures, transporting them back to China to fuel its own economic growth.
• Tibet's unique culture and Buddhist religion have been systematically suppressed, with the destruction of over 6,000 monasteries and public buildings.
• China has developed limited tourism in parts of Tibet where some rebuilding has taken place. Some monks have been allowed to return to plundered monasteries but their numbers and activities are closely controlled by the Chinese.
• An Apartheid system is in place. Following mass migration of Chinese into Tibet, the economy is now dominated by these immigrants who hold all the best jobs. Employment prospects for Tibetans are virtually nonexistent.
• Coercive birth control policies, including enforced abortion and sterilisation, are completing the policies of wiping out Tibet's identity for ever.
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