Tibet, the Modern World's Hidden Tragedy

Paldon Gyatso with torture Instruments Monks protesting peacefully in European Democracies

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1. THE LAND AND ITS PEOPLE

The awesome scale of the Tibetan environment has been of primary significance in the evolution of Tibetan identity. The high Tibetan plateau physically delimits Tibet as a distinct culture and as a nation. Tibet is defined by altitude; ' The Roof of The World', and forms a distinct geographic and ecological region.

The Tibetan plateau with an average altitude of 4000m is bounded on the south by the Himalayas, on the west by Karakoram, and on the north by the Kun Lun, Altyn and Qilian ranges. The plateau is separated from China on the southeast by the Salween, Mekong and Yangtze gorges, and covers an area of 2.5 million sq.km, about the size of Western Europe.

Since the Chinese invasion, Tibet has been redefined into the so-called Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) consisting only of the Western plateau, while the two eastern provinces of Tibet ( Kham and Amdo ) have been claimed as Chinese provinces.

Estimates ( based on Chinese and Tibetan figures, both somewhat unreliable ) put the total Tibetan population at between 4 and 6 million, including Tibetan exiles in bordering countries.

Of the Tibetan people, Richardson wrote: 'All agree in describing them as kind, gentle, honest, open and cheerful. They are humorous…intelligent and self-reliant, and they accord a high position to women. They have inborn good manners…'

2. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

A) EARLY HISTORY

During the Tibetan Empire period ( ca 630 – 842 ) the characteristics which define Tibet as a nation – shared ethnicity, territory, culture, language and religion – were all consolidated, and survived the empire's collapse.

With the fall of the empire, the clans, tribes and regions reverted to a fractious independence with no central authority for the next 400 years. This political vacuum was gradually filled by monastic Buddhism. In 1247 Sakya Pandita, head of the Sakya lineage of Buddhism, submitted to Godan Khan, head of the Mongol Empire, and was appointed as the representative of Mongol authority in Tibet. This pattern of relationship between Tibetan Lama and Mongol Patron continued until the fall of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty in 1368.

The Mongol Yuan Dynasty was succeeded by the Ming ( 1368 - 1644 ), a native Chinese Dynasty. The Ming never claimed authority over Tibet, but simply continued to confirm Tibetan officials' titles inherited from the Mongol Yuan relationship. They had no real interest in Tibet beyond Tibet's role in Ming relations with the Mongols.

In 1577 the Mongol ruler Altan Khan awarded the name 'Dalai' ( Oceanic ) to the Tibetan Lama Sonam Gyatso, who thereafter became known as the Dalai Lama. In 1642 Gushri Khan unified Tibet on behalf of the 5th Dalai Lama, signalling for the first time that a Dalai Lama had attained both temporal and spiritual rule. Regional and sectarian conflicts were eliminated and Tibet was politically unified by means of Mongol patronage and military force.

In 1652 the 5th Dalai Lama re-established a patron-lama relationship with the new Manchu emperor in Peking. The Chinese later cited this event as the nominal submission of the Dalai Lama to the Manchu emperor, although historical accounts show the high respect in which the Dalai Lama was held by the emperor. Tibet's importance at the beginning of the Manchu Qing dynasty was entirely due to the 5th Dalai Lama's influence with the independent Mongols.

An agreement reached between the Manchu and the Russians in 1689 ( Treaty of Nerchinsk ) marked the end of the era of the great steppe empires of the Mongols. Tibetan influence in Inner Asia decreased along with the strength of the Mongols.

Actual Qing control over Tibet began in 1720 when a Qing army entered Tibet to expel a group of Mongols who had taken control of the capital, Lhasa. They re-organised the administration of Tibet and separated the eastern provinces of Kham and Amdo from that of Central Tibet ( U-Tsang ). Kham was administered by native chiefs under the supervision of the Governor of Sichuan. Amdo and Lhasa were supervised by a resident Qing official, the Amban. Through the Amban the Qing attempted to establish their authority over the political succession in the Tibetan system of combined spiritual and temporal rule.

From 1792 the Qing Dynasty began to decline. During the 19th century the Qing were pre-occupied with foreign imperialism, and the abandonment of financial and military powers to the Tibetan Government by the Amban in 1847 represents the end of direct Qing administration in Tibet. The Qing relationship with Tibet remained one between an empire and a semi-independent state, not one between a central government and an outlying part of that same state.

Yet Tibet was eventually regarded by China not as a territory of the Manchu Qing Empire, but as Chinese territory. Despite later Chinese claims, Tibet did not become an ' integral part of China' during the Qing Dynasty. Although Tibet was a dependent state of the Qing Empire, Tibet did not thereby become part of China.

B) THE 20TH CENTURY

The decline of the Qing dynasty was contemporaneous with the end of the feudal age and the beginning of modern nationalism in China, Inner Asia, and Tibet. In response to a British threat to China's role in Tibet, the late Qing attempted to impose its control over Tibet more directly. The 13th Dalai Lama, aware that the Qing might attempt to transform their authority into Chinese sovereignty, attempted to achieve independence. He assumed temporal authority in 1895, becoming the first Dalai Lama to actually rule Tibet since the Great 5th over two centuries earlier.

The 1904 British expedition to Tibet ended Tibet's international isolation and exposed the myth of China's claimed authority in Tibet. But Britain, out of consideration for its relations with Russia and China, repudiated some of the political advantages gained. Britain agreed not to interfere in China's administration of Tibet. The 1906 Adhesion Treaty relegated Tibetan affairs once again to a concern of China. Tibet might have ceased to exist as a separate political entity, but the Qing Dynasty was overthrown in 1911.

In 1912 the Chinese were expelled from Tibet and the Dalai Lama returned to Lhasa, refusing the titles offered by the new Chinese Republic and repudiating China's claim to authority over Tibet, acts that Tibetans consider a declaration of Tibet's independence. The ICJ found that '….the events of 1911-12 mark the re-emergence of Tibet as a fully sovereign state, independent in fact and in law of Chinese control' ( ICJ Report; 1997)

In 1933 the 13th Dalai Lama died. During his lifetime Tibet's status had evolved from a Qing dependency to a de facto independent state, and Central Tibet achieved an unprecedented degree of national unity. China continued to propose that Tibet should accept Chinese sovereignty in exchange for autonomy, except in foreign affairs and defence. However, the Tibetan Government maintained that Tibet was in independent country.

In its 1960 report, the ICJ found that 'Tibet demonstrated from 1913 to 1950 the conditions of statehood as generally accepted under international law…, and countries with whom Tibet had foreign relations…treated Tibet in practise as an independent state.'

C ) THE INVASION AND OCCUPATION OF TIBET

On 1 October 1949 the People's Republic of China ( PRC ) was proclaimed in Peking. On 1 January 1950 the PRC promised to 'liberate' Tibet. On 7 October 1950 the People's Liberation Army ( PLA ) invaded, halting its advance 100km to the east of Lhasa, at what China claimed was the boundary of Central Tibet. The Tibetan Government was called on to send a delegation to Peking to negotiate Tibet's 'peaceful liberation'.

Although this act of aggression was brought to the United Nations General Assembly, it was decided to postpone the Tibet Issue because many member states felt that a peaceful solution between Tibet and China was still possible. China's tactic of halting the PLA and calling on Tibet to negotiate was thus successful in defusing international criticism. The Tibetan Government was forced to send delegates to Beijing under threat of a continued advance of the PLA to Lhasa. Threatened with forcible conquest of Tibet they agreed, on 23 May 1951, on measures for the 'peaceful liberation of Tibet' embodied in the 17-Point Agreement. As the ICJ recognised : 'Tibet signed at pistol-point'. At the end of July 1951, realising the lack of international support and fearing Chinese repercussions, the 14th Dalai Lama sent a letter to Mao Zedong accepting the 17-Point Agreement.

D) FIRST YEARS UNDER CHINESE COMMUNIST RULE

After acceptance of the 17-Point Agreement, the PLA occupied Lhasa and Central Tibet. However, until Chinese control could be firmly established, the Chinese Communist Party ( CCP ) was cautious in its policy towards Tibet. At the same time the CCP created territorial divisions of Tibet which contributed to the later Tibetan revolt. By the end of 1954 China's hold over Tibet had tightened. In 1955 Mao decided to include the Tibetan provinces of Kham and Amdo in the ' High Tide of Socialist Transformation'. When the 'democratic reforms' included forced public denunciation of respected Tibetan leaders and revered Lamas, both areas erupted in revolt. In response, the Chinese introduced overwhelming numbers of troops.

As a means of quelling the revolt, eastern Tibetans were collectivised during the 'Great Leap Forward' of 1958. In March 1959 large numbers of Tibetans surrounded the Dalai Lama's summer residence outside Lhasa due to rumours that the Chinese were planning to kidnap him. Days of fighting ensued, and thousands were killed. The 'Tibetan uprising' was put down. Martial law was declared. The Dalai Lama fled to India, followed by some 80 000 Tibetans. Before crossing the border the Tibetan Government repudiated the 17-Point Agreement. China immediately implemented 'democratic reforms' throughout Tibet. By these reforms the CCP eliminated the Tibetan leadership and any who opposed Chinese rule. Lamas were arrested, monasteries depopulated and systematically looted. Out of 2500 monasteries in the 'TAR', 70 were left in 1962 and 93% of the monks forced out. In Eastern Tibet 98-99% of monasteries were closed.

The loss of life as a direct result of the invasion and occupation of Tibet during the period 1950-1976 has been estimated as follows : 173,221 Tibetans died in prisons and labour camps; 156,758 by execution ; 342,970 by starvation ; 432,705 in battles and uprisings ; 92,731 by torture and 9,002 by suicide.

E) TIBET AT THE UNITED NATIONS

On 9 September 1959, from exile in India, the Dalai Lama appealed Tibet's case to the United Nations. The appeal was based upon a violation of Tibetan independence, with a secondary appeal on humanitarian grounds, including dispossession of property, forced labour, mass murder and persecution of religion.

Between 1959 and 1965 three resolutions concerning Tibet were passed by the U.N. General Assembly, the texts of which are similar: ( extract ) ; 'Gravely concerned at…the violation of fundamental human rights of the Tibetan people…Solemnly renews its call for the cessation of practises which deprive the Tibetan people of their fundamental human rights and freedoms, including their right to self-determination.' ( UN Doc.A/PV. 1084,19 Dec. 1961 )

In 2 reports during the same period, the ICJ found that Tibetan human rights had been violated in respect to 16 Articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including: Article 3; The right to life, liberty and security of person was violated by acts of murder, rape, and arbitrary imprisonment. Article 5; Torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment were inflicted on the Tibetans on a large scale. Article 18; Freedom of thought, conscience and religion were denied…

The ICJ also concluded, in regard to genocide, that evidence pointed to: a) a prima facie case of acts contrary to Article 2 (a) and (c) of the Genocide Convention of 1948 and b) a prima facie case of a systematic intention by such acts and other acts to destroy in whole or in part the Tibetans as a separate nation…

F) THE CULTURAL REVOLUTION

In June 1966 Mao unleashed the Red Guards to destroy the 'four olds' ( old ideas, old culture, old tradition, old customs ). The Cultural Revolution was officially launched in Tibet on 25 August 1966, and every aspect of Tibetan culture came under attack.

Monasteries were plundered and defiled, religious texts used as inner shoe soles or toilet paper, printing blocks turned into floorboards or other objects degrading to religious sentiments. Private religious shrines were forced to surrender all objects of value to the Chinese authorities. Timber and stone from dismantled religious buildings were used to construct Chinese offices, housing, or PLA barracks.

'Reactionary' Tibetan customs and traditions were replaced by 'socialist' Chinese styles. Tibetan songs were altered with revolutionary words and phrases, Tibetan dance and opera were replaced by Madame Mao's revolutionary operas. The Tibetan language was corrupted by adding a Chinese vocabulary intended to produce a 'Sino-Tibetan Friendship Language'.

Class struggle was fuelled by 'thamzing' (struggle sessions) in which workers were set against employers, peasants against landlords, monks against abbots, students against teachers, in order to extract confessions from the accused. Then executions were carried out in groups of 18-20 people.

Communes were forcibly established by the PLA. By 1974 communes were reportedly established in 90% of Tibet's counties. From 1968-1973 Tibetans again suffered famine conditions due to communisation, inept agricultural policies and confiscation of grain for Chinese consumption. Communisation also increased Chinese control over all aspects of Tibetan life.

The period 1966-1979 represents the high point of Tibetan suffering. In this time Tibetan culture was all but eradicated and the populace kept regimented and repressed with horrendous brutality and loss of life.

G) POST-MAOIST POLICIES

In 1979 Deng Xiaoping initiated general liberalisation, and the CCP decided to implement more liberal policies in Tibet. Tibetans imprisoned since 1959 were released. Exiled Tibetans, including the Dalai Lama, were invited to return to Tibet to 'participate in socialist construction'.

Delegations from the Tibetan Government in Exile ( TGIE )visited Tibet in 1979 and 1980, receiving an ecstatic welcome everywhere they went, much to the surprise of Chinese cadres who had hoped the Tibetans would express animosity against representatives of the 'clique of serf-owners'. The second delegation's visit to Lhasa in 1980 had to be terminated after the joyful welcome threatened to become uncontrollable.

CCP leaders realised that conditions in Tibet were not as they had been led to believe by Chinese cadres in Tibet. They convened the First Tibet Work Meeting in the spring of 1980 amid growing consternation. The Meeting sent a delegation to Tibet under CCP General Secretary Hu Yaobang to ascertain the actual situation. He was shocked by what he observed, particularly the poverty of Tibetans.

On his return to Beijing, Hu proposed a radical reform program including tax relief, decollectivisation of agriculture, privatisation of land and property, greater autonomy, and administration by native Tibetans. Han Chinese cadres, excluding the PLA, were to be reduced by 85%, and Tibetan culture would be revived.

In the new atmosphere, The TGIE sent representatives in 1982 and 1984 for talks in Beijing, but found the Chinese willing to discuss only the Dalai Lama's unconditional 'return to the motherland'. Tibetan proposals for greater autonomy were rejected.

But the loosening of social restrictions led to a revival of Tibetan civil, cultural and religious life. Interchange with Tibetans in exile and even tourists exposed Tibetans to new realities.

The 2nd Work Forum in 1984 criticised Hu Yaobang's policies for reviving Tibetan nationalism rather then alleviating discontent. His policy of reducing the number of Chinese in Tibet and allowing greater Tibetan self-government was also criticised. In 1987 Hu was purged from his position as CCP General Secretary.

Responding to Beijing's increasingly aggressive policies in Tibet, the Dalai Lama chose to internationalise the issue, and seek support in the West. In September 1987 he unveiled his '5-Point Peace Plan' for Tibet. The speech sparked demonstrations of support in Lhasa, which escalated into riots. Further riots occurred in December 1988 and March 1989. These confrontations left scores dead and hundreds detained.

In June 1988 in an address to the European Parliament at Strasbourg, the Dalai Lama proposed to accept the reality of Chinese sovereignty over Tibet in exchange for genuine and well-defined autonomous rights: The whole of Tibet (U-Tsang, Kham and Amdo) should become a self-governing democratic entity, in association with the PRC. The PRC could be responsible for Tibet's foreign policy, but Tibetans should maintain relations through its own Foreign Affairs Bureau, in the fields of religion, commerce, education, culture, tourism and other non-political activities. The Government of Tibet should have the right to decide on all affairs relating to Tibet and Tibetans. The whole should be founded on a basic law similar to that which was to govern Hong Kong after 1997. Tibetan autonomy was to be subject to a nationwide referendum of Tibetan people.

The PRC rejected these proposals as 'independence in disguise' and as perpetuating the 'idea of Tibet as a separate country'. The Dalai Lama came under increasingly virulent criticism.

During the 1994 Third National Forum on Work in Tibet, the Chinese identified the influence of the Dalai Lama as the root of Tibet's instability. A campaign was endorsed to curtail the Dalai Lama's influence and to crack down on dissent. These policies resulted in heightened control of religious activity, a denunciation campaign against the Dalai Lama, an increase in political arrests, stepped up surveillance of dissidents and increased repression of all forms of protest. The policy of transferring Chinese to Tibet was publicly endorsed. The era of liberalisation was over.

Since the beginning of 1996 there has been another escalation in repression, marked by an intensive 're-education' drive, a clampdown on information coming from Tibet, arbitrary arrests and a ban on public display of photos of the Dalai Lama.

Chinese leaders have identified Tibetan culture as an obstacle to development, and have undertaken a 'socialist spiritual civilisation' campaign which targets Tibetan identity per se, and seeks to erode Tibetan religion, language and culture.

The Dalai Lama has voiced great concern over the danger of extinction of the Tibetan cultural heritage. The degree of violence and repression that Beijing employs to maintain its control in Tibet is causing physical, psychological and social damage to the Tibetan people. Documentation of the torture of men, women and child detainees, and the coercive enforcement of Tibetan birth control while China simultaneously transfers millions of Chinese settlers into Tibet, corroborate this conclusion.

3. UNENDING NIGHT OF SUFFERING; A SURVEY OF REPRESSION

In its executive summary ( Dec.1997) the ICJ found that : 'A stated goal of the justice system in Tibet is the repression of opposition to Chinese rule. Tibetans continue to be detained for long periods without charge or sentenced to prison for peacefully advocating Tibetan independence. The number of political prisoners has risen to over 600, most arrested for peacefully demonstrating, distributing leaflets, communicating with foreigners or the TGIE or possessing pro-independence material.

'Torture is widespread in Tibet. Documented methods of torture include beatings with chains, sticks with protruding nails, and iron bars, shocks applied with electric cattle-prods to sensitive parts of the body, including the genitals and mouth, hanging by the arms twisted behind the back, and exposure to cold water or cold temperatures. Women, particularly nuns, are subjected to gender-specific torture, including rape using electric cattle prods and ill-treatment of the breasts.'

'A number of unclarified deaths of political prisoners, including young nuns, have occurred in Tibetan prisons in recent years, allegedly as a result of torture or negligence. The imposition of the death penalty – used 34 times in 1996 alone – is devoid of the guarantees of due process and fair trial'.

A) THE NIGHTMARE PERIOD: 1949 - 1979

A Chinese document states that the PLA killed over 10 000 Tibetans in the region of Kanlho between 1952 and 1958. Golog in Amdo saw its population halved from around 140 000 in 1956 to 70 000 in 1964. The Panchen Lama told Beijing's leaders: 'In Golog…people's dead bodies were rolled into a big ditch. Relatives were forced to dance on the dead bodies. Soon after, they were also massacred. In Amdo and Kham people were subjected to unspeakable atrocities. They were shot in groups of 10 to 20'.

In Lhasa the March 10 Uprising of 1959 resulted in 10 000 to 15 000 deaths in 3 days. According to a PLA report 87 000 Tibetans were wiped out in Lhasa and its environs between March and October 1959.

In the following 2 decades a massive number of Tibetans died in prisons and labour camps. Only half of 70 000 Tibetans taken to labour camps in the north of Lanzhou in 1959-1960 survived. In Amdo at least 200 000 inmates starved to death working on road and rail construction, mining, building and working state farms for the PLA. At Vebou labour camp 14 000 out of 30 000 inmates died. Of 12 000 inmates in Shen Mu, 6 000 perished. Most of the deaths occurred during the Great Famine ( 1958-1962) which killed more than 900 000 in Amdo alone.

One survivor, Ama Adhe, reminisced: 'Every day they would deliver 9 or 10 truckloads of bodies to mass graves'. Of 300 women arrested with her, only 100 survived. These were made to walk to another prison, a gigantic lead mine. Only 4 out of these survived.

Apho Gaga, a survivor of the Tsawa Pomda labour camp, stated that of the 8 100 imprisoned in 1959, only 370 survived by the end of 1961. In U-Tsang, in Drapchi prison in Lhasa, more than 10 000 died between 1960-1965. Thousands also perished in the three major labour camps, Chang Thang, Nachen Thang and Kongpo. A survivor of Chang Thang claimed 54 000 inmates had died.

Sweeping massacres, bombardment of monasteries and the wholesale extermination of nomad tribes characterised these 3 decades. Over 1.2 million Tibetans died during this period.

B) HU YAOBANG : 1979 - 1986

The period of CCP Secretary Hu's tenure marked a merciful reprieve for Tibetans. Hu recommended that the 'Tibet Autonomous Region' should be allowed to exercise true autonomy. There was hope that the new leadership might undo the brutal legacy of its predecessors. Tibetans took advantage of the new climate to call for more freedoms.

However, in May 1982 115 Tibetan activists were arrested as 'delinquents and black marketeers'. More arrests and public executions followed. By the end of November 1983, 750 activists had been jailed in Lhasa alone.

In 1986 Hu was disgraced for his sympathy for Tibet. Anti Dalai Lama propaganda resurfaced, and the atmosphere became charged with bitterness.

C) PROTEST AND IMPRISONMENT: 1987 - 1994

On September 21, 1987, the Dalai Lama announced his 5-Point Peace Plan, to which Beijing responded by launching a media campaign to demonise him and urging the populace of Lhasa to demonstrate against him. To further punish the Dalai Lama, ii Tibetans were sentenced, 2 to death. 15 000 Tibetans were compelled to attend a mass sentencing in the Lhasa sports stadium.

In late September / early October several demonstrations, led by monks, took place. They were arrested and viciously beaten, but several more minor demonstrations for Tibetan independence followed.

In July 1988, Beijing's security chief, Qiao Shi visited Tibet and announced 'merciless repression' of all forms of protest against Chinese rule. On December 10, 1988, during massive demonstrations in Lhasa, 15 demonstrators were killed and 150 seriously wounded. In March 1989 Lhasa was again in turmoil, with estimates of the death toll varying between 80 and 400 Tibetans. 3000 were imprisoned. Martial law was declared.

Martial law was lifted in May 1990, but an Australian Human Rights delegation which visited Tibet in 1991 observed that ' it continues to exist in all but name.' Amnesty International confirmed this, adding, 'extensive powers of arbitrary arrest and detention without trial…are retained.'

From February 1992 groups of 10 Chinese personnel raided Tibetan homes and arrested those found in possession of photos of the Dalai Lama or books and tapes of his speeches. Over 200 arrests were made. This was followed again by a series of brutally crushed demonstrations and more arrests. Many of these arrests and detentions resulted in disappearances.

Amnesty International's 1993 report states: 'Over 200 political prisoners…remained held. They included…monks and nuns detained for peacefully advocating Tibetan independence. Some were serving prison terms imposed after unfair trials, others terms of “re-education through labour" imposed without formal charge or trial.

D) 'LIFE-AND-DEATH' STRUGGLE: 1995 - 2003

Towards the end of 1994 Beijing devised an array of pro-active measures to eliminate the roots of protest in Tibet. 'Anti-Dalai' and 'Anti-Splittist' campaigns were recommended by the Third Work Forum on Tibet, which advocated: '…securing the unity of our country and opposing splittism. This is a life-and-death struggle…striking relentless blows is one of the important elements…of public security.' This chilling directive was followed by a massive escalation of repression throughout Tibet.

Neighbourhood surveillance systems were implemented, people were coerced into informing on their colleagues on pain of losing housing, employment, education etc. Suspects were repeatedly detained for short periods and interrogated by torture. From the year 2000, suspects were subjected to interrogation and torture lasting from 4 to 24 weeks. This technique is used typically against people suspected of communicating information about Tibet to the outside world.

A report submitted by Bai Zhao, President of the 'Tibet Autonomous Region' People's Court in May 1998 said that the courts had tried 6 291 people over the past 5 years and had found 0.73 percent not guilty. Detainees received sentences ranging from 5 years to death.

Political detainees are invariably tortured to extract confessions before the trial. In 1999 Physicians for Human Rights stated that in Tibet ' the frequency of torture suggests that it is part of a widespread pattern of abuse.' China's growing sensitivity to international pressure has resulted in some changes in repression strategy. Instead of death sentences, political prisoners suffer prolonged torture leading to slow, quiet deaths or permanent injury or debilitation.

Once a person is jailed for activism, he and his family become pariahs. Former prisoners say that trying to lead a normal life after prison is harder than the actual sentence. The only option is to escape over the Himalayas to seek a new life in exile.

Almost all torture victims of this period are those who protest against ill-treatment of prisoners, show allegiance to the Dalai Lama or express dissenting views. In May 1998 at least 10 prisoners in Lhasa ( Drapchi Prison) were tortured to death on these grounds.

Repression of rural unrest has also increased. Deputy Party Secretary Raidi asked for the 'Strike Hard' campaign to be implemented among the rural masses. The People's Daily reported in July, 1998, that '650 township and town party committees and 3 602 village party branches had been “rectified" since 1995.'

Authorities have expanded the network of prison complexes in Tibet. A new high-security detention and interrogation facility was built in Lhasa in 1997. Lhasa's Drapchi and Sangyip prison complexes were expanded in 1998. Detention facilities in almost all counties and townships house political prisoners. The intensification of surveillance and control mechanisms ensures that reports of abuse in Tibet rarely reach international monitoring groups.

Documented torture techniques in prisons include aerial suspension, attack by dogs, hand and foot cuffs, exposure to extreme temperatures, sexual assault, electric cattle prods, solitary confinement, urinating in the victim's mouth, forcing victims to watch torture videos, deprivation of food, water and sleep.

A Tibetan official in Lhasa told a prominent Chinese writer that, ' if the machinery of repression fails one day, many more people than in the 1980's will participate in disturbances.'

4. THE SCOPE OF ABUSE

A) DETENTION AND TORTURE

In 1994 the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found that 32 Tibetan prisoners whose cases it examined were in contravention of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. These included:

• 10 monks from Drepung Monastery sentenced to an average of 15 years for publishing leaflets about democracy.
• 8 Monks from Ganden Monastery sentenced to 5-12 years for demonstrating, making posters and calling for Tibetan independence.
• Lobsang Tsultrim, a 72 year old scholar and monk, serving 6 years for 'failure to reform through re-education' and 'becoming a reactionary with the hope of splitting the great motherland.'
• Jampa Ngodrup, a doctor serving 13 years for 'collecting lists of people detained and passing them on to others, thus…violating the laws of secrecy.'
• Yulu Dawa Tsering, a university teacher sentenced to 14 years for speaking about independence to an Italian tourist.

The monk Palden Gyatso told the ICJ: 'Paljor (the interrogator) asked, "Why are you here again?" I replied that I had put up wall-posters in Lhasa. Paljor…said, "Do you still want independence?" I stood still…Paljor took out his electric baton and shoved it…down my throat. When I woke up, I found myself lying in a pool of vomit and urine; I had lost twenty of my teeth.' (See photo of Palden Gyatso on cover.)

The ICJ interviewed several women torture survivors:
Ngawang Choedon, a nun, was arrested during a peaceful demonstration, and she and others were taken to Gutsa detention centre: 'We had to go through the whole process of interrogation again…I saw ropes, chains and electrical instruments lying on the table nearby…my hands were tied behind my back and the end of the rope was tied to the iron ceiling…Two men pulled the rope till I was hanging in the air…and soon I was unconscious…When I regained consciousness…I could not get up…Someone was kicking me from the back…I was hit all over my body with a thick chain…One of them poked and electrical instrument inside my mouth…after a while I did not feel as if my body belonged to me…I was stripped naked…I saw them laughing at me..'

Ngawang Tendol, a nun arrested for shouting independence slogans, was also tortured at Gutsa: 'We were made to stand…facing the sun. We were beaten in groups of three until sunset…We were kept in solitary confinement for 26 days without a blanket…cattle prods were used…we were beaten continuously for a week.'

Kalsang, a 26 year old nun from Shungsep nunnery, was imprisoned after demonstrating: 'They made me undress completely…and started beating me with sticks. I died with shame as so many people were watching. (Other common prisoners were allowed to watch.)…Later the beating was so unbearable that I forgot about my shame…the room turned upside down…I was like a corpse…'

In consideration of what is decently bearable to readers, the SAFT has deliberately omitted the vilest and most brutal assaults testified to by these young nuns. The ICJ states that young nuns make up 25-33% of all political prisoners.

Minors detained in prison are not exempt from torture. Abuse of minors has also occurred upon arrest. 3 nuns from Michungri nunnery, aged 14-15 were badly beaten for demonstrating. 6 schoolchildren aged between 13 and 17 were arrested for singing nationalist songs. They were kicked and beaten throughout the night, stripped of their clothes and beaten with wire. Sherab Ngawang – believed to have been only 12 – died in April 1995 after beatings and torture in Trisam.

The U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture has sought, without response, an invitation to visit China after: 'continuing to receive reports according to which the practise of torture was endemic to police stations and detention centres in Tibet.'

B) INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS (Statements from the 1997 ICJ Executive Summary)

1. JUDICIARY: A stated goal of the justice system in the 'TAR' is repression of opposition to Chinese rule. A judiciary subservient to Communist Party dictates results in severe abuse of human rights in Tibet.
2. EDUCATION: The education system puts Tibetan children at a disadvantage compared to Chinese children. The 'TAR' illiteracy rate is triple the national average. Education in Tibet serves to convey to Tibetan children a sense of inferiority with regard to their culture and values.
3. HOUSING: Destruction of Tibetan neighbourhoods, forced evictions and demolition of homes, and preferences shown to Chinese in new housing reveal marked discrimination against Tibetans in the housing sphere.
4. HEALTH: The Tibetan infant mortality rate is three times the PRC national average and a serious problem of child malnutrition exists. The cost and poor quality of primary care and the shortage of trained professionals prevent Tibetans from achieving high health standards.
5. EXPRESSION: Freedom of expression is severely restricted. Neighbourhood committees identify dissenters and instil 'correct thought'. Peaceful expression of religious and political views is harshly punished.
6. ASSEMBLY: Peaceful demonstrations are typically broken up in minutes, and participants arrested and often beaten. Even economic protests have been violently suppressed.
7. POPULATION CONTROL: Although the Tibetan population is small and Tibetan territory sparsely inhabited, China limits the number of children which Tibetan women may have, through fines, abortions and forced sterilization. 'Unauthorised children' suffer discrimination in access to schooling and other benefits and rights.

C) CHILDREN

Whatever their age, children who engage in activities construed as political suffer prolonged detention, imprisonment and forced labour, virtually to the same extent as adults. Children caught attempting to flee into exile are typically detained for about a month. In confinement children suffer interrogation and torture. Children may also be detained by police, school teachers and other officials for a variety of trivial activities, such as insubordination at school or requesting information about detained relatives.

Children apprehended for 'political activities' are held in severely substandard conditions and deprived of minimal needs, such as food, heat, clothing, sanitation and hygiene. Virtually every child detainee suffers torture. Some children must perform hard labour. Among those interviewed, the average length of detention for 'political activities' appears to be about 3 years.

Laws designed to protect children are widely ignored by official bodies in China today. Research has not revealed a single case in which these laws have been enforced – or even acknowledged – by the police and military officials who detain Tibetan children.

Children outside of detention also suffer torture for alleged 'political' activity. A child under 11 had two trained attack dogs unleashed on him; they mauled his legs and bit half his ear off. A four-year old was kicked repeatedly by police for accompanying his grandmother to prayer. Older Tibetan girls are subjected to rape and sexual abuse.

50% of Tibetan children interviewed reported corporal punishment at school. As the U.N.Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC ) emphasised: '…much of the corporal punishment that Tibetan children suffer rises to the level of torture…and is often politically motivated.'

Teachers beat children with sticks, bamboo staffs, whips, wire; shock some with cattle-prods, make others kneel for hours on glass, sharp stones or iron bars, forced one child to hold ice in his hands for several hours and locked another in a dark room for 4 weeks.

Access to education remains poor and in some cases absent. Chinese law forbids primary schools from charging school fees, although 'miscellaneous fees' are permitted. These fees, which include charges for admission, registration, desks, chairs, books, fines for misbehaviour and fees to augment teachers' salaries, pose a serious barrier to Tibetan children's access to education. Research suggests that the practice of charging unduly high 'miscellaneous fees' remains widespread. Bribes and connections play a significant role. Substandard teaching, given to students who could not afford bribes demanded by the teacher, has been reported.

As Chen Kuiyan proclaimed at the 5th Regional Meeting on Education, the goal of CCP educational policy is to secure the 'loyalty of Tibetan children to the great motherland and the great socialist cause.' The objective in Tibet is not to educate but to indoctrinate.

Language and curriculum policies in Tibetan schools provide evidence of this trend. Children learn in the Chinese language about Chinese culture, history and politics. Teachers ignore, prohibit and at times punish references to Tibetan culture and religion.

Tibetan children's access to healthcare also remains substandard. Prohibitive costs at Chinese hospitals and clinics often prevent access to basic medical care. Moreover, inadequate diet and poor water quality, coupled with lack of vaccinations, leads to moderate to severe malnutrition and growth stunting. A 2001 study of Tibetan children by the New England Journal of medicine found that 'stunting was linked to malnutrition…and was accompanied by bone disorders, depigmented hair, skin disorders, and other diseases of malnutrition.'

D) FORCED ABORTIONS

In 1998, Lawyers for Tibet reported on the pervasive violence and discrimination practised against Tibetan women. It described a pattern of forced abortions and sterilizations as well as discrimination against women who violate China's family planning regulations.

Several women described instances of coerced late-term abortions: 'They injected a needle where the baby's head was. The baby was born and cried. Then it started bleeding from the nose and died…'
'They injected a needle in her stomach, and she gave birth. The baby…was put in a bowl…it moved for a few minutes and then died. The baby had a hole in its head…'

According to the ICLT: '…no family planning policy justifies acts of violence against women. Acts undertaken against a woman's will that terminate viable pregnancies arguably constitute infanticide.'

E) RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION

1949-1979

Soon after the invasion of Tibet, Beijing announced: 'The CCP considers that its ideology and that of religion are two forces that cannot co-exist…the differences between the two can be likened to those between light and darkness…'

In the light of this policy monasteries and nunneries were vandalised and plundered, precious metals and stones were looted and religious artefacts melted down in foundries. Treasures were sent to China to be auctioned in international antique markets.

Monks were forced to shoot each other, monks and nuns were made to copulate in public and taunted to perform miracles. Over 11 000 monks were tortured and put to death.

1979-1994

The liberalisation policy under Hu Yaobang returned some religious freedom to Tibet. However, religious practise remained strictly state controlled. Chinese directives laid down that: 'Candidates should be at least 18 years old, should love the Communist Party, must obtain formal approval from the Democratic Management Committee, must have the consent of the Public Security Bureau and have a “good" political background.'

Political control mechanisms became more active after September 1987, in the wake of Tibetan protest demonstrations. Members of 'Work Teams' camped in monasteries and nunneries to foster 'fervent patriots in every religion, who accept the leadership of the Party, firmly support the socialist path, and safeguard national unity.'

1994-

The 1994 Third Work Forum in Beijing recommended the following formula to reform Tibetan Buddhism: 'We must teach Buddhism to reform itself…to fit in with the needs of…stability in Tibet…so that it becomes appropriate to a society under socialism…' These directives became the core of the 'Patriotic Education' campaign. The authorities argued that monks and nuns had 'become the vanguard of disturbances and the hotbed for the Dalai Lama's splittist activities in Tibet.' To tighten control over religious institutions 'Democratic Management Committees' and 'Patriotic Education Work Units' were introduced by CCP Secretary Chen Kuiyan into all monasteries and nunneries.

These policies resulted in 165 arrests ( including 9 custodial deaths) in 1996 and 1997. In 1998 there were 327 arrests, and 49 in 1999. During this period 9 956 monks and nuns were expelled. In March 1998, Deputy Party Secretary Raidi stated that 35 000 monks and nuns had been 'rectified by patriotic education'. 'Unpatriotic' institutions were closed down, and some demolished.

Towards the end of 1998, Chinese authorities started a campaign to foster atheism in all walks of Tibetan life. On November 15, 1998, Raidi announced: 'As communists

We cannot…merely announce that we are atheists. We should make bold propaganda about Marxist atheism and insist on indoctrinating the masses…in the Marxist stand on religion.'

In his November 8, 1997 speech to the Party Committee, Chen Kuiyan stated: 'Religious believers…are not able to free themselves from the shackles of their outlook…they waste their precious time in futile efforts praying for…happinesss in the next world…and donate money to monasteries…Such negative thinking…prevents science and technology from spreading and impedes…productive forces.'

Religious practitioners continue to be 're-educated, harassed, detained and tortured'.

F) TWO STATEMENTS FROM APRIL 2003

In December 1997, the ICJ reported that Ngawang Sangdrol, a young nun detained in 1991 for having demonstrated or attempted to demonstrate 'had her sentence increased by 9 years because she did not stand up when an official entered the room, failed to tidy her bedding and shouted "Free Tibet"…'

In October 2002 she was released, and allowed to leave Tibet on the pleas of many international instances, and made the following statement in Washington DC in April 2003 : 'Ever since I set foot on the soil of the United States, I have been overwhelmed by…love and support…My immediate concern has been my health, and doctors…have started my examination. I lived without freedom for over 11 years, while in prison. I am moved by the interest that the international community is showing in my case. I don't consider myself as anyone special. No Tibetan can stand…the denial of our fundamental rights. I am deeply touched to learn that many individuals, organisations and governments have worked towards my release. I am concerned about the many more Tibetan political prisoners, including my fellow nun Phuntsok Nyidron, languishing in Chinese jails. I appeal to the international community to help give them freedom.' Ngawang Sangdrol is 26 years old.

72 year old Takna Jigme Sangpo was released on 31 March 2002. In April 2003, he made the following statement to the U.N. Commission on Human Rights: 'When I was 37…I was detained for remarks I made about the Panchen Lama which were considered counter-revolutionary…I was sentenced to 41 years of imprisonment. During more than 3 decades of a political prisoner's life I was tortured…beyond human imagination…My dignity as a human-being was…crushed. My physical appearance today is a proof of the immense suffering I endured…due to prison atrocities and harsh prison conditions I lost my eyesight…many prisoner colleagues died in prison or were executed. On June 4 1997, Sangye Tenphel was tortured to death…two monks, Khedup and Lobsang Wangduk died after torture sessions in May 1998. A third monk, Lobsang Jinpa, died under mysterious circumstances…torture and degrading ill-treatment are common practices…in Tibet's prisons…I wholeheartedly thank governments and NGO's who urged the Chinese authorities to release me and other…political prisoners. This old man from Tibet appeals to all Nations…to help end the suffering of the Tibetans. I pray for an end to the suffering of all political prisoners in this world.'

5. PLUNDER AND DESTRUCTION FOR CHINA'S BENEFIT

A) BIODIVERSITY

By remaining undisturbed until the mid-20th century, the Tibetan plateau's 2.5 million sq.km. is a storehouse of innumerable species which are necessary to the balance of life worldwide. Due to the variety and complexity of unique ecological niches, Tibet is seen as a final sanctuary for some of the world's rare plant and animal species. There are over 12 000 species of vascular plants, fungi account for 5 000 species of 700 genera, of more than 5 000 higher plant species, over 100 are woody plants of 300 species, and the 400 species of rhododendron account for 50% of the world's total species. Of immense value to medical science are the over 2000 medicinal plants in the wild.

There are 210 species of mammals in 29 families, and 532 bird species in 57 families. Endemic animals include the snowleopard, blue sheep, giant panda, red panda, golden monkey, wild yak and Himalayan woolly hare. Today at least 37 bird species among more than 81 animal species are endangered in Tibet.

The Chinese view all wildlife as an economic resource, in contrast with traditional Tibetan respect for all living creatures. Mammals are hunted and poached for wool, antlers, skin, fur and inner organs. Fish are dynamited in lakes and rivers.

The loss of Tibet's unique fauna and flora would be irreversible and the impact on the fabric of the plateau living system is of grave global concern.

B) WATER RESOURCES

The Tibetan plateau is source to the world's 10 greatest river systems which flow to China, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Vietnam, Burma, Cambodia, Laos and Thailand. 47% of the world's population depends on Tibetan watersheds and rivers.

China's policies of development, industrialisation, resource extraction and population transfer have led to massive intervention in Tibet's rivers and lakes. Amdo is home to massive dams providing power to cities in Western China. Dams in Kham have resulted in river fragmentation, and wholesale deforestation is destroying hydro-ecology. China plans further large-scale schemes to harness waterways to service the growing shortfall of power in China and provide for further industrialisation and urbanisation of Tibet.

Fragmentation and stagnation of rivers lead to destruction of fish species and extinction of plants and aquatic species. Dams deprive alluvial plains downstream of fertile soil for agriculture.

Rivers also face pollution from toxic mining wastes. Tailings from large-scale mining operations are a primary source of water pollution in Amdo. Rivers around Lhasa are polluted by untreated sewage, industrial waste and salt and nitrates leaked from fertilizers used in intensive farming projects to meet the needs of the expanding Chinese population in Tibet. The 'TAR' 1996 Environment Report states that 41.9 million tons of liquid waste was discharged in the Lhasa River.

Overfishing, pollution, human intervention and shrinkage are all endangering the purity and ecological survival of Tibet's legendary rivers and lakes.

C) AGRICULTURE

Since over 80% of Tibet's population relies in agriculture for its livelihood, farmers and nomads suffer greatly under China's exploitative policies. By a complex system of cyclic grazing, nomads kept grasslands viable for centuries. Organic farming methods sustained soil fertility in a fragile mountain environment.

China's destruction of the plateau's agro-pastoral economy began with the 'Democratic Reforms' of the 1950s and 1960s. Livestock numbers declined and foodgrain shortages emerged for the first time in history. Due to crippling taxation, production quotas, export of meat and grain to China and experimental agricultural policies based on ideology rather than social and geographic reality, Tibet experienced outright famine. Marginal lands were cultivated to feed China and unsustainable high-yield wheat introduced, leading to extensive destruction of fragile grasslands.

Since 1989, a centralised policy controlling agriculture is aimed at intensifying land use and producing grain surpluses for 'the state'. Incentives for farmers are minimised by grain quota systems, a multitude of taxes, and intensive farming relying on monoculture. This requires heavy outlays on chemical fertilisers which destroy the natural fertility of the soil and lower profitability. Half a century of agro-pastoral mismanagement imposed by China has deprived Tibetans of their previous self-reliance and traditional way of life.

D) FORESTRY

When the Yangtze River floods of August 1998 caused a national disaster, Beijing finally focussed the blame on deforestation around the river's fountainhead in Tibet (Kham). Until 1949 Tibet's forests grew largely undisturbed on isolated slopes, and regeneration was natural since logging was banned.

Having denuded its own forests, China succeeded between 1950 and 1985 in reducing Tibet's forest cover from 25.2 million ha. to 13.57 million ha. This 46% reduction had a market value of US$ 54 billion. Deforestation is today identified as a major contributor to Tibet's environmental degradation. State-owned forestry enterprises are obliged to fill annual quotas, but since they are forced to fell and sell a surplus to subsidise low income resulting from underselling their quota, the forestry sector is in effect destroying itself. In addition, illegal felling is believed to exceed planned production in the 'TAR'.

The effects of China's rapacious forest felling in Tibet are severe. In addition to siltation, pollution and flooding of the 10 major rivers that feed Asia, Tibet's vegetation controls the plateau's heating mechanism, and this in turn affects the stability of Asia's monsoon. Deforestation also leads to desertification which curtails water flows. China's Yellow River has already suffered an overall 23% fall in water discharge.

With 400 Chinese cities experiencing water shortages, 108 facing water crises, and major crop losses due to lack of irrigation, Beijing can expect further ecological catastrophes caused by a history of official disregard for nature.

E) MINERALS AND MINING

Tibet's huge mineral wealth was one of China's primary reasons for the 1949 invasion, and today Beijing controls what is arguably the last truly great frontier of the mining world. Over 126 minerals have been identified, including significant deposits of uranium, gold, chromite, lithium, boron, iron and silver. Tibet's oil and gas reserves are also of global importance. Since China's own resources are near exhaustion, Tibet's rich deposits are now of paramount importance to China's industrialisation and surplus mineral export.

The consequences for Tibet have been deplorable. Massive debris, slag heaps, abandoned mines and slope destabilisation blight the aboveground. Below, the soil is polluted by toxic wastes from materials used in extraction. Massive wastage is also recorded due to improper extraction methods. Social problems have arisen due to the huge influx of Chinese migrant labour. Illegal mines are also drawn to the benefits of random mining exploitation.

Rather than controlling illegal mining, corruption and hazardous waste, China is focussing on attracting foreign investment into the mining sector. Environmental protests by Tibetans are kept down, sometimes by lengthy prison sentences.

China is investing US$ 1.25 billion in developing mineral resources in Tibet's central and western regions alone. Acceleration of extraction indicates the certainty of mammoth returns. In addition to high-profile oilfields, estimated at 42 billion tons, Tsaidam's natural gas reserves of 1 500 billion cubic metres are an important source of energy for China.

The Chinese name for central Tibet is 'Xijang' meaning 'Western Treasure House'. By promoting mining as a 'pillar industry', Beijing is finally succeeding in draining Tibet of its once-dormant mineral resources.

F) NUCLEAR THREATS – BIG GUNS ON THE ROOF

Tibet, once governed to the last detail on principles of non-violence, is today a storehouse for Chinese nuclear weapons and a dumping site for radioactive waste. The highest plateau in the world is a natural launching pad for Beijing's ambitions to achieve superpower primacy.

By 1971 the first nuclear weapon was installed in Amdo. Today the arsenal includes 17 radar stations, 14 military airfields, 8 missile bases, at least 8 Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles, plus 70 medium-range and 20 intermediate-range missiles.

China's DF-4 IBMs (ranges of 4 000 to 7 000 kms) are stored in Tsaidam. Further DF-4 missiles are deployed at Terlingkha, headquarters of a missile regiment with 4 launch sites. A fourth nuclear station in southern Amdo houses four CSS-4 missiles with ranges of 12 874 kms. A base near Nagchuka has underground complexes housing ballistic missiles. An underground complex close to Lhasa stores ground-to-air and surface-to-surface missiles which are paraded through the capital annually on Chinese Army Day. Further missile stockpiles are kept at Kongpo in the southeast.

Nuclear and other hazardous wastes are being dumped on the plateau. China's Xinhua News Agency admitted in 1995 that radioactive pollutants has been discharged near the shore of Lake Kokonor in a 20m.sq. dump. Radioactive waste has been dumped in a watershed draining into the Tsang Chu River which becomes China's Yellow River.

China still employs shallow burial techniques for nuclear waste, and remote regions of Tibet are earmarked for recycling of toxic wastes from developed nations. Already an abnormal rate of childbirth mortality, birth deformities, mysterious illnesses and high death rates among animals are recorded around nuclear production facilities in Amdo, as also high rates of cancer in children – similar to post-Hiroshima findings. Other reports of deformities and illnesses in humans and animals are linked to uranium mining in the 'TAR' and Amdo. Contaminated waste water from Tibet's largest uranium mine, near Thewo in southern Amdo, is released into the local river, with victims turning blue or blue-black after death.

6. POPULATION TRANSFER – CHINA'S 'FINAL SOLUTION' FOR TIBET

6) POPULATION TRANSFER – CHINA’S ‘FINAL SOLUTION’ FOR TIBET.

All the elements of discrimination against a distinct people are present in China’s population transfer to Tibet. There is discrimination in housing, employment, education, health care, language and national customs and political rights. But the gravest threat for the future is that Tibetans are increasingly outnumbered and marginalised on their own soil by the ongoing influx of Chinese settlers.

By skewing the demographic composition Beijing is achieving its policy objectives to incorporate Tibet irrevocably into China. Lhasa is already predominantly Chinese, with administrators, business migrants, military and security personnel outnumbering Tibetans 2 to 1. In Amdo, cities can be over 90% Chinese.

Beijing’s population transfer policy is colonist, embracing the needs to quash resistance to Chinese rule, exploit natural resources, solve Chinese population and unemployment pressures and consolidate its hold over a militarily strategic zone in Central Asia.

Preferential policies favour Chinese settlers economically, from financial allowances to easy procurement of business licences. Tibetans are disadvantaged in ‘modernisation’ schemes. Few Tibetans can progress to higher education due to

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education policies weighted in favour of Chinese literacy, which ensures that Tibetans are excluded from decision-making roles in economic and social development. Admitting that 20.7% of Tibetans in the ‘TAR’ live below the poverty line, the Lhasa administration attributes this to ‘inherent backwardness and remoteness’.

Beijing is stepping up infrastructural and resource development on the plateau, which in turn is used to justify an ever-increasing Chinese labour force. Expanding road and rail networks, easing of residency regulations, free market systems and exemptions from taxes have increased the attractiveness of Tibet for China’s migrant workers, petty traders and small-scale entrepreneurs.

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