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General information
Tibet is located in central Asia, surrounded by the highest
mountains in the world. It is north of India, Nepal and Bhutan,
west of China, and south of Russia, Mongolia, and East Turkistan,
covering a land mass of three times the size of the state
of Texas. Tibet is made up of three regions, collectively
known as the Chol-Kha-Sum and individually known as U-Tsang;
Kham, and Amdo.
It is sparsely populated, but rich in minerals, and home
to many many rare fauna and flora. The headwaters of Asia's
major rivers are located in Tibet; such as the Indus in Pakistan,
Sutlej, Ganges and Brahmaputra in India, Salween in Burma,
Mekong in Laos and Thailand, and Yangtse and Yellow River
in China.
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Tibetan history may be divided into four major periods:
- the rise and the fall of early kings from the 3rd century
B.C. to the 13th century A.D.;
- the rise and the fall of the Sakya rule from 1247 to 1368;
- the rise and the fall of the hegemony of 1368 to 1644; and
- the rise of the Dalai Lama's influence and rule from 1644
to the present.
All through these periods, Tibet was not a part of China.
The Chinese claim Tibet to have become a part of China when
the Tibetan king, Songtsen Gampo, took Princess Wen-ch'eng
Kung-chu (of the Chinese Emperor T'ai-tsung) in marriage;
at other times, the Chinese point to the Mongol rule (the
Yuan Dynasty); and still other times, China states that Tibet
came under Chinese rule at the time of the 5th Dalai Lama.
With no historical foundation to support their claims, China
jumps from century to century, hoping to find a period in
Tibetan history to legitimize a claim for which there is no
basis.
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History of the Tibet-China Relationship
The Tibet-China relationship, beginning from King Songtsen Gampo
in the 7th Century, was based on political and military power to
create peaceful coexistence between the two countries. From the
Chinese perspective, it was to avoid military confrontation with
the Tibetans and the marriage stood as a guarantee for Tibetans
from invading China.
Starting from the Sakya rule over Tibet, the priest-patron relationship
came into existence between the Mongol rulers and Tibet. This relationship
was inherited by the subsequent rulers in China and the latter used
Tibet's influence over the Mongols to hold off their attacks on
China. In the priest-patron relationship, the priest provided the
spiritual guidance and the patron provided protection of the priest's
country. This protection did not make the priest a subordinate to
the patron nor the patron the owner of the priest's domain or territories
under his rule.
However, during the expansion of the British empire, Britain deliberately
used a western political terminology, 'suzerainty', to describe
the priest-patron relationship that existed between Tibet and China.
Britain stated that China had suzerainty over Tibet and used that
as the premise for their dealings about Tibet with China. This may
have been designed to stop the Russians from gaining influence in
Tibet, which the British saw as a threat to their rule in India.
Tibet refused to accept any treaty in which they were not a party.
This refusal lead to the British invasion of Tibet in 1904. Before
the Younghusband expedition was set in motion, Lord Curzon, the
British Viceroy in India, wrote to the Secretary of State of India
revealing that: "We regard Chinese suzerainty over Tibet as
a constitutional fiction... a political affectation which has only
been maintained because of its convenience to both parties."
The 13th Dalai Lama fled to Mongolia when Britain invaded Tibet.
China did not assist Tibet, or protest against the invasion. The
Tibetan army was no match for the British, and they were defeated
with heavy casualties. The British army marched into Lhasa and imposed
the Lhasa Convention of 1904. China was not a party to this agreement.
In 1906, Britain signed an agreement with China who accepted the
terms of the Lhasa Convention. Tibet was not a party to the agreement
and so refused to accept it as binding on them. Britain also signed
another treaty with Russia in which they accepted Chinese suzerainty
over Tibet and to deal with China in all matters pertaining to Tibet.
Tibet was not a party to this agreement and Tibet refused to accept
it.
The British insistence on Chinese suzerainty over Tibet encouraged
China to stake their claim and invade Tibet in 1910. The 13th Dalai
Lama fled for the second time in less than a decade. This time He
fled to India and stayed there for over two years. The Dalai Lama
returned to Tibet in January 1913, and reclaimed Tibet's independence
and expelled the Amban, the Chinese representative in Lhasa, and
all of the Chinese soldiers and traders.
In 1914 Tibet, Britain, and at the latter's insistence, China,
convened border talks in Simla, India. Tibet and Britain signed
what is called 'the Simla Convention' which established the border
between India and Tibet. The demarcation is called the McMohan Line.
In fact, when the newly independent India requested the Tibetan
Government to re-negotiate the borders between the two countries,
the Tibetan Government decided to wait to allow time for the relationship
with India to develop.
Until 1949/1950, Tibet's status did not change; Tibet did not renounce
her sovereignty to become a part of China. Under international law,
by mere occupation of one country by another country, the occupied
country does not become a part of the occupying country. Therefore,
as long as Tibetans do not voluntarily renounce their sovereign
rights, China has no legal basis for their claim over Tibet. (Source:
US Tibet Committee)
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