skiiper Posted May 27, 2005 Share Posted May 27, 2005 I was browsing around online and I noticed these "free tibet" movements. I myself am chinese-born, so of course I would have a bias on this matter. but all these tibet groups got me to thinking that maybe china did do something wrong 50 years ago. I was wondering if anyone here can educate me without bias on the history of china and tibet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Derf Veteran Posted May 27, 2005 Veteran Share Posted May 27, 2005 Tibet was never free. That was a myth. The vast percentage of the population were slaves prior to China occupation. That does not excuse China's actions. Rather than ethnically clensing the Tibetan population they have engaged in a process of ethnic drowning. They encourage as many Chinese citizens as possible to settle there so that their future claim on Tibet will be non-negotiable. [Thread Moved from GD to RWI] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dark_INk Posted May 27, 2005 Share Posted May 27, 2005 7 years in tibet is one of my favorite movies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fedorpheux Posted May 27, 2005 Share Posted May 27, 2005 Tibet was never free. That was a myth. The vast percentage of the population were slaves prior to China occupation. That does not excuse China's actions. Rather than ethnically clensing the Tibetan population they have engaged in a process of ethnic drowning. They encourage as many Chinese citizens as possible to settle there so that their future claim on Tibet will be non-negotiable.[Thread Moved from GD to RWI] 585979567[/snapback] the chinese government is clever....i dont agree with their actions regarding this issue, but i have to admit that it is a pretty clever plan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Derf Veteran Posted May 27, 2005 Veteran Share Posted May 27, 2005 the chinese government is clever....i dont agree with their actions regarding this issue, but i have to admit that it is a pretty clever plan 585979582[/snapback] While I do disapprove of it, yes, I do admit is was clever. Whomever coined the term "ethnic drowning" is also equally clever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skiiper Posted May 28, 2005 Author Share Posted May 28, 2005 One of the things i heard about while browsing was that the chinese government forced the tibetan gov't to sign some agreement, while troops surrounded one of their cities. The people of the city are in this way held hostage. you guys know anything about it? and concerning tibet's independence, i believe that it lost its independence during the Yuan dynasty (when the Mongols ruled China). In the following dynasties of Ming and Qing, tibet was also ruled by Chinese emperors. So I guess China does have a historical claim to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamz Veteran Posted May 28, 2005 Veteran Share Posted May 28, 2005 Tibet was never free. That was a myth. The vast percentage of the population were slaves prior to China occupation. That does not excuse China's actions. Rather than ethnically clensing the Tibetan population they have engaged in a process of ethnic drowning. They encourage as many Chinese citizens as possible to settle there so that their future claim on Tibet will be non-negotiable.[Thread Moved from GD to RWI] 585979567[/snapback] yeah, forced assimilation is just as bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aristotle-dude Posted May 29, 2005 Share Posted May 29, 2005 China is apparently doing the same thing in eastern Russia to annex more territory. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guru Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 Tibet was never free. That was a myth. [Thread Moved from GD to RWI] 585979567[/snapback] Tibet was a strong empire between the 7th and 10th centuries. The distinctive form of Tibetan society, in which land was divided into three different types of holding - estates of noble families, freeheld lands and estates held by monasteries of particular Tibetan Buddhists sects - arose after the weakening of the Tibetan kings in the 10th century. This form of society was to continue into the 1950s, at which time more than 700,000 of the country's population of 1.25 million were landed peasants.The in Lhasa The Potala Palace in Lhasa In the 13th century Tibet was incorporated into the Mongolian empire. The Mongol rulers granted secular leadership of Tibet to lineages of high lamas. There followed an interregnum period in which there were three secular dynasties. The Mongols again invaded at the start of the 16th century, declaring the remaining religious lineage, that of the Dalai Lamas, to be the official government. By the early 18th century China established the right to have resident commissioners, called amban, in Lhasa. When the Tibetans rebelled against the Chinese in 1750 and killed the amban, a Chinese army entered the country and installed new amban, but the Tibetan government continued to manage day-to-day affairs as before. source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tibet#History what do mean by free? looks like by your logic America is not free country but is a myth. either way, Communist Chinese killing and torture of tibetans cannot be condoned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Derf Veteran Posted May 31, 2005 Veteran Share Posted May 31, 2005 source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tibet#Historywhat do mean by free? looks like by your logic America is not free country but is a myth. either way, Communist Chinese killing and torture of tibetans cannot be condoned. 585993834[/snapback] This goes too far the other way (essentially PRC propaganda) but I think there are elements of truth here. I've seen more balanced articles than this: http://www.nickyee.com/ponder/tibet.html The key point being that 90+% of the population had limited rights and freedoms before the 1950s. To return Tibet to it's pre-China state would not necessarily "free Tibet" as many activists would claim. I make no claims to support China's action in the region. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guru Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 The key point being that 90+% of the population had limited rights and freedoms before the 1950s. people of eastern european countries not "free" in 1950. Germany and Japan were occupied in 1950. India was not free till 1947 so were lot of other asian and african countries. Is "not free" yet another reason to occupy tibet? What right does Communist China have to invade and occupy Tibet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Derf Veteran Posted May 31, 2005 Veteran Share Posted May 31, 2005 Is "not free" yet another reason to occupy tibet? What right does Communist China have to invade and occupy Tibet? 585994557[/snapback] I never said they had that right. people of eastern european countries not "free" in 1950. Germany and Japan were occupied in 1950. India was not free till 1947 so were lot of other asian and african countries. 585994557[/snapback] My point was that Tibet was more like a feudal society in 1950. If it was a place of wonder and enlightenment (as many activists in the west seem to romanticize about), it was so for only a very small percent of the population. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guru Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 My point was that Tibet was more like a feudal society in 1950. Most societies in Asia were feudal at that time. @ice87 japan: china::china:tibet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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