2008 Tibetan unrest: Difference between revisions
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Tried to clean up the article and make it less biased. Also moved a few images and edited some lines that didn't follow Wikipedia's writing style. Added more points to the multiple issues notice because I really doubt I managed to fix the whole article. Tags: nowiki added Visual edit |
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{{Short description|Ethnic violence in Tibet}} |
{{Short description|Ethnic violence in Tibet}} |
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{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2013}} |
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{{2008 Tibetan unrest}} |
{{2008 Tibetan unrest}} |
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[[File:2008 China's Tyranny Violence Against Tibetan People and Monks after March Uprising 中國在三月起義抗暴後以極權武力控制西藏-圖博人民與僧侶.jpg|thumb|right|251x251px|Arrested Tibetans and Buddhist monks]] |
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[[File:TAR-TAP-TAC.png|thumb|right|250px|Orange refers to Tibet's original land boundaries, subdivided into provinces by China and designated as [[Tibetan people|Tibetan]] (and other ethnic minorities) [[Autonomous areas of China|autonomous areas]].]] |
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The |
The '''2008 Tibetan unrest''' (also referred to as the '''2008 uprising''' in Tibetan media<ref name=TR>''The 2008 uprising and the Olympics'', (22 June 2018),Tibetan Review, https://www.tibetanreview.net/the-2008-uprising-and-the-olympics/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181226111913/http://www.tibetanreview.net/the-2008-uprising-and-the-olympics/ |date=December 26, 2018 }}</ref> or '''the 3-14 Riots''' in Chinese media<ref>Xiaobing Li, ''Civil Liberties in China'', ABC-CLIO, 2010, 165 p., p. xlvii: "March 14: Buddhist riots – the '3/14 Riots' – occur in Lhasa."</ref><ref name=":3" />) was a series of protests and demonstrations over the [[Government of China|Chinese government]]'s [[Anti-Tibetan sentiment|treatment and alleged persecution]] of [[Tibetan people|Tibetans]]. The unrest also included [[Ethnic conflict|ethnic conflicts]] between Tibetans and [[Han Chinese|Han]] and [[Hui people|Hui Chinese]]. |
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Protests in [[Lhasa]] by monks on 10 March have been viewed as the start of the demonstrations. Numerous peaceful protests and demonstrations were held to commemorate the 49th anniversary of the 1959 [[Tibetan Uprising Day]], when the [[14th Dalai Lama]] escaped from Tibet.<ref>''Tibet protests'', (14 March 2008), https://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2008/mar/14/1 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160321083553/http://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2008/mar/14/1 |date=March 21, 2016 }}</ref> The protests and demonstrations spread spontaneously to a number of monasteries and throughout the Tibetan plateau, including into counties located outside the designated [[Tibet Autonomous Region]].<ref name="TR" /> The arrest of monks at [[Labrang Monastery]] increased the tenseness of the . Violence began when [[Ministry of Public Security (China)|Chinese police]] and [[People's Liberation Army]] units used force on non-violent protests by monks, and spread when protesting Tibetans later clashed with security forces. Clashes also occurred between Tibetans and Chinese [[Han Chinese|Han]] and [[Hui people|Hui]] settlers, resulting in Han and Hui stores and buildings being destroyed and numerous Chinese civilians being injured or killed.<ref name="nyt23">{{cite news|date=March 16, 2008|title=Tibetan riots spread outside region|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/16/world/asia/16iht-tibet.1.11134870.html|url-status=live|accessdate=January 7, 2011 <!--DASHBot-->|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200225070813/https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/16/world/asia/16iht-tibet.1.11134870.html|archive-date=February 25, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2008-04-11|title=Transcript: James Miles interview on Tibet – CNN.com|url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet.miles.interview/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080411130317/http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet.miles.interview/|archive-date=2008-04-11|access-date=2018-03-26}}</ref><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> |
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The [[International Campaign for Tibet]] estimates a total of 235 protests occurred from 10 March until the end of October 2009.<ref name=ICT/> The Chinese government's [[Xinhua News Agency]] estimated that 150 protests occurred between 10 March and 25 March.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://news.sina.com.cn/c/2008-04-01/233615271300.shtml|title=达赖和"西藏人民大起义运动"脱不了干系_新闻中心_新浪网|website=news.sina.com.cn|access-date=2018-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326202923/http://news.sina.com.cn/c/2008-04-01/233615271300.shtml|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=ICT>International Campaign for Tibet, ''2008-2009 Protest Logs'', https://savetibet.org/archived-research/2008-2009-protest-logs/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200912161628/https://savetibet.org/archived-research/2008-2009-protest-logs/ |date=September 12, 2020 }}</ref> A casualty estimate according to the Chinese government claims 23 people were killed during the riots themselves; the [[Central Tibetan Administration]] claims 203 were killed in the aftermath alone<ref name="HRW3233">{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2008/07/06/china-s-forbidden-zones-0|title=China's Forbidden Zones|date=July 7, 2008|pages=32–33|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100302151055/http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2008/07/06/china-s-forbidden-zones-0|archivedate=March 2, 2010 |url-status=live|accessdate=March 11, 2010}}</ref> while the Dalai Lama stated 400 Tibetans were killed in total. Foreign journalists were expelled or forced to leave during the uprising anniversary. [[Amnesty International]] reported 1000 Tibetan protestors remained "unaccounted for" by June 2008,<ref>''Tibetan protestors missing, Amnesty says'', (19 June 2008), CNN, |
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http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/06/19/oly.tibet.torch/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224184740/http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/06/19/oly.tibet.torch/ |date=February 24, 2020 }}</ref> while Thubten Samphel of the Central Tibetan Administration reported 5600 arrests of Tibetans occurred between March 2008 and January 2009, and 1294 injuries occurred in the same period. |
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The use of force by Chinese police and military forces during the demonstrations have been controversial, with some deeming it [[Police brutality|excessive force]]. The demonstrations in Lhasa were met with [[Cattle prod|electric prods]], [[tear gas]], and shootings,<ref>{{Cite news|last=Yardley|first=Jim|date=2008-03-15|title=Violence in Tibet as Monks Clash With the Police|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/15/world/asia/15tibet.html|url-status=live|access-date=2018-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326202951/https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/15/world/asia/15tibet.html|archive-date=March 26, 2018|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> according to a report by [[Human Rights Watch]] on the use of force by Chinese forces.<ref name="BBC2">BBC News, ''China accused of excessive force over Tibet unrest'', (22 July 2010), https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-10723140 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191221012440/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-10723140|date=December 21, 2019}}</ref><ref name="nyt232">{{cite news|date=March 16, 2008|title=Tibetan riots spread outside region|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/16/world/asia/16iht-tibet.1.11134870.html|url-status=live|accessdate=January 7, 2011 <!--DASHBot-->|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200225070813/https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/16/world/asia/16iht-tibet.1.11134870.html|archive-date=February 25, 2020}}</ref><ref name="HRW22">''I saw it with my own eyes: Abuses by Chinese security forces in Tibet, 2008-2010'', (21 July 2010), Human Rights Watch, https://www.hrw.org/report/2010/07/21/i-saw-it-my-own-eyes/abuses-chinese-security-forces-tibet-2008-2010 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200914080327/https://www.hrw.org/report/2010/07/21/i-saw-it-my-own-eyes/abuses-chinese-security-forces-tibet-2008-2010|date=September 14, 2020}}</ref> The [[International Campaign for Tibet]] estimates a total of 235 protests occurred from 10 March until the end of October 2009.<ref name="ICT" /> The Chinese government's [[Xinhua News Agency]] estimated that 150 protests occurred between 10 March and 25 March.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://news.sina.com.cn/c/2008-04-01/233615271300.shtml|title=达赖和"西藏人民大起义运动"脱不了干系_新闻中心_新浪网|website=news.sina.com.cn|access-date=2018-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326202923/http://news.sina.com.cn/c/2008-04-01/233615271300.shtml|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="ICT">International Campaign for Tibet, ''2008-2009 Protest Logs'', https://savetibet.org/archived-research/2008-2009-protest-logs/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200912161628/https://savetibet.org/archived-research/2008-2009-protest-logs/ |date=September 12, 2020 }}</ref> A casualty estimate according to the Chinese government claims 23 people were killed during the riots themselves; the [[Central Tibetan Administration]] claims 203 were killed in the aftermath alone,<ref name="HRW3233">{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2008/07/06/china-s-forbidden-zones-0|title=China's Forbidden Zones|date=July 7, 2008|pages=32–33|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100302151055/http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2008/07/06/china-s-forbidden-zones-0|archivedate=March 2, 2010 |url-status=live|accessdate=March 11, 2010}}</ref> while the [[Dalai Lama]] stated 400 Tibetans were killed in total. Foreign journalists were expelled or forced to leave during the uprising anniversary. [[Amnesty International]] reported 1,000 Tibetan protestors remained "unaccounted for" by June 2008,<ref>''Tibetan protestors missing, Amnesty says'', (19 June 2008), CNN, |
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Violence began when Chinese police and military units used excessive force on non-violent protests by monks,c{{Citation needed|date=October 2020}} and spread when protesting Tibetans later clashed with the security forces. Clashes also occurred between Tibetans and Chinese [[Han Chinese|Han]] and [[Hui people|Hui]] settlers,<ref name="nyt23" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet.miles.interview/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080411130317/http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet.miles.interview/|url-status=dead|archive-date=2008-04-11|title=Transcript: James Miles interview on Tibet – CNN.com|date=2008-04-11|access-date=2018-03-26}}</ref> enticed to move to Tibet by the Chinese government.{{Citation needed|date=October 2020}} |
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http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/06/19/oly.tibet.torch/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224184740/http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/06/19/oly.tibet.torch/ |date=February 24, 2020 }}</ref> while the Central Tibetan Administration reported 5,600 arrests of Tibetans between March 2008 and January 2009, with 1,294 injuries within the same period. |
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Protests supporting Tibetans were held in cities in [[North America]] |
Protests supporting Tibetans were held in cities in [[North America]] and [[Europe]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/24/tibet.olympicgames2008|title=Tibet protesters disrupt Olympic flame ceremony|last=Stratton|first=Allegra|last2=agencies|date=2008-03-24|website=the Guardian|language=en|access-date=2018-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180327084632/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/24/tibet.olympicgames2008|archive-date=March 27, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> as well as in [[Beijing]], [[Australia]],<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-tibet-protests/timeline-day-by-day-record-of-tibet-protests-idUSSP15193420080321|title=TIMELINE: Day-by-day record of Tibet protests|last=Editorial|first=Reuters|work=U.S.|access-date=2018-03-26|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326203155/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-tibet-protests/timeline-day-by-day-record-of-tibet-protests-idUSSP15193420080321|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> [[India]],<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/01/world/asia/01india.html|title=Tibetans Protest in Delhi, but March Is Off|last=Kumar|first=Hari|date=2008-04-01|work=The New York Times|access-date=2018-03-26|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326202830/https://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/01/world/asia/01india.html|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Nepal]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nepal-tibet-protests/nepal-police-break-up-tibet-protests-284-held-idUSDEL26990920080331|title=Nepal police break up Tibet protests, 284 held|last=Editorial|first=Reuters|work=U.S.|access-date=2018-03-26|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326202823/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nepal-tibet-protests/nepal-police-break-up-tibet-protests-284-held-idUSDEL26990920080331|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Many of the international protests also called for a boycott of the Beijing Olympics. On 24 March, the torch lighting ceremony in Greece was disrupted by activists, including some from [[Reporters Without Borders]]. At Chinese embassies, protests ranged from pelting the embassies with eggs and rocks<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theage.com.au/news/world/eggs-flags-and-tempers-fly-at-chinese-consulate/2008/03/16/1205602193544.html|title=Eggs, flags and tempers fly at Chinese consulate – World – theage.com.au|website=www.theage.com.au|date=March 17, 2008|language=en|access-date=2018-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180327023633/https://www.theage.com.au/news/world/eggs-flags-and-tempers-fly-at-chinese-consulate/2008/03/16/1205602193544.html|archive-date=March 27, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> to protestors entering the premises and raising [[Flag of Tibet|Tibetan flags]], which was outlawed in Tibet by the Chinese government in 1959.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-tibet-protests/tibetan-protesters-attack-londons-chinese-embassy-idUKKRA73981720080318|title=Tibetan protesters attack London's Chinese embassy|last=Editorial|first=Reuters|work=U.K.|access-date=2018-03-26|language=en-GB|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326202547/https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-tibet-protests/tibetan-protesters-attack-londons-chinese-embassy-idUKKRA73981720080318|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nepal-tibet-protests/tibetans-protest-near-china-embassy-in-nepal-idUSDEL3818420080401|title=Tibetans protest near China embassy in Nepal|last=Editorial|first=Reuters|work=U.S.|access-date=2018-03-26|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326203001/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nepal-tibet-protests/tibetans-protest-near-china-embassy-in-nepal-idUSDEL3818420080401|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=19724&t=1|title=Tibetans storm Chinese Embassy in Paris|website=Phayul.com|access-date=2018-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180327023427/http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=19724&t=1|archive-date=March 27, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.news18.com/news/india/tibetans-activists-try-to-storm-chinese-embassy-in-delhi-287394.html|title=Tibetans activists try to storm Chinese embassy in Delhi|work=News18|access-date=2018-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326202756/https://www.news18.com/news/india/tibetans-activists-try-to-storm-chinese-embassy-in-delhi-287394.html|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> |
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Protesters in Tibet that were arrested and detained |
Protesters in Tibet that were arrested and detained claimed they were tortured and told to admit they were paid to protest by the [[14th Dalai Lama]]. <ref name="BBC">BBC News, ''China accused of excessive force over Tibet unrest'', (22 July 2010), https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-10723140 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191221012440/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-10723140|date=December 21, 2019}}</ref> The Chinese government stated the unrest was motivated by [[separatism]] and blamed the Dalai Lama for orchestrating it.<ref name="voa3">"Reported by [https://www.voanews.com/a/a-13-2008-03-15-voa2-66744812/562281.html VOA] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019055228/https://www.voanews.com/a/a-13-2008-03-15-voa2-66744812/562281.html |date=October 19, 2017 }}. Accessed May 18, 2009. [https://archive.today/20090602000004/http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2008-03/2008-03-15-voa2.cfm?CFID=199999648&CFTOKEN=35561911&jsessionid=6630e127af734d19bbbf2713642cf323f6d4 Archived] June 1, 2009.</ref> The Dalai Lama denied the accusation and said that the situation was caused by "deep seated disillusionment and despair" in Tibet, and invited Chinese officials to come to India with its evidence.<ref name=TR/><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=20522&t=1|title=Dalai Lama Calls Again For Crackdown Probe|website=Phayul.com|access-date=2018-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326202614/http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=20522&t=1|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Representatives of the Chinese government and the Dalai Lama held talks on China's Tibet policies on 4 May and 1 July of the same year.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/may/21/tibet.religion|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130902090543/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/may/21/tibet.religion|url-status=dead|archive-date=2013-09-02|title=Dalai Lama calls for end to anti-Olympic protests {{!}} World news {{!}} theguardian.com|date=2013-09-02|access-date=2018-03-26}}</ref><ref name="reuters2">{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSPEK26550320080701|title=China, Dalai Lama's envoys resume talks|date=July 1, 2008|accessdate=July 1, 2008|work=[[Reuters]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090313103038/http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSPEK26550320080701|archive-date=March 13, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> |
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== Background == |
== Background == |
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[[File:TAR-TAP-TAC.png|thumb|right|250px|Orange refers to Tibet's original land boundaries, subdivided into provinces by China and designated as [[Tibetan people|Tibetan]] (and other ethnic minorities) [[Autonomous areas of China|autonomous areas]]]] |
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The protests erupted amidst growing frustrations with China's [[Antireligious campaigns in China|persecution]] of Tibetans and of Tibetan Buddhists,<ref name=TR/><ref name=CTA/><ref name=Dolma>Kelsang Dolma, ''Tibet Was China’s First Laboratory of Repression, Xi Jinping is bringing methods honed in Xinjiang back to the Himalayas'', (31 August 2020) |
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The protests erupted amid growing frustrations amongst TIbetans concerning [[Antireligious campaigns in China|China's anti-religious campaigns against Tibetan Buddhists]],<ref name="TR" /><ref name="CTA" /><ref name="Dolma">Kelsang Dolma, ''Tibet Was China’s First Laboratory of Repression, Xi Jinping is bringing methods honed in Xinjiang back to the Himalayas'', (31 August 2020) |
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https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/08/31/tibet-china-repression-xinjiang-sinicization/</ref><ref name=Mass>University of Massachusetts, Paper on Tibet, http://www.umass.edu/rso/fretibet/education.html</ref> which Tibetans assert began after China's illegal military invasion in 1950. Unresolved situations remained regarding Tibet's three highest spiritual leaders - the [[14th Dalai Lama]] and the [[Orgyen Trinley Dorje|17th Gyalwang Karmapa]] both escaped to India, while the [[11th Panchen Lama]]'s location remains unknown since his 1995 kidnapping by the Chinese government. Photographs of the Dalai Lama remain outlawed,<ref name=NYT/> as are Tibetan flags. Efforts at brokering agreements on behalf of Tibetans by the Dalai Lama with China had stalled.<ref>Jonathan Watts, ''Protests in Tibet erupt into violence'', (14 March 2008), https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/14/tibet.china1</ref> |
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https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/08/31/tibet-china-repression-xinjiang-sinicization/</ref><ref name="Mass">University of Massachusetts, Paper on Tibet, http://www.umass.edu/rso/fretibet/education.html</ref> which Tibetans assert began after the [[Annexation of Tibet by the People's Republic of China|military annexation in 1950]]. Unresolved situations remained regarding Tibet's three highest spiritual leaders—the [[14th Dalai Lama]] and the [[Orgyen Trinley Dorje|17th Gyalwang Karmapa]] had been in exile in India since 1959, while the [[11th Panchen Lama]]'s location remains unknown since his kidnapping in 1995 by the Chinese government. Photographs of the Dalai Lama remain outlawed, as are Tibetan flags.<ref name="NYT" /> Efforts at brokering agreements on behalf of Tibetans by the Dalai Lama with China had stalled.<ref>Jonathan Watts, ''Protests in Tibet erupt into violence'', (14 March 2008), https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/14/tibet.china1</ref> |
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The [[protests and uprisings in Tibet since 1950]] include earlier mass protests in |
The [[protests and uprisings in Tibet since 1950]] include earlier mass protests in Lhasa—the [[1959 Tibetan uprising]], and the [[1987-1989 Tibetan unrest|1987 protests]] which were likewise led by monks from [[Sera monastery]], [[Drepung monastery]] and [[Ganden monastery]], as reported by Tibet Watch.<ref>''30 years of resistance: The legacy of the 1987 Lhasa protests'', (20 September 2017), https://www.tibetwatch.org/30-years-of-resistance</ref> Both protests were met with force by the Chinese government, and by a declaration of martial law in 1989. |
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Of the 1989 suppression in Lhasa, journalist [[Jim Yardley]] wrote:<blockquote>"In the past China has not hesitated to crush major protests in Tibet or to jail disobedient monks. President [[Hu Jintao]], who is also the general secretary of the Communist Party, served as party boss in Tibet during a violent crackdown in 1989. His support for the bloody suppression of unrest that year earned him the good will of [[Deng Xiaoping]], then the paramount leader, and led directly to his elevation to the [[Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party|Politburo Standing Committee]] and eventually to China’s top leadership posts."<ref>Jim Yardley, |
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Of the 1989 bloody supression in Lhasa, journalist Jim Yardley wrote,<ref>Jim Yardley, |
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''Violence in Tibet as Monks Clash With the Police'', (15 March 2008), https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/15/world/asia/15tibet.html</ref> |
''Violence in Tibet as Monks Clash With the Police'', (15 March 2008), https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/15/world/asia/15tibet.html</ref></blockquote>The Dalai Lama and the [[Central Tibetan Administration]] (CTA) proposed the [[Protests and uprisings in Tibet since 1950#Middle Way Approach|"Middle Way"]] approach to address the government of China's policies in Tibet. Specific agreements offered to China include the Five Point Peace Plan in 1987, the Strasbourg proposal in 1988, and the Memorandum on Genuine Autonomy in 2008.<ref>Tsewang Gyalpo Arya, ''The 17-point Agreement – What China promised, what it really delivered and the future?'', (23 May 2019), https://tibet.net/the-17-point-agreement-what-china-promised-what-it-really-delivered-and-the-future-2/</ref> China has not agreed to the proposals for an autonomous cultural and Buddhist Tibetan region within the state. |
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As a policy begun by [[Mao Zedong]] in 1950, China promotes settlements of Han Chinese within Tibet, which, according to the Dalai Lama and others, dilutes Tibetan culture and identity.<ref name="Settlers">Julian Borger, ''Tibet could be 'swamped' by mass Chinese settlement after Olympics, says Dalai Lama'', (24 May 2008), https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/may/24/tibet.china</ref><ref>International Commission of Jurists, 1997, https://www.icj.org/wp-content/uploads/1997/01/Tibet-human-rights-and-the-rule-of-law-thematic-report-1997-eng.pdf</ref> The Central Tibetan Administration also states:<blockquote>"Under the guise of the economic and social development, Beijing encourages its population to migrate to Tibet with the clear aim to marginalize Tibetans from the economic, educational, political and social life of the region."<ref name="Asia" /></blockquote>A railway link opened in 2006 delivers three thousand Han a day to the region. Within Lhasa, [[Tsering Woeser]] reports that Tibetans are discriminated against at spiritual sites, and residents were relocated to rural areas, as urban areas were redeveloped for Han residents and businesses.<ref>Ségolène Malterre, ''"Lhasa's Tibetans will soon be nothing but decorations for tourists" '', (21 May 2013), |
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The Dalai Lama and the [[Central Tibetan Administration]] (CTA) proposed the [[Protests and uprisings in Tibet since 1950#Middle Way Approach|"Middle Way"]] approach to address the government of China's policies in Tibet. Specific agreements offered to China include the Five Point Peace Plan in 1987, Strasbourg proposal in 1988, and the Memorandum on Genuine Autonomy in 2008.<ref>Tsewang Gyalpo Arya, ''The 17-point Agreement – What China promised, what it really delivered and the future?'', (23 May 2019), https://tibet.net/the-17-point-agreement-what-china-promised-what-it-really-delivered-and-the-future-2/</ref> China has not agreed to the proposals for an autonomous cultural and Buddhist Tibetan region within the state. |
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https://observers.france24.com/en/20130521-lhasa-tibetans-nothing-decorations-tourists</ref><ref>''Destruction of Lhasa revealed in new images'', (20 May 2013), International Campaign for Tibet, https://savetibet.org/destruction-of-lhasa-revealed-in-new-images/</ref><ref name="Asia">''Beijing sends new flood of Han migrants to Lhasa: Tibetans risk disappearing'', (27 January 2015), http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Beijing-sends-a-new-flood-of-Han-migrants-to-Lhasa:-Tibetans-risk-disappearing-33294.html</ref> Nomadic Tibetans are forced to build homes and borrow money for construction costs,<ref>''Is development killing Tibet's way of life?'', (15 July 2010), https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-10638506</ref><ref name="NYT">Edward Wong, ''China's migrants and money pour into Tibet'', (25 July 2010), https://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/25/world/asia/25tibet.html</ref> while their grazing lands are redistributed, as reported by Free Tibet.<ref>''Two Tibetan nomads arrested following their resistance to land ownership confiscations'', (04 September 2020), https://www.freetibet.org/news-media/na/two-tibetan-nomads-arrested-following-their-resistance-land-ownership-confiscations</ref> |
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Environmental concerns<ref name="Mass" /> also motivated the protests.<ref name="CTA">''Tibetan protests 2008''Central Tibetan Administration, https://tibet.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/tibetprotest2008.pdf</ref> Some of Asia's most important rivers{{Which|date=November 2020}} flow from the Tibetan plateau, and "are being polluted and are, according to the Dalai Lama, "diminished by careless industrialisation and unplanned irrigation".<ref name="Settlers" /> |
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As a policy begun by Chairman Mao in 1950, Beijing promotes settlements of Han Chinese within Tibet, which dilute Tibetan culture and identity, as the Dalai Lama and others have stated.<ref name=Settlers>Julian Borger, ''Tibet could be 'swamped' by mass Chinese settlement after Olympics, says Dalai Lama'', (24 May 2008), https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/may/24/tibet.china</ref><ref>International Commission of Jurists, 1997, https://www.icj.org/wp-content/uploads/1997/01/Tibet-human-rights-and-the-rule-of-law-thematic-report-1997-eng.pdf</ref> The CTA also states, '' "[u]nder the guise of the economic and social development, Beijing encourages its population to migrate to Tibet with the clear aim to marginalize Tibetans from the economic, educational, political and social life of the region." ''<ref name=Asia/> A railway link opened in 2006 delivers three thousand Han a day to the region. Within Lhasa, [[Tsering Woeser]] reports that Tibetans are discriminated against at spiritual sites, and residents were relocated to rural areas, as urban areas were redeveloped for Han residents and businesses.<ref>Ségolène Malterre, ''"Lhasa's Tibetans will soon be nothing but decorations for tourists" '', (21 May 2013), |
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https://observers.france24.com/en/20130521-lhasa-tibetans-nothing-decorations-tourists</ref><ref>''Destruction of Lhasa revealed in new images'', (20 May 2013), International Campaign for Tibet, https://savetibet.org/destruction-of-lhasa-revealed-in-new-images/</ref><ref name=Asia>''Beijing sends new flood of Han migrants to Lhasa: Tibetans risk disappearing'', (27 January 2015), http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Beijing-sends-a-new-flood-of-Han-migrants-to-Lhasa:-Tibetans-risk-disappearing-33294.html</ref> Nomadic Tibetans are forced to build homes and borrow money for construction costs,<ref>''Is development killing Tibet's way of life?'', (15 July 2010), https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-10638506</ref><ref name=NYT>Edward Wong, ''China's migrants and money pour into Tibet'', (25 July 2010), https://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/25/world/asia/25tibet.html</ref> while their grazing lands are redistributed, as reported by Free Tibet.<ref>''Two Tibetan nomads arrested following their resistance to land ownership confiscations'', (04 September 2020), https://www.freetibet.org/news-media/na/two-tibetan-nomads-arrested-following-their-resistance-land-ownership-confiscations</ref> |
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Tibetan disobedience to the [[Chinese Communist Party]] (CCP), both violent and non-violent, is considered by the Chinese government as a crime of separatism and a threat to China's national security and expansionism. Kelsang Dolma wrote, "when the 2008 Tibet protests erupted, fomented by discontent with decades-long repression, the CCP ruthlessly responded by killing and arbitrarily arresting protesters".<ref name="Dolma" /> |
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Environmental concerns<ref name=Mass/> also motivated the protests.<ref name=CTA>''Tibetan protests 2008''Central Tibetan Administration, https://tibet.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/tibetprotest2008.pdf</ref> Some of Asia's most important rivers flow from the Tibetan plateau, and "are being polluted and diminished by careless industrialisation and unplanned irrigation" as stated by the Dalai Lama.<ref name=Settlers/> |
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China's policies in Tibet also created simmering socio-economic issues in [[Lhasa]].<ref>Hillman, Ben. [http://japanfocus.org/-Ben-Hillman/2773 ''Rethinking China's Tibet Policy''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130413193128/http://japanfocus.org/-Ben-Hillman/2773 |date=April 13, 2013 }} in The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, August 2008</ref> Tibetans have complained about social discrimination and unequal pay. The arrests of [[Tibetan monk]]s, and reports of a monk being killed, are believed to have also led to the clashes.<ref>{{cite news | first =David | last =Barboza | title = Pressed Over Tibet, China Berates Foreign Media | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/25/world/asia/25tibet.html?fta=y | newspaper = The New York Times | date = March 25, 2008 | accessdate = April 23, 2008 | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20081211083337/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/25/world/asia/25tibet.html?fta=y| archivedate=December 11, 2008| url-status= live}}</ref> |
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Tibetan disobedience to the [[Chinese Communist Party]] (CCP), even non-violent disobedience, is considered by Beijing as a crime of separatism, and a threat to China's national security and expansionism.<ref name=Dolma/> Kelsang Dolma also states, "when the 2008 Tibet protests erupted, fomented by discontent with decades-long repression, the CCP ruthlessly responded by killing and arbitrarily arresting protesters". |
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Economic issues created by the policy of settling Han Chinese into [[Lhasa]] includes the alleged marginalization of Tibetan shop owners in favor of Han owners. According to the [[Tibetan Independence Movement]] and other sources, Tibetans in Lhasa were angered by inflation that caused the prices of food and consumer goods to increase. Prices also continued to rise in other parts of the country,<ref name="refeco">{{cite news |
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China's policies in Tibet which marginalize Tibetans also created simmering socio-economic issues in [[Lhasa]].<ref>Hillman, Ben. [http://japanfocus.org/-Ben-Hillman/2773 ''Rethinking China's Tibet Policy''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130413193128/http://japanfocus.org/-Ben-Hillman/2773 |date=April 13, 2013 }} in The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, August 2008</ref>Tibetans also complain about social discrimination and unequal pay. The arrests of [[Tibetan monk]]s, and a report of a killing of a monk, led to the clashes.<ref>{{cite news | first =David | last =Barboza | title = Pressed Over Tibet, China Berates Foreign Media | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/25/world/asia/25tibet.html?fta=y | newspaper = The New York Times | date = March 25, 2008 | accessdate = April 23, 2008 | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20081211083337/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/25/world/asia/25tibet.html?fta=y| archivedate=December 11, 2008| url-status= live}}</ref> |
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Economic issues created by the policy of settling Han Chinese into [[Lhasa]] includes marginalizing Tibetan shop owners in favor of Han owners. According to the [[Tibetan Independence Movement]] and other sources, Tibetans in Lhasa are also angered by inflation that has caused the prices of food and consumer goods to increase. Prices have also continued to rise in other parts of the country,<ref name="refeco">{{cite news |
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}}</ref> while Tibetan youth stated that equal access to jobs and education is another economic issue related to the mass settling of Han Chinese.<ref>''"Sie haben sich am heftigsten beklagt, dass sie nicht die gleichen Stellen oder die gleiche Schulbildung bekommen wie die Chinesen, dass die Chinesen mehr Geld haben."''{{cite news | first = | last = | title = Die Jugend will mehr | url = http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/international/die_jugend_will_mehr_1.693955.html | work = [[Neue Zürcher Zeitung]] | location = | date = March 23, 2008 | accessdate = April 9, 2008 | language = German | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080327211808/http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/international/die_jugend_will_mehr_1.693955.html | archive-date = March 27, 2008 | url-status = live }}</ref> |
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The scheduled [[2008 Olympic Games]] in Beijing was a rallying point before 2008.<ref name="TR" /> |
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== Protests in Tibet == |
== Protests in Tibet == |
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{{Main|2008 Lhasa violence}} |
{{Main|2008 Lhasa violence}} |
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[[File:China-Tibet.png|thumb|right|200px|[[Tibet Autonomous Region]]]] |
[[File:China-Tibet.png|thumb|right|200px|[[Tibet Autonomous Region]]]] |
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Various sources state the demonstrations began on 10 March near midday |
Various sources{{Which|date=November 2020}} state the demonstrations began on 10 March near midday, when a group of 300–400 monks from [[Drepung monastery]] marching to [[Lhasa]]'s center demanding religious freedom and the release of Drepung monks arrested a year earlier. Chinese police blocked their route, and a sitting protest began. The monks were reportedly kicked and beaten with batons, and Human Rights Watch reported that 60 monks were arrested.<ref name=TR/><ref name=HRW2>''I saw it with my own eyes: Abuses by Chinese security forces in Tibet, 2008-2010'', (21 July 2010), Human Rights Watch, https://www.hrw.org/report/2010/07/21/i-saw-it-my-own-eyes/abuses-chinese-security-forces-tibet-2008-2010 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200914080327/https://www.hrw.org/report/2010/07/21/i-saw-it-my-own-eyes/abuses-chinese-security-forces-tibet-2008-2010 |date=September 14, 2020 }}</ref> Around 5:00 p, a group of monks from [[Sera monastery]] began a protest in front of [[Jokhang Temple]], and reports state nearly all were arrested after electric prods were used. |
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The next day on 11 March as |
The next day on 11 March as 300–400 monks from Sera monastery departed in a line to demand the release of the arrested Sera monks. An eyewitness told the [[BBC]] that Chinese police kicked and beat them on their sides, and beat a monk to the ground, describing it as "gratuitous violence".<ref>''Eyewitness: Monk 'kicked to floor' '', (14 March 2008), BBC, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7296134.stm {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080318231257/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7296134.stm |date=March 18, 2008 }}</ref> Outside the monastery, the monks began a sitting protest and were surrounded by riot police and armed military units. [[Radio Free Asia]] reported that an eyewitness saw tear gas being fired into the crowd.<ref name=HRW2/><ref>Radio Free Asia, (12 March 2008), http://www.rfa.org/english/news/2008/03/12/tibet_march/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080330201346/http://www.rfa.org/english/news/2008/03/12/tibet_march/ |date=March 30, 2008 }}</ref> The Human Rights Watch report stated hundreds of monks and nuns from [[Ganden Monastery]] and [[Mani Nunnery]] also began marching into Lhasa on 11 March. Participants claimed that they were stopped by police and returned to their monastic centers, which were promptly cordoned off.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} |
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On 14 March, a group of monks preparing to depart from [[Ramoche Temple]] in the center of Lhasa to demand the release of monks from Drepung and Sera were barred from leaving by police |
On 14 March, a group of monks preparing to depart from [[Ramoche Temple]] in the center of Lhasa to demand the release of monks from Drepung and Sera were barred from leaving by police. A commotion was reportedly witnessed by nearby residents that began congregating outside before throwing stones at the police and overturning their vehicles.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} Crowds swelled as the police withdrew, and it soon led to ethnic-targeted clashes. Reports state [[Han Chinese]] businesses were ransacked and their inventory piled into the streets and burned. Fires were spread to buildings, and Han and [[Hui Chinese]] people were beaten, while a fire killed several{{Quantify|date=November 2020}} Han and a Tibetan in the same building.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} |
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When Chinese police and military units reentered Lhasa on 14 March, reports state tear gas canisters were launched and shootings began. [[Amnesty International]] reports that machine guns were used.<ref name="Amnesty">Shai Jiang, ''Leaked internal document shows China used machine guns to kill Tibetans in March 2008 protest'', (22 Aug 2014), https://www.amnesty.org.uk/blogs/countdown-china/leaked-internal-document-shows-china-used-machine-guns-kill-tibetans-march {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224134808/https://www.amnesty.org.uk/blogs/countdown-china/leaked-internal-document-shows-china-used-machine-guns-kill-tibetans-march |date=February 24, 2020 }}</ref> State hospitals were reported by Human Rights Watch as closed to protestors by Chinese authorities, and reports of wounded and killed Tibetans were suppressed.<ref name="HRW2" /> |
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Crowds swelled as the police withdrew, and the Tibetan's "long simmering resentment", as described by the Dalai Lama,<ref>Richard Spencer and Natalie Paris, ''Dalai Lama calls for calm amid Tibet violence'', (14 March 2008), |
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https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1581731/Dalai-Lama-calls-for-calm-amid-Tibet-violence.html {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090201085149/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1581731/Dalai-Lama-calls-for-calm-amid-Tibet-violence.html |date=February 1, 2009 }}</ref> led to ethnic-targeted clashes. Reports state [[Han Chinese]] businesses were ransacked and their inventory piled into the streets and burned. Fires were spread to buildings, and Han and [[Hui Chinese]] people were beaten, while a fire killed several Han and a Tibetan in the same building. |
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Police cars, fire engines and other official vehicles were reportedly set on fire. Reports state Tibetans attacked Han and Hui passerby using stones, and an eyewitness stated from their hotel window, "It seems like it's ethnic—like they want to kill anyone not Tibetan." The witness also said he saw a group of 20 armed men firing guns, and that he was unsure if they were police officers or armed rioters.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/15/tibet.china2 Eyewitness account of violence between protesters and police in Tibet] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160826122807/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/15/tibet.china2 |date=August 26, 2016 }}. The Guardian, 15 March 2008. Retrieved on 4 Aug 2016</ref> Chinese state media reported non-Tibetan-owned businesses and banks were robbed and houses were attacked and burned down, including government buildings and schools. Police used tear gas and cattle prods. According to Chinese state media, 18 civilians were killed by rioters.<ref name=":3">[http://hk.crntt.com/doc/1010/0/1/8/101001887.html?coluid=0&kindid=0&docid=101001887 As long as there are separists, there will be 3-14 event again] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171006162042/http://hk.crntt.com/doc/1010/0/1/8/101001887.html?coluid=0&kindid=0&docid=101001887 |date=October 6, 2017 }} (Trad Chinese) China Review News Agency, 22 June 2008</ref> |
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When Chinese police and military units reentered Lhasa later on the 14th, reports state tear gas canisters were launched and indiscriminate shootings began. [[Amnesty International]] reports of evidence machine guns were used.<ref name=Amnesty>Shai Jiang, ''Leaked internal document shows China used machine guns to kill Tibetans in March 2008 protest'', (22 Aug 2014), https://www.amnesty.org.uk/blogs/countdown-china/leaked-internal-document-shows-china-used-machine-guns-kill-tibetans-march {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224134808/https://www.amnesty.org.uk/blogs/countdown-china/leaked-internal-document-shows-china-used-machine-guns-kill-tibetans-march |date=February 24, 2020 }}</ref> State hospitals were reported by Human Rights Watch as closed to protestors by Chinese authorities, and reports of wounded and killed Tibetans were supressed.<ref name=HRW2/> |
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A crowd tried to storm the [[Lhasa Great Mosque]] and set fire to the front gate. Shops and restaurants in the Muslim quarter were destroyed.<ref>Barbara Demick, [https://articles.latimes.com/2008/jun/23/world/fg-muslims23 Tibetan-Muslim tensions roil China] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100622013126/http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jun/23/world/fg-muslims23 |date=June 22, 2010 }}, ''Los Angeles Times'', June 23, 2008.</ref> A Chinese businessman reported that many Hui Muslim stores were burnt. Also burnt were stationery shops, banks, and a wholesale market at Tsomtsikhang, where many shops are owned by Han Chinese and Hui Muslims.<ref name=":0">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7302319.stm Accounts from Lhasa and beyond] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100730002250/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7302319.stm |date=July 30, 2010 }}, BBC.</ref> |
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Police cars, fire engines and other official vehicles were reportedly set on fire. Reports also state Tibetans attacked Han and Hui passers-by using stones, and an eyewitness stated from their hotel window, "It seems like it's ethnic – like they want to kill anyone not Tibetan."<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/15/tibet.china2 Eyewitness account of violence between protesters and police in Tibet] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160826122807/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/15/tibet.china2 |date=August 26, 2016 }}. The Guardian, 15 March 2008. Retrieved on 4 Aug 2016</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gth30EbfSUg|title=YouTube|author=|date=|website=www.youtube.com|access-date=August 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160412164720/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gth30EbfSUg|archive-date=April 12, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> The eyewitness also said a group of 20 men had a couple of guns and were shooting, and they were thought to be the police. Chinese state-controlled media reports non-Tibetan-owned businesses and banks were robbed, houses were attacked and burned down, including governments and schools.<ref>[http://hk.crntt.com/doc/1010/0/1/8/101001887.html?coluid=0&kindid=0&docid=101001887 As long as there are separists, there will be 3-14 event again] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171006162042/http://hk.crntt.com/doc/1010/0/1/8/101001887.html?coluid=0&kindid=0&docid=101001887 |date=October 6, 2017 }} (Trad Chinese) China Review News Agency, 22 June 2008</ref> Police used tear gas and cattle prods. According to Chinese state media, 18 civilians were killed by rioters. |
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Throughout Lhasa, raids, security sweeps and arrests by Chinese security forces reportedly continued for several days. Tsondru, a monk, is reported to have died after being thrown off a roof while under arrest by Chinese security forces.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} An early official statement by Tibet Autonomous Region Chairman Pema Trinley reported, "Only three law-breakers died during the pacification of the Lhasa unrest, no participation from the [[People's Liberation Army|PLA]]" was revised to add that another person "jumped from a building" to avoid arrest.<ref>Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, Materials on the March 14 Incident in Tibet (I), Beijing: Foreign Languages Press, 2008, p. 32.</ref> |
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A crowd tried to storm the [[Lhasa Great Mosque]] and succeeded in setting fire to the front gate. Shops and restaurants in the Muslim quarter were destroyed.<ref>Barbara Demick, [https://articles.latimes.com/2008/jun/23/world/fg-muslims23 Tibetan-Muslim tensions roil China] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100622013126/http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jun/23/world/fg-muslims23 |date=June 22, 2010 }}, ''Los Angeles Times'', June 23, 2008.</ref> A Chinese businessman reported that many Hui Muslim beef shops were burnt. Also burnt were stationery shops, banks, and a wholesale market at Tsomtsikhang, one of the most important Tibetan markets, where many shops are owned by Hans and Hui Muslims.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7302319.stm Accounts from Lhasa and beyond] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100730002250/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7302319.stm |date=July 30, 2010 }}, BBC.</ref> |
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Throughout Lhasa, raids, security sweeps and arrests by Chinese security forces reportedly continued for several days. Tsondru, a monk, is reported to have died after being thrown off a roof while under arrest by Chinese security forces. An early official statement by TAR Chairman Pema Trinley reported, "[o]nly three law-breakers died during the pacification of the Lhasa unrest, No participation from the PLA [People's Liberation Army]" was revised to add that another person "jumped from a building" to avoid arrest.<ref>Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, Materials on the March 14 Incident in Tibet (I), Beijing: Foreign Languages Press, 2008, p. 32.</ref> |
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=== Amdo/Gansu === |
=== Amdo/Gansu === |
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[[File:China-Gansu.png|thumb|right| |
[[File:China-Gansu.png|thumb|right|200x200px|Gansu Province]] |
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The Tibetan protests and demonstrations spread outside of Lhasa, and the boundaries of the [[Tibet Autonomous Region]], but were within the boundaries of Tibet. |
The Tibetan protests and demonstrations spread outside of Lhasa, and the boundaries of the [[Tibet Autonomous Region]], but were within the boundaries of Tibet. |
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On 14 March, 200 [[Labrang Monastery]] monks<ref>Jonathan Watts, ''Tibet gripped by violent clashes'', (14 March 2008), https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/14/tibet.china3</ref> |
On 14 March, 200 [[Labrang Monastery]] monks were assaulted by Chinese police when leaving their monastery in [[Amdo]] ([[Gansu]]), before being surrounded by military units while conducting a sitting protest outside.<ref>Jonathan Watts, ''Tibet gripped by violent clashes'', (14 March 2008), https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/14/tibet.china3</ref> Local residents from [[Xiahe]], numbering around 300, were prevented from approaching and roads were blocked by Chinese forces.<ref>{{cite news|title = Open revolt defies China's iron fist | url = http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/open-revolt-defies-chinas-iron-fist/2008/03/16/1205602195404.html|date=March 17, 2008|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|accessdate=2008-06-29}}</ref> |
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On 15 March, 4,000 Tibetans gathered near the Labrang Monastery and clashed with Chinese forces.<ref>Jim Yardley, ''Chinese Forces Say They’ve Secured Tibet’s Capital'', (15 March 2008), https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/15/world/asia/15cnd-tibet.html</ref><ref name=telegraph>{{cite news |
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}}</ref> The clashes |
}}</ref> The clashes centered around the [[Gelug school]]'s Labrang monastery, one of the largest Buddhist monasteries in Tibet.<ref name=telegraph /> Demonstrators marched through the streets of [[Xiahe]].<ref name=chicagotribune>{{cite news |first=Richard |last=Spencer |title=Q&A: The showdown in Tibet. Why would Tibet boil over right now |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-tibet_q_and_amar15,0,1154784.story |work=[[Chicago Tribune]] |date=March 15, 2008 |accessdate=March 16, 2008 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080318161620/http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-tibet_q_and_amar15%2C0%2C1154784.story |archivedate=March 18, 2008 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref> There were reports of government offices being damaged by the protesters, as well as reports of police using [[tear gas]] and shooting at protesters.<ref name=telegraph /> |
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In [[Lanzhou]] on 16 March, 100 students participated in a sitting protest.<ref name="BBClist">''Key places and events in Tibet unrest'', (19 March 2008), http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7305288.stm</ref> |
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The Tibetan government-in-exile states that 19 Tibetans were shot and killed on 18 March. Little is known about Han or Hui deaths.<ref>{{cite news | title = Dalai Lama calls for calm in Tibet | url = http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/2AE64C35-7CD5-4734-938A-82AFF9903485.htm | publisher = [[Al Jazeera]] | date = March 19, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080319233435/http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/2AE64C35-7CD5-4734-938A-82AFF9903485.htm| archivedate= March 19, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> |
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In [[Machu]] on 16 March, rioters set a government building on fire, while clashes continued on 18 March. |
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In [[Lanzhou]], 100 students participated in a sitting protest on 16 March.<ref name=BBClist>''Key places and events in Tibet unrest'', (19 March 2008), http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7305288.stm</ref> |
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In [[Hezou]] on 19 March, footage emerged showing protestors tearing apart Chinese flags and raising Tibetan flags in their place.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} |
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In [[Machu]] on 16 March, people set a government building on fire, while clashes continued on 18 March. |
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In [[Hezou]] on 19 March, footage emerged showing people tearing apart Chinese flags and raising Tibetan flags in their place. |
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China's [[Xinhua News Agency]] reported the cost of damage in Gansu at an estimated [[Renminbi|¥]]230 million ([[US$]]32.7 million).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/25/content_7857168.htm|title=Questions, answers about casualties, damages of recent riots|publisher=Xinhua News Agency|date=March 25, 2008|accessdate=March 26, 2008| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080330233716/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/25/content_7857168.htm| archivedate= March 30, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> |
China's [[Xinhua News Agency]] reported the cost of damage in Gansu at an estimated [[Renminbi|¥]]230 million ([[US$]]32.7 million).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/25/content_7857168.htm|title=Questions, answers about casualties, damages of recent riots|publisher=Xinhua News Agency|date=March 25, 2008|accessdate=March 26, 2008| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080330233716/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/25/content_7857168.htm| archivedate= March 30, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> |
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The Tibetan government-in-exile stated that 19 Tibetans were shot and killed on 18 March.<ref>{{cite news|date=March 19, 2008|title=Dalai Lama calls for calm in Tibet|publisher=[[Al Jazeera]]|url=http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/2AE64C35-7CD5-4734-938A-82AFF9903485.htm|url-status=live|accessdate=March 19, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080319233435/http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/2AE64C35-7CD5-4734-938A-82AFF9903485.htm|archivedate=March 19, 2008}}</ref> |
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=== Amdo/Qinghai === |
=== Amdo/Qinghai === |
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[[File:China-Qinghai.png|thumb|right| |
[[File:China-Qinghai.png|thumb|right|200x200px|Qinghai Province]] |
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Chinese authorities have reportedly arrested twelve Tibetan monks after an incident in the historic region of [[Rebkong]], which is located in the [[Huangnan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture]] in [[Qinghai]] (known to Tibetans as ''[[Amdo]]'').<ref name=chicagotribune /> Chinese security forces surrounded the [[Ditsa monastery]] in Bayan County.<ref name=chicagotribune />{{Dubious|date=March 2008}}<!--Bayan County is in Heilongjiang Province, not Qinghai. This is what it says in the source, but it is apparently an error.--> [[Qinghai province]] borders the Tibet Autonomous Region. |
Chinese authorities have reportedly arrested twelve Tibetan monks after an incident in the historic region of [[Rebkong]], which is located in the [[Huangnan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture]] in [[Qinghai]] (known to Tibetans as ''[[Amdo]]'').<ref name=chicagotribune /> Chinese security forces surrounded the [[Ditsa monastery]] in Bayan County.<ref name=chicagotribune />{{Dubious|date=March 2008}}<!--Bayan County is in Heilongjiang Province, not Qinghai. This is what it says in the source, but it is apparently an error.--> [[Qinghai province]] borders the Tibet Autonomous Region. |
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On 19 March, Chinese forces cordoned off the village of [[Taktser]], where the 14th Dalai Lama was born.<ref name=BBClist/> |
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In [[Tongren]], demonstrations |
In [[Tongren]], demonstrations occurred at the [[Rongwo Monastery]] between 14 and 16 March. |
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In the capital city of [[Xining]], |
In the capital city of [[Xining]], a journalist with [[Neue Zürcher Zeitung|''Neue Zürcher Zeitung'']] reported that residents were receiving intimidating calls from the [[Public security bureau (China)|Public Security Bureau]]. A call received by a Tibetan professor was reported as having said "Take good care of yourself" in a threatening manner.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} |
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During special classes for students in the region, videos Tibetans demolishing stores and attacking police were shown. The sessions have been deemed [[Propaganda in China|propaganda]] by some. Tibetan students at the Medical University of Xining held demonstrations to express their solidarity with the protestors, as well as a vigil for killed protestors in Lhasa.<ref>{{cite news|date=March 28, 2008|title="Take Care": Control like in Mao's Days in Tibetan Territory|language=German|url=http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/international/tibet_mao_1.696424.html|url-status=live|accessdate=March 28, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080331230726/http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/international/tibet_mao_1.696424.html|archivedate=March 31, 2008}}</ref> |
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Passports belonging to Tibetans were confiscated to prevent returns to India and the delivery of reports on events to Tibetan exiles. Tourists and foreign residents were surveilled and informed about their possible expulsion in case they got involved in Tibetan protests. |
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Passports belonging to Tibetans were confiscated to prevent returns to India and the delivery of reports on events to Tibetan exiles. Tourists and foreign residents were surveilled and informed about their possible expulsion in case they got involved in Tibetan protests.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} |
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During special classes for students in the region, videos of the Lhasa clashes were replayed again and again, but only images of Tibetans demolishing stores and attacking police. The propaganda sessions were reported to not have worked, since Tibetan students at the Medical University of Xining held demonstrations to express their solidarity with the protestors, and a vigil for the victims in Lhasa. A student said, '' "If the state realizes one thing with these images of propaganda and repression, now there is a bigger unity again among Tibetans. It's the best way to launch a revolt" ''<ref>{{cite news |title="Take Care": Control like in Mao's Days in Tibetan Territory|url=http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/international/tibet_mao_1.696424.html|date=March 28, 2008 |accessdate=March 28, 2008 |language=German| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080331230726/http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/international/tibet_mao_1.696424.html| archivedate= March 31, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> |
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=== Kham & Amdo/Sichuan === |
=== Kham & Amdo/Sichuan === |
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{{Main|2008 Sichuan riots}} |
{{Main|2008 Sichuan riots}} |
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[[File:China-Sichuan.png|thumb|right| |
[[File:China-Sichuan.png|thumb|right|201x201px|Sichuan Province]] |
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On 16 March, Tibetan monks and local residents clashed with police in [[Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture|Ngawa]]<nowiki/>after monks held a protest at the traditional Tibetan grounds of Kham and Amdo. A BBC eyewitness reported that approximately 17 Tibetans were killed, including a school girl. By 18 March, the town was "teeming with police and soldiers".<ref name=BBCAccounts/> |
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The India-based Tibetan |
The India-based [[Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy]] reported that at least seven people were shot.<ref>{{cite news|title=Tibet protests spread to other provinces |url=https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080316/aponreas/china_tibet |work=[[Yahoo! News]] |date=March 16, 2008 |accessdate=March 19, 2008 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080318222009/http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080316/ap_on_re_as/china_tibet |archivedate=March 18, 2008 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref> There are other reports that police shot between 13 and 30 protesters after a police station was set on fire, reports of at least one policeman being killed, and the burning three or four police vans. Reports on the exact number of deaths were difficult due to the expulsion of journalists.<ref>{{cite news | title = Tension rises as armed police mass in capital | url = https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/18/tibet.china | work=The Guardian | date = March 18, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 | location=London | first1=Jonathan | last1=Watts | first2=Tania | last2=Branigan| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080318223000/http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar/18/tibet.china| archivedate= March 18, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> The Chinese government stated that it opened fire on protestors in self defense on 20 March, reporting that four were wounded.<ref name=BBClist/><ref name=":2">{{cite news|date=March 21, 2008|title=川阿壩警開槍自衛 四暴徒受傷 (Sichuan, Ngawa police fire in self defence; four rioters wounded)|publisher=Da Kung Pao|location=Hong Kong|url=http://www.takungpao.com/news/08/03/21/ZM-880897.htm|url-status=dead|accessdate=March 30, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080328070029/http://www.takungpao.com/news/08/03/21/ZM-880897.htm|archivedate=March 28, 2008}}</ref> |
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In [[Ngawa Town]], after days of protests by 3,000 monks and 300 nuns, 27 of the nuns at the Kirti monasteries and nunneries were arrested by Chinese police forces on 20 March. Photographs of killed protestors near Kirti were circulated.<ref name=BBClist/> |
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[[Neue Zürcher Zeitung|''Neue Zürcher Zeitung'']] reported that phone calls into the region from Zurich were intercepted, and exiled Tibetans were harassed during the calls. The arrested nuns were not heard from afterwards. During a telephone call, a nun stated she and the other nuns had no regrets, and that "the road of liberty is long and arduous".<ref name=Kirti/> |
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A wave of arrests |
A wave of arrests occurred in [[Sertar]] on 21 March, where police shot and killed a protestor. Chinese army troops blocked roads in Sertar, and many Tibetans were arrested. The [[London]]-based Free Tibet Campaign reported that troops had been sent to the county after residents used explosives to destroy a bridge near the village of Gudu.<ref>{{cite news|title=China blankets Tibetan areas with troops |url=https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080320/ap_on_re_as/china_tibet_131 |publisher=Yahoo News |date=2008-03-20 |accessdate=2008-03-25 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080324061623/http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080320/ap_on_re_as/china_tibet_131 |archivedate=24 March 2008 |url-status=live |df=dmy }}</ref><ref name=Kirti>{{cite news |title=Beijing deploys army against nuns|url=http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/international/peking_setzt_armee_gegen_nonnen_ein_1.693952.html|work=[[Neue Zürcher Zeitung]] |date=2008-03-23 |accessdate=2008-03-23}}</ref> |
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In [[Kardze]], Radio Free Asia |
In [[Kardze]], Radio Free Asia reported demonstrations on 23 April, and on 11–12 May when 14 of the nuns demanding the release of two arrested in April were beaten and detained. The report states nuns were from nearby nunneries, and armed Chinese forces continued to patrol the area.<ref name=RFA> |
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''Tibetan Nuns Jailed, Detained'', (12 May 2008), https://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/tibet_nuns-05122008160846.html?searchterm=None</ref> Other protests were held in Chori. |
''Tibetan Nuns Jailed, Detained'', (12 May 2008), https://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/tibet_nuns-05122008160846.html?searchterm=None</ref> Other protests were held in Chori. |
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TCHRD |
The TCHRD reported that three people were killed by Chinese forces on 15–16 March.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} |
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The BBC reported that around 16 March, 600 monks from Lhasa were flown to [[Chengdu]] by Chinese security forces.<ref name=BBClist/> |
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== |
== Chinese response == |
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[[Chinese Premier]] [[Wen Jiabao]] blamed supporters of the Dalai Lama for the recent violence in Tibet, claiming "There is ample fact and we also have plenty of evidence proving that this incident was organised, premeditated, masterminded and incited by the Dalai clique."<ref>{{cite news|date=March 19, 2008|title=Report: Over 100 surrender, admit involvement in Tibet clashes|publisher=[[CNN]]|url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/18/tibet.unrest/index.html|url-status=dead|accessdate=March 19, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080318082411/http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/18/tibet.unrest/index.html|archivedate=March 18, 2008|df=mdy}}</ref> However, younger and more radical Tibetans were reportedly dissatisfied with the Dalai Lama's nonviolent methods, choosing to riot instead.<ref>{{cite news|last=|first=|date=March 18, 2008|title=Protests expose rifts among Tibetans|work=Phayul.com|publisher=Phayul|url=http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=19823&t=1&c=1|url-status=live|accessdate=October 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019060924/http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=19823&t=1&c=1|archive-date=October 19, 2017}}</ref> The Dalai Lama denied any involvement in organizing or inciting the unrest.<ref>{{cite web|title=Archived copy|url=https://www.dalailama.com/news.220.htm|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080401171102/http://www.dalailama.com/news.220.htm|archivedate=April 1, 2008|accessdate=2008-03-29}} An Appeal to the Chinese People</ref> ''The Economist'' reporter James Miles, when asked in an interview if the [[Dalai Lama]] was responsible for the riots, responded that he "didn't see any evidence of any organized activity", opining that "it's more likely that what we saw was inspired by a general desire of Tibetans both inside Tibet and among the Dalai Lama's followers, to take advantage of this Olympic year, but also inspired simply by all these festering grievances on the ground in Lhasa."<ref name="miles interview">{{cite news|date=March 20, 2008|title=Transcript: James Miles interview on Tibet|work=[[CNN]]|url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet.miles.interview/|url-status=live|accessdate=April 9, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080411130317/http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet.miles.interview/|archivedate=April 11, 2008}}</ref> He noted in another report that the rioting "seemed to be primarily an eruption of ethnic hatred".<ref name="refeco" /> |
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<!-- Locations are listed in alphabetical order at the moment --> |
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[[File:FreeTibetprotestSanFrancisco2008.jpg|thumb|right|A Free Tibet rally outside the Chinese consulate in [[San Francisco]], [[California]], on March 17, 2008]] |
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According to [[Wen Jiabao]], the [[Premier of the People's Republic of China]], attacks on between ten and twenty Chinese embassies and consulates occurred around the same time as attacks on non-Tibetan interests in the [[Tibet Autonomous Region]] and several other ethnic Tibetan areas.<ref name="Wen">{{cite news|title=温总促达赖停止西藏暴力 (Premier: ample facts prove Dalai's role in Lhasa riot, door of dialogue still open)|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/18/content_7813012.htm|publisher=Wen Wei Po|location=Hong Kong|date=March 31, 2008|accessdate=March 31, 2008|language=Chinese|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080914125527/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/18/content_7813012.htm|archive-date=September 14, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> |
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On April 1, the Chinese government accused supporters of the Dalai Lama of planning [[Suicide attack|suicide attacks]]. [[Samdhong Rinpoche]], prime minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile, denied these allegations, stating "Tibetan exiles are one-hundred-percent committed to nonviolence. There is no question of suicide attacks."<ref>{{Cite web|last=Bodeen|first=Christopher|date=April 1, 2008|title=China Alleges Tibet 'Suicide Squads'|url=http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h5Z6bJwtN_roGSIUQiQnfbf2NkhgD8VP4ITG0|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080412060301/http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h5Z6bJwtN_roGSIUQiQnfbf2NkhgD8VP4ITG0|archive-date=April 12, 2008}}</ref> |
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According to an article by [[Doug Saunders]] published in ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', the protests were loosely coordinated by a group of full-time organizers hired by two umbrella groups that were loyal to the Tibetan government in exile. Documents were sent to more than 150 Tibet support groups around the world giving them detailed notes on how to behave when organizing similar disruptions as the torch made its six-month trip around the world. This included advice on maintaining [[non-violence]] and following the Dalai Lama's opposition to Tibetan national independence. (Protesters were to advocate a more autonomous Tibet within China). However, many of the protests did not follow this advice.<ref>{{cite news |
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|title=How three Canadians upstaged Beijing |
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|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080328.wtibetcampaign0328/BNStory/International/ |
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|newspaper=[[The Globe and Mail]] |
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|date=March 29, 2008 |
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|accessdate=April 3, 2008 |
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|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080401231314/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080328.wtibetcampaign0328/BNStory/International/ |
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|archivedate=April 1, 2008 |
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|url-status=live |
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}}</ref> However, Doug Saunders further published that the torch-relay protests had no relationship with the riots and uprisings inside Tibet.<ref>{{cite news | title = Beijing has become the guardian of the Chinese brand | url = https://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080419.wreckoning0419/BNStory/International/?query= | newspaper = [[The Globe and Mail]] |
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| date = April 19, 2008 | accessdate = April 20, 2008 }}</ref> |
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On March 31, the PRC state-owned news agency [[Xinhua News Agency|Xinhua]] published what it claimed to be an account of the process by which the [[Dalai Lama]] allegedly masterminded the riots. Key claims include that five groups associated with the Government-in-Exile recruited agents for the "Tibetan People's Great Uprising" in India in February, that 101 agents sent from Dharamsala were instrumental in organising the protests and riots, that the Government-in-Exile directly funded the protests and that the [[Tibetan Youth Congress]] intends to conduct an armed guerilla campaign in China.<ref>{{cite news|date=March 30, 2008|title=Dalai clique's masterminding of Lhasa violence exposed|newspaper=[[China Daily]]|url=http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-03/30/content_6576350.htm|url-status=live|accessdate=March 31, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080403014701/http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-03/30/content_6576350.htm|archivedate=April 3, 2008}}</ref> |
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=== International reaction === |
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{{Main|International reaction to 2008 Tibetan unrest#International protests}} |
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''The West Australian'' reported that Chinese forces claimed to have found semi-automatic firearms hidden throughout a temple in [[Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture|Ngawa]].<ref name="West">{{cite news|last=|first=|date=April 14, 2008|title=China finds firearms in Tibetan temple|language=|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|publisher=|location=|url=https://www.smh.com.au/world/china-finds-firearms-in-tibetan-temple-20080413-25wz.html|url-status=live|accessdate=October 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019060956/http://www.smh.com.au/world/china-finds-firearms-in-tibetan-temple-20080413-25wz.html|archive-date=October 19, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=|first=|date=April 14, 2008|title=China says firearms found in Tibetan temple|language=|work=Reuters|publisher=Reuters|location=|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-tibet/china-says-firearms-found-in-tibetan-temple-idUSPEK20364920080414|url-status=live|accessdate=October 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019111353/http://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-tibet/china-says-firearms-found-in-tibetan-temple-idUSPEK20364920080414|archive-date=October 19, 2017}}</ref> Police officers told state television, "they were modified semi-automatic weapons."<ref name="West" /> |
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=== Riot actions === |
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China responded by deploying the [[People's Armed Police]]. The BBC reported seeing over 400 troop carriers mobilizing into Tibet,<ref>{{cite news|date=March 20, 2008|title=China steps up Tibetan crackdown|work=BBC News|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7306096.stm|url-status=live|accessdate=March 26, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080325042449/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7306096.stm|archivedate=March 25, 2008}}</ref> which would represent a deployment of up to 4,000 troops. The Chinese authorities ordered all Hong Kong and foreign journalists to leave [[Lhasa]].<ref>{{cite news|last=|first=|date=March 19, 2008|title=Tibet media ban damages Beijing's cause|language=|work=[[South China Morning Post]]|location=|url=http://www.scmp.com/article/630480/tibet-media-ban-damages-beijings-cause|url-status=live|accessdate=March 19, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181214202455/https://www.scmp.com/article/630480/tibet-media-ban-damages-beijings-cause|archive-date=December 14, 2018}}</ref> According to General Yang Deping, regular military troops from the [[People's Liberation Army]] were not deployed.<ref>{{cite news|last=Yardley|first=Jim|date=March 16, 2008|title=Tibetans Clash With Chinese Police in Second City|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/16/world/asia/16tibet.html|url-status=live|accessdate=March 19, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090411111957/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/16/world/asia/16tibet.html|archivedate=April 11, 2009}}</ref> |
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Chinese authorities were also reportedly concerned that the Tibetan protests could "embolden activists in restive [[Xinjiang]] province" to organise street protests as well.<ref name="chicagotribune" /> The Chinese government's ''People's Daily'' reported a statement by [[Gyaincain Norbu]], which condemned the unrest, stating<blockquote>"the rioters' acts not only harmed the interests of the nation and the people, but also violated the aim of Buddhism [...] We strongly condemn the crime of a tiny number of people to hurt the lives and properties of the people."<ref>{{cite news|date=March 16, 2008|title=11th Panchen Lama condemns Lhasa riot|work=[[People's Daily]]|url=http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/90882/6374367.html|url-status=live|accessdate=March 19, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080321185020/http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/90882/6374367.html|archivedate=March 21, 2008}}</ref></blockquote>In addition to sealing off monasteries, an eyewitness at [[Sera Monastery]] claimed, "they [Chinese authorities] were grabbing monks, kicking and beating them."<ref>{{cite news|date=March 14, 2008|title=Eyewitness: Monk 'kicked to floor'|work=BBC News|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7296134.stm|url-status=live|accessdate=March 26, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080318231257/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7296134.stm|archive-date=March 18, 2008}}</ref> In Ngawa, police fired at the crowd after protestors reportedly burned down government buildings including the local police station, destroyed vehicles including police vehicles, stabbed police officers with swords, and attempted to take firearms from the police, during which the police fired warning shots to no avail.<ref name=":2" /> The government claimed that the police acted in self-defense. According to the Chinese government, four protesters were wounded, and 18 civilians, along with a police officer, were killed. The Tibetan government-in-exile claimed there were at least 99 deaths across the region.<ref>Agence France Presse, "Defiant China rejects dialogue, vows to smash Tibetan protests," March 22, 2008</ref> |
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=== PRC and Dalai Lama dialogues === |
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On March 19, Premier [[Wen Jiabao]] condemned the Dalai Lama's alleged role in the riot, but said the possibility for a dialogue remained open if he renounced [[Tibetan independence]], and if he "recognizes Tibet and Taiwan as inalienable parts of the Chinese territory".<ref>{{cite news|date=March 18, 2008|title=Premier: ample facts prove Dalai's role in Lhasa riot, door of dialogue still open|publisher=[[Government of the People's Republic of China]]|url=http://english.gov.cn/2008-03/18/content_923278.htm|url-status=dead|accessdate=March 20, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081201173553/http://english.gov.cn/2008-03/18/content_923278.htm|archivedate=December 1, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=March 18, 2008|title=Premier: Door of dialogue still opens to Dalai|publisher=[[Government of the People's Republic of China]]|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/18/content_7813194.htm|url-status=live|accessdate=March 24, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080322090219/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/18/content_7813194.htm|archivedate=March 22, 2008}}</ref> The Dalai Lama has repeatedly stated he seeks autonomy, not independence, citing the need for Tibet to develop as a modern nation. |
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On May 4, two representatives of the PRC government, Zhu Weiqun and Sitar met with two representatives of the [[Dalai Lama]], [[Lodi Gyari]] and [[Kelsang Gyaltsen]], in the southern Chinese city of [[Shenzhen]]. The two sides exchanged views and agreed that a further round of talks should be held at an appropriate time.<ref name="xinhuanet1">{{cite news|date=May 4, 2008|title=China's central gov't officials meet with Dalai Lama's private representatives|publisher=[[Xinhua News Agency]]|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-05/04/content_8104983.htm|url-status=live|accessdate=May 6, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080508180107/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-05/04/content_8104983.htm|archivedate=May 8, 2008}}</ref> |
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Plans for the meeting had been announced by the Xinhua News Agency on April 25,<ref>{{cite news|date=April 26, 2008|title=China's decision to meet Dalai's representative receives positive responses|publisher=[[Xinhua News Agency]]|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-04/25/content_8052398.htm|url-status=live|accessdate=April 26, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080501153437/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-04/25/content_8052398.htm|archivedate=May 1, 2008}}</ref> and was confirmed by the Dalai Lama's spokesman.<ref>{{cite news|date=April 26, 2008|title=China to meet Dalai Lama aides|newspaper=[[Sydney Morning Herald]]|url=https://www.smh.com.au/news/world/china-to-meet-dalai-lama-aides/2008/04/26/1208743292136.html|url-status=live|accessdate=April 26, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080429203339/http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/china-to-meet-dalai-lama-aides/2008/04/26/1208743292136.html|archive-date=April 29, 2008}}</ref> |
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This was the first high-level dialogue between the Dalai Lama's representatives and the PRC government since the March unrest, and was the continuation of a series of talks between the Chinese government and the Dalai Lama's representatives, including his immediate family and close aides.<ref>{{cite news|date=July 26, 2007|title=China says door 'wide open' on Dalai Lama talks|publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]]|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/07/29/1991005.htm|url-status=live|accessdate=May 11, 2009 <!--DASHBot-->|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926145906/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2007-07-29/china-says-door-wide-open-on-dalai-lama-talks/2516234|archive-date=September 26, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Zacharia|first=Janine|date=April 26, 2008|title=China's Tibet Talks May Skirt Autonomy Demands of Dalai Lama|publisher=[[Bloomberg L.P.]]|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=akPS6Pkzcy90|url-status=live|accessdate=April 26, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926145905/https://www.bloomberg.com/politics?pid=20601087&sid=akPS6Pkzcy90|archive-date=September 26, 2020}}</ref> |
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A second meeting was scheduled for June 11. However, due to the [[2008 Sichuan earthquake]]s, the two sides agreed to postpone the meeting.<ref name="reuters1">{{cite news|date=June 6, 2008|title=Tibet, China talks postponed after quake – Dalai aide|work=[[Reuters]]|url=http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-33939420080606|url-status=live|accessdate=June 12, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080821162854/http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-33939420080606|archive-date=August 21, 2008}}</ref> The second meeting was held on July 1.<ref name="reuters2" /> |
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== Casualties and fatalities == |
== Casualties and fatalities == |
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Reports of casualties, deaths and gunfire from independent media sources and from Tibetan sources contradict reports from Chinese government sources.<ref name=France>''China denies claims hundreds were killed'', (17 March 2008), https://www.france24.com/en/20080317-china-denies-claims-hundreds-were-killed-china-tibet {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110213214803/http://www.france24.com/en/20080317-china-denies-claims-hundreds-were-killed-china-tibet |date=February 13, 2011 }}</ref> |
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[[File:2008 China's Tyranny Violence Against Tibetan People and Monks after March Uprising 中國在三月起義抗暴後以極權武力控制西藏-圖博人民與僧侶.jpg|thumb|right]] |
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Reports of casualties, deaths and gunfire, on 14 March and afterwards, from independent media sources and from Tibetan sources contradict reports from Chinese government sources.<ref name=France>''China denies claims hundreds were killed'', (17 March 2008), https://www.france24.com/en/20080317-china-denies-claims-hundreds-were-killed-china-tibet {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110213214803/http://www.france24.com/en/20080317-china-denies-claims-hundreds-were-killed-china-tibet |date=February 13, 2011 }}</ref> |
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China's state media Xinhua News Agency reported on early Saturday, 15 March, that 10 people had been burned to death by Tibetans, including two hotel employees and two shop owners.<ref>{{cite news|title=Chinese security forces swarm Tibet |url=https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080315/ap_on_re_as/china_tibet |work=[[Yahoo! News]] |date=March 15, 2008 |accessdate=March 19, 2008 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080318181905/http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080315/ap_on_re_as/china_tibet |archivedate=March 18, 2008 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref> It also reported that the victims were all innocent civilians<ref>{{cite news | title = The victims are all innocent civilians | url = http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?from=rss_World&set_id=1&click_id=3&art_id=iol1205574933123T130 | work = [[Independent Online (South Africa)|Independent Online]] | date = March 15, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 }}</ref> and that most of them were business people.<ref>{{cite news | first = | last = | title = Ten people killed in Tibet riots | url = http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/335091/1/.html | publisher = [[Channel NewsAsia]] | location = | date = March 15, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 | language = <!--DASHBot--> | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080318215647/http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/335091/1/.html | archive-date = March 18, 2008 | url-status = live }}</ref> It again reported on 21 March that, according to the Tibet regional government, 18 civilians and 1 police officer had been confirmed dead in the unrest by the night of Friday, 14 March. In addition, the number of injured civilians rose to 382 from 325, 58 of whom were critically wounded. 241 police officers were injured, 23 of whom were critically wounded.<ref>{{cite news | title = 18 civilians, 1 police officer killed by Lhasa rioters | url = http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90776/6378824.html | newspaper = [[People's Daily]] | date = March 22, 2008 | accessdate = March 22, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080706222446/http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90776/6378824.html | archive-date = July 6, 2008 | url-status = live }}</ref> |
China's state media Xinhua News Agency reported on early Saturday, 15 March, that 10 people had been burned to death by Tibetans, including two hotel employees and two shop owners.<ref>{{cite news|title=Chinese security forces swarm Tibet |url=https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080315/ap_on_re_as/china_tibet |work=[[Yahoo! News]] |date=March 15, 2008 |accessdate=March 19, 2008 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080318181905/http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080315/ap_on_re_as/china_tibet |archivedate=March 18, 2008 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref> It also reported that the victims were all innocent civilians<ref>{{cite news | title = The victims are all innocent civilians | url = http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?from=rss_World&set_id=1&click_id=3&art_id=iol1205574933123T130 | work = [[Independent Online (South Africa)|Independent Online]] | date = March 15, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 }}</ref> and that most of them were business people.<ref>{{cite news | first = | last = | title = Ten people killed in Tibet riots | url = http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/335091/1/.html | publisher = [[Channel NewsAsia]] | location = | date = March 15, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 | language = <!--DASHBot--> | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080318215647/http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/335091/1/.html | archive-date = March 18, 2008 | url-status = live }}</ref> It again reported on 21 March that, according to the Tibet regional government, 18 civilians and 1 police officer had been confirmed dead in the unrest by the night of Friday, 14 March. In addition, the number of injured civilians rose to 382 from 325, 58 of whom were critically wounded. 241 police officers were injured, 23 of whom were critically wounded.<ref>{{cite news | title = 18 civilians, 1 police officer killed by Lhasa rioters | url = http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90776/6378824.html | newspaper = [[People's Daily]] | date = March 22, 2008 | accessdate = March 22, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080706222446/http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90776/6378824.html | archive-date = July 6, 2008 | url-status = live }}</ref> |
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[[The Associated Press]] reported on a press conference from 17 March that |
[[The Associated Press]] reported on a press conference from 17 March that [[Tibet Autonomous Region]] governor [[Qiangba Puncog|Champa Phuntsok]] announced that 16 had been confirmed dead over the weekend's violence and dozens injured.<ref>{{cite news |
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|title = Tibet governor promises leniency, says death toll is 16 as protests spread |
|title = Tibet governor promises leniency, says death toll is 16 as protests spread |
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|url = http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/080317/world/china_tibet_10 |
|url = http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/080317/world/china_tibet_10 |
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The [[Central Tibetan Administration]] reported by 16 March to have confirmed at least 80 deaths,<ref>{{cite news |title=Dalai Lama: China causing 'cultural genocide' |url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/16/tibet.unrest/index.html |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=March 17, 2008 |accessdate=March 19, 2008 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080316125250/http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/16/tibet.unrest/index.html |archivedate=March 16, 2008 |url-status=dead |df=mdy }}</ref> then increased the death count by Chinese forces to more than 140 people, as reported on 5 April.<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7330295.stm {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080406082850/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7330295.stm |date=April 6, 2008 }} BBC News. Burning debate over relay boycott. April 5, 2008</ref> The Central Tibetan Administration's number of Tibetans killed since increased to 220, including subsequent deaths through to January 2009. |
The [[Central Tibetan Administration]] reported by 16 March to have confirmed at least 80 deaths,<ref>{{cite news |title=Dalai Lama: China causing 'cultural genocide' |url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/16/tibet.unrest/index.html |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=March 17, 2008 |accessdate=March 19, 2008 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080316125250/http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/16/tibet.unrest/index.html |archivedate=March 16, 2008 |url-status=dead |df=mdy }}</ref> then increased the death count by Chinese forces to more than 140 people, as reported on 5 April.<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7330295.stm {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080406082850/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7330295.stm |date=April 6, 2008 }} BBC News. Burning debate over relay boycott. April 5, 2008</ref> The Central Tibetan Administration's number of Tibetans killed since increased to 220, including subsequent deaths through to January 2009. |
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A month after the |
A month after the unrest began on 10 March, the Dalai Lama stated that since the beginning of the demonstrations in Tibet at least 400 people had been killed and thousands of others arrested.<ref>[http://www.radio-canada.ca/nouvelles/National/2008/04/18/004-Dalai-lama-canadiens.shtml Le dalaï-lama, la Chine et Hitler] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080422000047/http://www.radio-canada.ca/nouvelles/National/2008/04/18/004-Dalai-lama-canadiens.shtml |date=April 22, 2008 }}, [[Radio-Canada.ca]], Citation: Selon lui, depuis le début des manifestations au Tibet, il y a un mois, au moins 400 people ont été tuées et des milliers d'autres arrêtées. Il déplore que les armes l'emportent maintenant sur la raison.</ref> |
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Foreign tourists and Chinese eyewitnesses in Lhasa said "they saw and heard repeated gunfire there on Friday", 14 March.<ref name=France/> Although Phuntsok claimed that Chinese police did not fire their guns or use [[anti-personnel]] weapons against the Tibetan protesters, additional reports from BBC, Central Tibetan Administration, Tibetan Review, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International contradict Puncog's claim and state "indiscriminate shootings" by Chinese forces occurred, and that leaked evidence of machine gun use has been documented.<ref name=BBC/><ref>Central Tibetan Administration, https://tibet.net/leaked-documents-chinese-security-forces-used-machine-guns-to-kill-tibetans-in-2008-protest/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926145905/https://tibet.net/leaked-documents-chinese-security-forces-used-machine-guns-to-kill-tibetans-in-2008-protest/ |date=September 26, 2020 }}</ref><ref>Tibetan Review, https://www.tibetanreview.net/internal-report-shows-china-used-lethal-force-during-08-lhasa-repression/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200420000935/https://www.tibetanreview.net/internal-report-shows-china-used-lethal-force-during-08-lhasa-repression/ |date=April 20, 2020 }}</ref><ref name=Amnesty/> Puncog also states Tibetans wounded 61 police officers, including six seriously,<ref name="edition">{{cite news | title = China's premier blames Dalai Lama 'clique' for violence in Tibet |
Foreign tourists and Chinese eyewitnesses in Lhasa said "they saw and heard repeated gunfire there on Friday", 14 March.<ref name=France/> Although Phuntsok claimed that Chinese police did not fire their guns or use [[anti-personnel]] weapons against the Tibetan protesters, additional reports from BBC, Central Tibetan Administration, Tibetan Review, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International contradict Puncog's claim and state "indiscriminate shootings" by Chinese forces occurred, and that leaked evidence of machine gun use has been documented.<ref name=BBC/><ref>Central Tibetan Administration, https://tibet.net/leaked-documents-chinese-security-forces-used-machine-guns-to-kill-tibetans-in-2008-protest/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926145905/https://tibet.net/leaked-documents-chinese-security-forces-used-machine-guns-to-kill-tibetans-in-2008-protest/ |date=September 26, 2020 }}</ref><ref>Tibetan Review, https://www.tibetanreview.net/internal-report-shows-china-used-lethal-force-during-08-lhasa-repression/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200420000935/https://www.tibetanreview.net/internal-report-shows-china-used-lethal-force-during-08-lhasa-repression/ |date=April 20, 2020 }}</ref><ref name=Amnesty/> Puncog also states Tibetans wounded 61 police officers, including six seriously,<ref name="edition">{{cite news | title = China's premier blames Dalai Lama 'clique' for violence in Tibet |
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| url = http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/17/tibet.unrest/index.html | publisher = [[CNN]] | date = March 18, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080319013851/http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/17/tibet.unrest/index.html| archivedate= March 19, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> and reported that 13 innocent civilians had been killed.<ref>{{cite news | title = UN calls for restraint in Tibet | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7301912.stm | work = [[BBC News]] | date = March 17, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080321103740/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7301912.stm | archive-date = March 21, 2008 | url-status = live }}</ref> According to reporter James Miles, the police fatalities included both Tibetans and the Han Chinese. |
| url = http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/17/tibet.unrest/index.html | publisher = [[CNN]] | date = March 18, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080319013851/http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/17/tibet.unrest/index.html| archivedate= March 19, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> and reported that 13 innocent civilians had been killed.<ref>{{cite news | title = UN calls for restraint in Tibet | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7301912.stm | work = [[BBC News]] | date = March 17, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080321103740/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7301912.stm | archive-date = March 21, 2008 | url-status = live }}</ref> According to reporter James Miles, the police fatalities included both Tibetans and the Han Chinese. |
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A blockade by China of monasteries was reported by an Indian newspaper and Phayul, a news source affiliated with Central Tibetan Administration. The |
A blockade by China of monasteries was reported by an Indian newspaper and Phayul, a news source affiliated with Central Tibetan Administration. The People's Armed Police had blocked off water, electricity, food and health facilities in [[Sera Monastery]], [[Drepung monastery]], [[Ganden monastery]] and at other monasteries active in the demonstrations. As a consequence, monks were suffering starvation, and on 25 March one monk died from starvation at [[Ramoche Temple]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Ramoche monk dies from starvation as tight restrictions continue in Monasteries |url=http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=20055&article=Ramoche+monk+dies+from+starvation+as+tight+restrictions+continue+in+Monasteries&t=1&c=1 |publisher=Tibet.net |date=March 25, 2008 |accessdate=March 25, 2008 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080403051831/http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=20055&article=Ramoche%2Bmonk%2Bdies%2Bfrom%2Bstarvation%2Bas%2Btight%2Brestrictions%2Bcontinue%2Bin%2BMonasteries&t=1&c=1 |archivedate=April 3, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title = China tightens monastery blockade, monk dies of starvation (1st Lead) | url = http://news.monstersandcritics.com/asiapacific/news/article_1396916.php/China_tightens_monastery_blockade_monk_dies_of_starvation__1st_Lead_ | publisher = Monsters and Critics | date = March 26, 2008 | accessdate = March 26, 2008 | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20080403070244/http://news.monstersandcritics.com/asiapacific/news/article_1396916.php/China_tightens_monastery_blockade_monk_dies_of_starvation__1st_Lead_ | archivedate = April 3, 2008 | url-status = dead | df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title = Monk in Lhasa monastery died of starvation | url = http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/monk-in-lhasa-monastery-died-of-starvation_10031160.html | publisher = Thaindian News | date = March 26, 2008 | accessdate = March 26, 2008 | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20080401101713/http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/monk-in-lhasa-monastery-died-of-starvation_10031160.html | archivedate = April 1, 2008 | url-status = dead | df = mdy-all }}</ref> |
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On 28 March, International Herald Tribune reported 5 shopgirls |
On 28 March, the [[The New York Times International Edition|''International Herald Tribune'']] reported 5 shopgirls had been burned alive when Tibetan rioters set fire to the Yishion clothing store where they worked. The article noted one of them was Tibetan.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/03/28/asia/tibet.php |title=For victims of Tibet riots, a complex fate – International Herald Tribune |publisher=Iht.com |author= |date= |accessdate=September 1, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080529014940/http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/03/28/asia/tibet.php |archive-date=May 29, 2008 |url-status=live }}</ref> |
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In October 2009, four Tibetans were executed in connection with their involvement with the unrest |
In October 2009, four Tibetans were executed in connection with their involvement with the unrest.<ref name="Four-Tibetans">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/24/world/asia/24china.html/|title=Group Says China Has Executed 4 for Roles in Tibet Riots|last=Jacobs|first=Andrew|date=October 23, 2009|newspaper=The New York Times|accessdate=November 11, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927003843/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/24/world/asia/24china.html|archive-date=September 27, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> According to the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy, "the executions were not announced by the Chinese news media, and a woman who answered the phone at the Lhasa Municipal Intermediate People’s Court hung up when asked to confirm the accounts provided by the exile group.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} |
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== Arrests and |
== Arrests and disappearances == |
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[[File:Tibetan Monks arrested in 2008 遭逮捕的西藏僧侶.jpg|thumb|right|Tibetan monks |
[[File:Tibetan Monks arrested in 2008 遭逮捕的西藏僧侶.jpg|thumb|right|Arrested Tibetan monks in April 2008|249x249px]] |
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The arrests of monks during non-violent protests began on 10 March, and among those were monks from Drepung Monastery demanding the release of Drepung monks arrested a year earlier. The BBC |
The arrests of monks during non-violent protests began on 10 March, and among those were monks from Drepung Monastery demanding the release of Drepung monks arrested a year earlier. The BBC<ref name=BBC/>, sourcing information from a Human Rights Watch report,<ref name=HRW2/> reported that"witnesses recounted that monks who initially tried to go through the police lines were thrown to the ground, kicked, and taken away." The arrest of 15 monks from Sera Monastery was confirmed by state-run China Tibet News, which added 13 of the monks were prosecuted. Their whereabouts were still unknown as of 2010.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} The Human Rights Watch report stated approximately 60 monks were arrested on 10 March in Lhasa. |
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The first non-monastic Tibetans were reportedly arrested in Barkhor Square on 11 March.<ref name=BBCAccounts>''Accounts from Lhasa and beyond'', (19 March 2008), http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7302319.stm</ref> |
The first non-monastic Tibetans were reportedly arrested in Barkhor Square on 11 March.<ref name=BBCAccounts>''Accounts from Lhasa and beyond'', (19 March 2008), http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7302319.stm</ref> |
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Accounts from |
Accounts from 14–15 March state that Chinese forces in Lhasa began a search and arrest campaign, which continued for days and into the subsequent months in other towns and villages. |
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In [[Ngawa Town|Aba Town]], Free Tibet |
In [[Ngawa Town|Aba Town]], Free Tibet reported on 21 March that dozens of nuns from Mani Nunnery were arrested, while many more Tibetans in the area were reported as missing.<ref>''Reports of Tibetan nuns arrested'', (21 March 2008), https://freetibet.org/news-media/pr/reports-tibetan-nuns-arrested</ref> |
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Another report on the [[Kardze]] area from Radio Free Asia in May 2008 states at least 200 people were detained after 24 March, while |
Another report on the [[Kardze]] area from Radio Free Asia in May 2008 states at least 200 people were detained after 24 March, while 7 nuns were sentenced to prison and 107 nuns were detained.<ref name=RFA/> The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy reported that three nuns from Dragkar Nunnery detained in Kardze were tortured, reportedly leading to the death and disappearance of one of the nuns.<ref name=TCHRD/> |
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During a Chinese state sponsored tour for journalists on 7 April, two monks at [[Labrang Monastery]] that spoke out to reporters have since disappeared.<ref name=AsiaP/> At [[Drepung Monastery]], 80 monks have disappeared. Numerous monasteries and nunneries were reported as cordoned off by Chinese forces, while reports state these restrictions on movement arrests evolved into full-scale blockades of water, food, medical care and access to communication at several monastic centers. |
During a Chinese state sponsored tour for journalists on 7 April, two monks at [[Labrang Monastery]] that spoke out to reporters have since disappeared.<ref name=AsiaP/> At [[Drepung Monastery]], 80 monks have disappeared. Numerous monasteries and nunneries were reported as cordoned off by Chinese forces, while reports state these restrictions on movement arrests evolved into full-scale blockades of water, food, medical care and access to communication at several monastic centers. |
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[[Amnesty International]] reported in June 2008 that over |
[[Amnesty International]] reported in June 2008 that over 1,000 Tibetan protesters detained by Chinese authorities were "unaccounted for",<ref>CNN, [http://articles.cnn.com/2008-06-19/world/oly.tibet.torch_1_vehicles-and-shops-lhasa-olympic-torch?_s=PM:WORLD Tibet protesters missing, Amnesty says] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120126160335/http://articles.cnn.com/2008-06-19/world/oly.tibet.torch_1_vehicles-and-shops-lhasa-olympic-torch?_s=PM%3AWORLD |date=January 26, 2012 }}, June 19, 2008</ref> while more than 1,000 monks, nuns, students and citizens had disappeared by 2008.<ref name=AsiaP>Nirmala Carvalho, ''More than a thousand monks and many civilians have disappeared since the March crackdown'', 29 September 2009), http://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=13322&geo=6&size=A</ref><ref name=TCHRD>''Tibetan nun disappeared since 2008 died of torture in Chinese police custody'', (30 June 2016), https://tchrd.org/tibetan-nun-disappeared-since-2008-died-of-torture-in-chinese-police-custody/</ref> Another report from Amnesty International stated 5,600 Tibetans were arrested through to January 2009.<ref name="Amnesty" /> |
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By 5 April, the |
By 5 April, the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy reported that the Chinese authorities had arrested over 2,300 Tibetans from various parts of Tibet,<ref>[http://tchrd.org/press/2008/pr20080405b.html China arrests over 2300 Tibetans in Tibet] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408085612/http://www.tchrd.org/press/2008/pr20080405b.html |date=April 8, 2008 }}</ref> and claimed that "Tibetans are sometimes secretly killed in detention".<ref>Andrew Jacobs, ''Group Says China Has Executed 4 for Roles in Tibet Riots'', (23 October 2009), https://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/24/world/asia/24china.html/</ref> |
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The TCHRD also reported that a 38-year-old Tibetan woman, who was involved in peaceful protests on 16 and 17 March in Ngaba County, died after reportedly being tortured in a Chinese prison. Following her release, the government hospital had reportedly refused to admit her.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://tchrd.org/press/2008/pr20080505.html |title=Archived copy |accessdate=2008-05-05 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080513030024/http://www.tchrd.org/press/2008/pr20080505.html |archivedate=May 13, 2008 }} A Tibetan woman succumbs to torture</ref> |
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Another report from Amnesty International states 5600 Tibetans were arrested through to January 2009.<ref name=Amnesty/> |
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According to a 10 October 2009 report by the U.S. [[Congressional-Executive Commission on China]], at least 670 Tibetans had been jailed in 2009 for activities that included peaceful protest or leaking information to the outside world.<ref name="Four-Tibetans" /><ref>[http://www.cecc.gov/pages/annualRpt/annualRpt09/CECCannRpt2009.pdf Congressional Executive Commission On China, Annual Report 2009 (October 10, 2009)] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091103235417/http://www.cecc.gov/pages/annualRpt/annualRpt09/CECCannRpt2009.pdf |date=November 3, 2009 }}</ref> |
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The TCHRD also reported that a Tibetan woman, 38, who was involved in peaceful protests on 16 and 17 March 2008 in Ngaba County, died after being tortured in a Chinese prison. Following her release, the government hospital, possibly under the influence of local Chinese authorities, had refused to admit her.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://tchrd.org/press/2008/pr20080505.html |title=Archived copy |accessdate=2008-05-05 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080513030024/http://www.tchrd.org/press/2008/pr20080505.html |archivedate=May 13, 2008 }} A Tibetan woman succumbs to torture</ref> |
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On 7 November, the state-run Lhasa Evening News reported a retired doctor was sentenced in Lhasa to 15 years imprisonment on espionage charges for passing information to the Central Tibetan Administration. The sentencing corresponds to the PRC's concealment of hospital records, as Human Rights Watch reported.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} |
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According to a 10 October 2009 report by the US [[Congressional-Executive Commission on China]], at least 670 Tibetans had been jailed in 2009 for activities that included peaceful protest or leaking information to the outside world.<ref name="Four-Tibetans" /><ref>[http://www.cecc.gov/pages/annualRpt/annualRpt09/CECCannRpt2009.pdf Congressional Executive Commission On China, Annual Report 2009 (October 10, 2009)] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091103235417/http://www.cecc.gov/pages/annualRpt/annualRpt09/CECCannRpt2009.pdf |date=November 3, 2009 }}</ref> |
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On 7 November, the state-run Lhasa Evening News reported a retired doctor Yeshe Choedron was sentenced in Lhasa to 15 years imprisonment on espionage charges, for passing information to the Central Tibetan Administration. The sentencing corresponds to the PRC's concealment of hospital records, as HRW reports. |
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== Media coverage == |
== Media coverage == |
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{{POV section|date=June 2016}} |
{{POV section|date=June 2016}}[[File:2008 Olympic Torch Relay in SF - Embarcadero 03.JPG|thumb|Protest in San Francisco|244x244px]] |
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During the protests and demonstrations, Chinese authorities prohibited foreign and [[Media of Hong Kong|Hong Kong media]] from entering Tibet and expelled those already there.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.dw.com/en/china-expels-last-foreign-journalists-from-tibet/a-3205178|title=China Expels Last Foreign Journalists From Tibet {{!}} Germany{{!}} News and in-depth reporting from Berlin and beyond {{!}} DW {{!}} 20.03.2008|last=(www.dw.com)|first=Deutsche Welle|website=DW.COM|language=en|access-date=2018-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326203358/http://www.dw.com/en/china-expels-last-foreign-journalists-from-tibet/a-3205178|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=30&art_id=63248&sid=18107553&con_type=1|title=HK journalists thrown out of Tibet|date=March 18, 2008|work=[[The Standard (Hong Kong)|The Standard]]|accessdate=March 19, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408113253/http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=30&art_id=63248&sid=18107553&con_type=1|archivedate=April 8, 2008|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> Two German reporters, [[Georg Blume]] of ''[[Die Zeit]]'' and Kristin Kupfer of ''[[Profil (magazine)|Profil]]'', left Tibet on March 18 due to pressure from the authorities, and James Miles, a correspondent from ''[[The Economist]]'' said that China |
During the protests and demonstrations, Chinese authorities prohibited foreign and [[Media of Hong Kong|Hong Kong media]] from entering Tibet and expelled those already there.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.dw.com/en/china-expels-last-foreign-journalists-from-tibet/a-3205178|title=China Expels Last Foreign Journalists From Tibet {{!}} Germany{{!}} News and in-depth reporting from Berlin and beyond {{!}} DW {{!}} 20.03.2008|last=(www.dw.com)|first=Deutsche Welle|website=DW.COM|language=en|access-date=2018-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326203358/http://www.dw.com/en/china-expels-last-foreign-journalists-from-tibet/a-3205178|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=30&art_id=63248&sid=18107553&con_type=1|title=HK journalists thrown out of Tibet|date=March 18, 2008|work=[[The Standard (Hong Kong)|The Standard]]|accessdate=March 19, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408113253/http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=30&art_id=63248&sid=18107553&con_type=1|archivedate=April 8, 2008|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> Two German reporters, [[Georg Blume]] of ''[[Die Zeit]]'' and Kristin Kupfer of ''[[Profil (magazine)|Profil]]'', left Tibet on March 18 due to pressure from the authorities, and James Miles, a correspondent from ''[[The Economist]],'' said that China "insisted however that when my permit did expire on the 19th that I had to leave. I asked for an extension and they said decisively no."<ref>''Transcript:James Miles interview on Tibet'', (20 March 2008), CNN, http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet.miles.interview/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200303233850/http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet.miles.interview/ |date=March 3, 2020 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/reports/2008/china0708/5.htm#_ftnref116|title=China's Forbidden Zones: Shutting the Media Out of Tibet and Other "Sensitive" Stories: V. The Closure of Tibet|website=www.hrw.org|access-date=2018-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190730050340/https://www.hrw.org/reports/2008/china0708/5.htm#_ftnref116|archive-date=July 30, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Domestic Chinese media initially downplayed the riots, but this changed relatively quickly as they began to focus on the violence against Han citizens.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/30/world/asia/30iht-china.4.11537294.html|title=Nationalism at core of China's angry reaction to Tibetan protests|last=Yardley|first=Jim|date=2008-03-30|work=The New York Times|access-date=2018-03-26|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326202649/https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/30/world/asia/30iht-china.4.11537294.html|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> There was speculation that the violence would affect attendance at the 2008 Olympic Games,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-olympics-tourism/china-says-storm-of-bad-publicity-may-hurt-olympic-turnout-idUSPEK16226220080528|title=China says storm of bad publicity may hurt Olympic turnout|last=Editorial|first=Reuters|work=U.S.|access-date=2018-03-26|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181013093422/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-olympics-tourism/china-says-storm-of-bad-publicity-may-hurt-olympic-turnout-idUSPEK16226220080528|archive-date=October 13, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> particularly amid pressure for leaders to boycott the games,<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.economist.com/node/10924179|title=A sporting chance|journal=The Economist|language=en|access-date=2018-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326202621/https://www.economist.com/node/10924179|archive-date=March 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> but the calls for boycott went largely unheeded.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1823561,00.html|title=Why Nobody's Boycotting Beijing|last=Walt|first=Vivienne|date=2008-07-16|work=Time|access-date=2018-03-26|language=en-US|issn=0040-781X|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180313050105/http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1823561,00.html|archive-date=March 13, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="attendance">{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/idUST30989220080806|title=World leaders to attend Olympics opening in Beijing|last=Cutler|first=David|date=August 6, 2008|work=Factbox|accessdate=July 31, 2010|agency=[[Reuters]]|last2=Murdoch|first2=Gillian|archive-date=September 26, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926145903/https://www.reuters.com/article/idUST30989220080806|url-status=live}}</ref> |
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Tania Branigan of [[The Guardian|''The Guardian'']] reported the Chinese government blocked foreign broadcasters and websites, and denied journalists access to protest areas. Websites such as [[YouTube]], the ''The Guardian'' website, portions of the [[Yahoo!]] portal, and sections of ''[[The Times]]'' website had been restricted.<ref>{{cite news | first = Jonathan | last = Richards | title = China blocks YouTube, Yahoo! over Tibet | url = http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article3568040.ece | work = The Times | location = London | date = March 17, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 | language = | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080509201205/http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article3568040.ece | archive-date = May 9, 2008 | url-status = live }}</ref> |
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The Chinese media accused Western media of reporting with inaccuracy and little independent cross-checking. The Chinese newspaper [[China Daily |
The Chinese media accused Western media of reporting with inaccuracy and little independent cross-checking. The Chinese state-run newspaper [[China Daily|''China Daily'']] claiming Western media deliberately misrepresented the situation. The newspaper stated that [[The Washington Post|''The Washington Post'']] used pictures of baton-wielding Nepalese police in clashes with Tibetan protesters in [[Kathmandu]], claiming that the officers were Chinese. The article stated that Chinese citizens had been angered by what they saw as biased and sometimes dishonest reporting by Western media.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-03/22/content_6557738.htm|title=Lhasa riot reports show media bias in West|newspaper=China Daily|date=March 22, 2008|accessdate=March 23, 2008| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080325214918/http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-03/22/content_6557738.htm| archivedate= March 25, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> There was also criticism of CNN's use of a cropped picture that shows only the military truck but not rioters who were attacking it.{{cn|date=October 2020}} [[John Vause]], who reported this story, responded to the criticism saying, "technically it was impossible to include the crashed car on the left".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.ibnlive.com/news/china-bars-foreign-journalists-tourists-from-tibet/61684-2.html|title=China bars foreign journalists, tourists from Tibet|publisher=IBN|date=March 21, 2008|accessdate=March 24, 2008| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080325223328/http://www.ibnlive.com/news/china-bars-foreign-journalists-tourists-from-tibet/61684-2.html| archivedate= March 25, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> The CNN image was later replaced with one that was cropped differently. On 24 March, the German TV news channel [[RTL Television]] disclosed that a photograph depicting rioters had been erroneously captioned. Separately, another German station, [[n-tv]], admitted that it had mistakenly aired footage from Nepal during a story on Chinese riots.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/194241,german-tv-channel-admits-film-error-in-tibet-coverage.html|title=Earth Times: show/194241,german-tv-channel-admits-film-error-in-tibet-coverage.html|author=|date=|website=www.earthtimes.org|access-date=March 26, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120829120406/http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/194241,german-tv-channel-admits-film-error-in-tibet-coverage.html|archive-date=August 29, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Agence France-Presse]] reported that Chinese students abroad had set up the website [[Anti-CNN]] to collect evidence of "one-sided and untrue" foreign reporting. Media accused of falsified reporting include [[CNN]], [[Fox News Channel]], the [[Times Online]], [[Sky News]], [[Spiegel Online]] and the [[BBC]]. Spiegel Online has rejected the accusations in an article.<ref>http://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/web/0,1518,542545,00.html {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080323142552/http://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/web/0,1518,542545,00.html |date=March 23, 2008 }} Spiegel Online: Schlachtfeld der tausend Wahrheiten (in German)</ref><ref>The caption under the Spiegel online picture in question reads ''"Chinesisches Sicherheitspersonal im Steinhagel. Das Militär reagiert mit Härte"''. anti-cnn.com translates only the second sentence, to ''"army responded with cruel act"''. {{sic}} In fact, ''"Härte"'' has been routinely used in German media and by German police to describe robust measures in the past: [https://www.welt.de/berlin/article845031/Das_Konzept_der_Polizei_Toleranz_und_Haerte.html] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408133420/http://www.welt.de/berlin/article845031/Das_Konzept_der_Polizei_Toleranz_und_Haerte.html |date=April 8, 2008 }}[http://www.stern.de/politik/deutschland/:Rostock-Krawallen-Es/590335.html] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408050024/http://www.stern.de/politik/deutschland/:Rostock-Krawallen-Es/590335.html |date=April 8, 2008 }}[http://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/;art270,2068337] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408024934/http://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/;art270,2068337 |date=April 8, 2008 }}.</ref> According to ''The New York Times'', CNN apologized on May 18 over some comments made on April 9.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/16/world/asia/16briefs-CNNAPOLOGIZE_BRF.html|title=China: CNN Apologizes Over Tibet Comments|first=David|last=Barboza|newspaper=The New York Times|date=May 16, 2008|publisher=|access-date=February 21, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160723120844/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/16/world/asia/16briefs-CNNAPOLOGIZE_BRF.html|archive-date=July 23, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> |
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Riots against non-Tibetans began on Friday, 14 March. Chinese TV channels aired hours of [[anti-Chinese]] riots in Lhasa and the aftermath. Employees at the state television service [[ |
Riots against non-Tibetans began on Friday, 14 March. Chinese TV channels aired hours of [[anti-Chinese]] riots in Lhasa and the aftermath. Employees at the state television service [[China Central Television|CCTV]]'s English service were instructed to keep broadcasting footage of burned-out shops and Chinese wounded in attacks.{{dubious|date=June 2016}} As of 18 March, no footage of demonstrators acting peacefully was shown.<ref>{{cite news | first =Tania | last =Branigan | title = State TV switches to non-stop footage of Chinese under attack | url = https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/18/tibet.china1 | work=[[The Guardian]] | location =London | date = March 18, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080320022537/http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar/18/tibet.china1| archivedate= March 20, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> China's [[Communist Party of China|Communist Party]] [[newspaper]], the ''[[People's Daily]]'', called on the government to "resolutely crush the 'Tibet independence' forces' conspiracy and sabotaging activities".<ref name="ref23">{{cite news|url=http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1989890/posts|title=China official paper: crush protesters|last=|first=|date=March 22, 2008|work=[[Free Republic]]|accessdate=October 17, 2017|publisher=[[Associated Press]]|archive-date=September 26, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926145903/http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1989890/posts|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Crush "Tibet independence" forces' conspiracy, People's Daily urges |url=http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90776/6378810.html |publisher=[[People's Daily]] Online |date=March 22, 2008 |accessdate=April 2, 2008| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080326165503/http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90776/6378810.html| archivedate= March 26, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> The ''People's Daily'' also accused the [[Dalai Lama]] and the [[Central Tibetan Administration]] of orchestrating the protests in its commentary.<ref name="ref23" /> [[Yahoo! China]] published "most wanted" posters across its homepage to assist Chinese police in apprehending protestors; 24 Tibetans are believed to have been arrested as a result.<ref>{{cite news | title = Yahoo and MSN helping to root out Tibetan rioters | url = http://observers.france24.com/en/content/20080321-yahoo-msn-used-root-out-tibetan-rioters-china | work=[[France24]] | date = March 21, 2008 | accessdate = March 22, 2008 | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080324000739/http://observers.france24.com/en/content/20080321-yahoo-msn-used-root-out-tibetan-rioters-china| archivedate= March 24, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> |
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After expelling foreign journalists, the Chinese government selected a group of foreign journalists which were given restricted access to the region.<ref name=afptibet>[https://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080326/wl_afp/chinaunresttibetrights_080326103537 Foreign press taken to Tibet, China says 660 surrendered], AFP, March 26, 2007</ref><ref>[http://www.dw-world.de/dw/function/0,,12215_cid_3217478,00.html?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf China escorts foreign press to Tibet] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408153302/http://www.dw-world.de/dw/function/0%2C%2C12215_cid_3217478%2C00.html?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf |date=April 8, 2008 }}, [[Deutsche Welle]], March 26, 2007</ref> The Agence France-Presse |
After expelling foreign journalists, the Chinese government selected a group of foreign journalists which were given restricted access to the region.<ref name="afptibet">[https://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080326/wl_afp/chinaunresttibetrights_080326103537 Foreign press taken to Tibet, China says 660 surrendered], AFP, March 26, 2007</ref><ref>[http://www.dw-world.de/dw/function/0,,12215_cid_3217478,00.html?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf China escorts foreign press to Tibet] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408153302/http://www.dw-world.de/dw/function/0%2C%2C12215_cid_3217478%2C00.html?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf |date=April 8, 2008 }}, [[Deutsche Welle]], March 26, 2007</ref> The [[Agence France-Presse]] and [[Deutsche Welle]] reported on the decision by the Chinese government, which allowed a small group of reporters to tour Tibet. The journalists allowed to tour Tibet included those from [[The Wall Street Journal|''The Wall Street Journal'']], [[USA Today|''USA Today'']], [[Financial Times|''Financial Times'']], [[Kyodo News Agency]], the [[Korean Broadcasting System]], [[Al-Jazeera]], and the [[Associated Press]].<ref name="Hutlzer">{{cite news |
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}}</ref> The journalists were kept under close control while in Lhasa. Chinese authorities said the limited number of journalists permitted to attend and the restrictions on their movements were based on logistical considerations.<ref>{{cite news | first = | last = | title = Mönche stören Journalistenbesuch in Lhasa | url = http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/international/moenche_protest_lhasa_auslaendische_journalisten_1.695804.html | work = [[Neue Zürcher Zeitung]] | location = | date = March 27, 2008 | accessdate = March 27, 2008 | language = German | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080408113550/http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/international/moenche_protest_lhasa_auslaendische_journalisten_1.695804.html | archive-date = April 8, 2008 | url-status = live }}</ref> |
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On 27 March, the media tour through Lhasa was disrupted by a group of detained monks from [[Jokhang Monastery]].<ref>{{cite news| title =Tibet Monks Disrupt Tour by Journalists| url =http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h5Z6bJwtN_roGSIUQiQnfbf2NkhgD8VLLA600| work =[[Associated Press]]| date =March 27, 2008| accessdate =March 27, 2008| url-status =dead| archiveurl =https://archive.today/20120701151646/http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h5Z6bJwtN_roGSIUQiQnfbf2NkhgD8VLLA600| archivedate =July 1, 2012| df =mdy-all}}</ref> Reports from [[Taiwan]]ese journalists also invited on the tour stated that the Jokhang monks told them that they had been locked down in the temple even though they had not participated in the riots, and implored the journalists to report the information. [[Padma Choling]], the vice-chairman of the Tibetan Autonomous Region, stated that they were locked down pending police interviews in relation to the riots, and that they were released once interviewed. He also promised that the monks involved in the protest would be "dealt with" according to law.<ref>{{cite news| first = Jikuan| last = Huang| title = 拉薩大昭寺僧侶要求向世人傳達真象 (Lhasa Jokhang monks request truth be told to the world)| url = http://www.cna.com.tw/menu/NewsDetail.aspx?strCatL=CN&strSearchDate=&strNewsID=200803270284&strType=PM| work = [[Central News Agency (Republic of China)|Central News Agency]]| location = Taipei| date = March 27, 2008| accessdate = March 29, 2008| language = Chinese| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080410195221/http://www.cna.com.tw/menu/NewsDetail.aspx?strCatL=CN&strSearchDate=&strNewsID=200803270284&strType=PM| archive-date = April 10, 2008| url-status = dead| df = mdy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |
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}}</ref> The Tibetan activist group [[International Campaign for Tibet]] stated on 28 March that it feared for the welfare and whereabouts of the monks which spoke out during the media tour, specifically those monks from [[Sera Monastery]], [[Drepung Monastery]], [[Ganden Monastery]] and [[Ramoche Temple]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Activists fear for Tibetan monks who protested at media tour |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/27/tibet.china.ap/index.html |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=March 27, 2008 |accessdate=March 28, 2008 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080329130146/http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/27/tibet.china.ap/index.html |archivedate=March 29, 2008 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref> The group did not explain why it identified four monasteries when the protest involved only monks from [[Jokhang Monastery|Jokhang]]. Choling later told reporters the monks would not be punished.<ref>{{cite news |
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}}</ref> |
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The Tibetan activist group [[International Campaign for Tibet]] stated on 28 March 2008, that it feared for the welfare and whereabouts of the monks which spoke out during the tour of journalists, and specifically those monks from [[Sera Monastery]], [[Drepung Monastery]], [[Ganden Monastery]] and [[Ramoche Temple]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Activists fear for Tibetan monks who protested at media tour |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/27/tibet.china.ap/index.html |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=March 27, 2008 |accessdate=March 28, 2008 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080329130146/http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/27/tibet.china.ap/index.html |archivedate=March 29, 2008 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref> The group did not explain why it identified four monasteries when the protest involved only monks from [[Jokhang Monastery|Jokhang]]. Choling later told reporters the monks would not be punished.<ref>{{cite news |
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|url = http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/28/tibet.china.ap/index.html |
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}}</ref> Detained monks at [[Labrang Monastery]] also reportedly spoke to the journalists on tour, and likewise implored them to report their detainment. Subsequent reports of blockades by Chinese authorities at Sera, Drepung, Ramoche and Labrang monasteries reportedly led to starvation conditions.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} |
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}}</ref> |
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On 17 March, the [[Toronto Star|''Toronto Sta''r]] reported the accounts of various Canadian witnesses who were caught up in the violence.<ref>[https://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/346763 "Canadians caught in Tibet's violence"], ''Toronto Star'', World News, March 17, 2008. Accessed 2009-07-17. [https://web.archive.org/web/20080621113054/http://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/346763 Archived] 2009-07-23.</ref> One Canadian witnessed an attack by a mob on a motorcyclist, others recounted how the violence of the riots forced them to escape with help from taxi drivers and guides, and another described how they intervened to save a Han Chinese man from a mob.<ref name=":1">[https://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/346769 {{"'}}I can't just let this guy die on the ground{{'"}}] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121017080853/http://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/346769 |date=October 17, 2012 }}, ''Toronto Star'', World News, March 17, 2008</ref> |
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Detained monks at [[Labrang Monastery]] also reportedly spoke to the journalists on tour, and likewise implored them to report their detainment. Subsequent reports of blockades by Chinese authorities at Sera, Drepung, Ramoche and Labrang monasteries has led to starvation conditions. |
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== International reaction == |
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On 17 March 2008, the [[Toronto Star]] reported the accounts of various Canadian witnesses who were caught up in the violence.<ref>[https://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/346763 "Canadians caught in Tibet's violence"], ''Toronto Star'', World News, March 17, 2008. Accessed 2009-07-17. [https://web.archive.org/web/20080621113054/http://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/346763 Archived] 2009-07-23.</ref><ref>[https://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/346769 {{"'}}I can't just let this guy die on the ground{{'"}}] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121017080853/http://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/346769 |date=October 17, 2012 }}, ''Toronto Star'', World News, March 17, 2008</ref> One Canadian witnessed a possibly fatal attack by a mob on a motorcyclist, others recounted how the violence of the riots forced them to escape with help from taxi drivers and guides, and another described how they intervened to save a Han Chinese man from a violent mob. |
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{{Main|International reaction to 2008 Tibetan unrest#International protests}} |
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[[File:FreeTibetprotestSanFrancisco2008.jpg|thumb|right|A Free Tibet rally outside the Chinese consulate in [[San Francisco]], [[California]], on March 17, 2008|241x241px]]According to [[Wen Jiabao]], the [[Premier of the People's Republic of China]], attacks on between ten and twenty Chinese embassies and consulates occurred around the same time as attacks on non-Tibetan interests in the [[Tibet Autonomous Region]] and several other ethnic Tibetan areas.<ref name="Wen">{{cite news|date=March 31, 2008|title=温总促达赖停止西藏暴力 (Premier: ample facts prove Dalai's role in Lhasa riot, door of dialogue still open)|language=Chinese|publisher=Wen Wei Po|location=Hong Kong|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/18/content_7813012.htm|url-status=live|accessdate=March 31, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080914125527/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/18/content_7813012.htm|archive-date=September 14, 2008}}</ref> |
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== People's Republic of China response == |
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[[Chinese Premier]] [[Wen Jiabao]] blamed supporters of the [[Dalai Lama]] for the recent violence in Tibet. "There is ample fact and we also have plenty of evidence proving that this incident was organised, premeditated, masterminded and incited by the Dalai clique", said the premier.<ref>{{cite news |
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|title = Report: Over 100 surrender, admit involvement in Tibet clashes |
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|url = http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/18/tibet.unrest/index.html |
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|publisher = [[CNN]] |
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|date = March 19, 2008 |
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|accessdate = March 19, 2008 |
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|archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20080318082411/http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/18/tibet.unrest/index.html |
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}}</ref> However, the young generation of Tibetans are dissatisfied with the Dalai Lama's insistence on peaceful protest, revealing deep divisions within the Tibetan community.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=19823&t=1&c=1|title=Protests expose rifts among Tibetans|last=|first=|date=March 18, 2008|work=Phayul.com|accessdate=October 18, 2017|publisher=Phayul|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019060924/http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=19823&t=1&c=1|archive-date=October 19, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> The Dalai Lama denied any involvement in the events,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dalailama.com/news.220.htm |title=Archived copy |accessdate=2008-03-29 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080401171102/http://www.dalailama.com/news.220.htm |archivedate=April 1, 2008 }} An Appeal to the Chinese People</ref> |
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''The Economist'' reporter James Miles, when asked in an interview if the [[Dalai Lama]] was responsible for the riots, responded that he "didn't see any evidence of any organized activity" and that "it's more likely that what we saw was yes inspired by a general desire of Tibetans both inside Tibet and among the Dalai Lama's followers, to take advantage of this Olympic year. But also inspired simply by all these festering grievances on the ground in Lhasa",<ref name="miles interview">{{cite news | title = Transcript: James Miles interview on Tibet | url = http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet.miles.interview/ | work=[[CNN]] | date = March 20, 2008 | accessdate = April 9, 2008 | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080411130317/http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet.miles.interview/| archivedate= April 11, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> and he noted in another report that "[the] rioting seemed to be primarily an eruption of ethnic hatred".<ref name="refeco" /> |
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On April 1, 2008, the Chinese government escalated its accusation against supporters of the Dalai Lama, accusing them of planning suicide attacks. The prime minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile, [[Samdhong Rinpoche]], denied these allegations, saying "Tibetan exiles are 100 percent committed to nonviolence. There is no question of suicide attacks."<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h5Z6bJwtN_roGSIUQiQnfbf2NkhgD8VP4ITG0 |title=China Alleges Tibet 'Suicide Squads' |last=Bodeen |first=Christopher |date=April 1, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080412060301/http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h5Z6bJwtN_roGSIUQiQnfbf2NkhgD8VP4ITG0 |archive-date=April 12, 2008}}</ref> |
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On March 31, 2008, the PRC state-owned news agency [[Xinhua News Agency|Xinhua]] published what it claimed to be an account of the process by which the [[Dalai Lama]] allegedly masterminded the riots. Key claims include that five groups associated with the Government-in-Exile recruited agents for the "Tibetan People's Great Uprising" in India in February, that 101 agents sent from Dharamsala were instrumental in organising the protests and riots, that the Government-in-Exile directly funded the protests and that the [[Tibetan Youth Congress]] intends to conduct an armed guerilla campaign in China.<ref>{{cite news| title=Dalai clique's masterminding of Lhasa violence exposed| url=http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-03/30/content_6576350.htm| newspaper=[[China Daily]]| date=March 30, 2008| accessdate=March 31, 2008| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080403014701/http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-03/30/content_6576350.htm| archivedate= April 3, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> |
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''The West Australian'' reported that Chinese forces claimed to have found semi-automatic firearms hidden throughout a temple in [[Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture|Ngawa]] prefecture, in an ethnic Tibetan area of southwestern China which had been the scene of anti-Chinese riots in recent weeks.<ref name="West">{{cite news|url=https://www.smh.com.au/world/china-finds-firearms-in-tibetan-temple-20080413-25wz.html|title=China finds firearms in Tibetan temple|last=|first=|date=April 14, 2008|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|accessdate=October 18, 2017|publisher=|location=|language=|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019060956/http://www.smh.com.au/world/china-finds-firearms-in-tibetan-temple-20080413-25wz.html|archive-date=October 19, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-tibet/china-says-firearms-found-in-tibetan-temple-idUSPEK20364920080414|title=China says firearms found in Tibetan temple|last=|first=|date=April 14, 2008|work=Reuters|accessdate=October 18, 2017|publisher=Reuters|location=|language=|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019111353/http://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-tibet/china-says-firearms-found-in-tibetan-temple-idUSPEK20364920080414|archive-date=October 19, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> Police officers told state television, "they were modified semi-automatic weapons."<ref name="West" /> |
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=== Riot actions === |
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China responded by deploying the [[People's Armed Police]]. The BBC reported seeing over 400 troop carriers mobilizing into Tibet,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7306096.stm|title=China steps up Tibetan crackdown|work=BBC News|date=March 20, 2008|accessdate=March 26, 2008| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080325042449/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7306096.stm| archivedate= March 25, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> which would represent a deployment of up to 4,000 troops. The Chinese authorities ordered all Hong Kong and foreign [[journalists]] to leave [[Lhasa]].<ref>{{cite news | first = | last = | title = Tibet media ban damages Beijing's cause | url = http://www.scmp.com/article/630480/tibet-media-ban-damages-beijings-cause | work = [[South China Morning Post]] | location = | date = March 19, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 | language = | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181214202455/https://www.scmp.com/article/630480/tibet-media-ban-damages-beijings-cause | archive-date = December 14, 2018 | url-status = live }}</ref> According to General Yang Deping, regular military troops from the [[People's Liberation Army]] were not deployed.<ref>{{cite news | first =Jim | last =Yardley | title = Tibetans Clash With Chinese Police in Second City | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/16/world/asia/16tibet.html | work=[[The New York Times]] |
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| date = March 16, 2008 | accessdate = March 19, 2008 | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20090411111957/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/16/world/asia/16tibet.html|archivedate=April 11, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> |
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Chinese authorities were also reportedly concerned that the Tibetan protests could "embolden activists in restive [[Xinjiang]] province" to organise street protests as well.<ref name=chicagotribune /> The Chinese government's People's Daily reported a statement by [[Gyaincain Norbu]], which condemned the unrest, "the rioters' acts not only harmed the interests of the nation and the people, but also violated the aim of Buddhism ... We strongly condemn the crime of a tiny number of people to hurt the lives and properties of the people."<ref>{{cite news | title = 11th Panchen Lama condemns Lhasa riot | url = http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/90882/6374367.html |work=[[People's Daily]] |date = March 16, 2008 |accessdate = March 19, 2008 |
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| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080321185020/http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/90882/6374367.html| archivedate= March 21, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> |
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In addition to sealing off monasteries, an eyewitness at [[Sera Monastery]] identified as John claimed, "They were grabbing monks, kicking and beating them".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7296134.stm|title=Eyewitness: Monk 'kicked to floor'|work=BBC News|date=March 14, 2008|accessdate=March 26, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080318231257/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7296134.stm|archive-date=March 18, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> In [[Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture|Ngawa]] county, [[Sichuan]], police fired at the crowd after the rioters had burned down government buildings including the local police station, destroyed public and private vehicles including police cars, stabbed police officers with swords, and finally attempted to take firearms from the police, and after the police fired warning shots to no avail.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.takungpao.com/news/08/03/21/ZM-880897.htm|title= 川阿壩警開槍自衛 四暴徒受傷 (Sichuan, Ngawa police fire in self defence; four rioters wounded)|publisher=Da Kung Pao|location=Hong Kong|date=March 21, 2008|accessdate=March 30, 2008| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080328070029/http://www.takungpao.com/news/08/03/21/ZM-880897.htm| archivedate= March 28, 2008 | url-status= dead}}</ref> The government claimed that the police acted in self-defense. According to the Chinese government, four protesters were wounded, and 18 innocent civilians, along with a police officer, were killed. In contrast, the Tibetan government in exile claimed there were at least 99 deaths across the region.<ref>Agence France Presse, "Defiant China rejects dialogue, vows to smash Tibetan protests," March 22, 2008</ref> |
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=== PRC and Dalai Lama dialogues === |
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On March 19, 2008, Premier [[Wen Jiabao]] condemned the Dalai Lama's alleged role in the riot, but said the door for dialogue remained open if he renounced [[Tibetan independence]],<ref>{{cite news|title=Premier: ample facts prove Dalai's role in Lhasa riot, door of dialogue still open |url=http://english.gov.cn/2008-03/18/content_923278.htm |publisher=[[Government of the People's Republic of China]] |date=March 18, 2008 |accessdate=March 20, 2008 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081201173553/http://english.gov.cn/2008-03/18/content_923278.htm |archivedate=December 1, 2008 }}</ref> and if he "recognizes Tibet and Taiwan as inalienable parts of the Chinese territory".<ref>{{cite news | title = Premier: Door of dialogue still opens to Dalai | url = http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/18/content_7813194.htm | publisher = [[Government of the People's Republic of China]] | date = March 18, 2008 | accessdate = March 24, 2008| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080322090219/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/18/content_7813194.htm| archivedate= March 22, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> The Dalai Lama has repeatedly stated he seeks autonomy, not independence, citing the need for Tibet to develop as a modern nation. |
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On May 4, 2008, two representatives of the PRC government, Zhu Weiqun and Sitar met with two representatives of the [[Dalai Lama]], [[Lodi Gyari]] and [[Kelsang Gyaltsen]], in the southern Chinese city of [[Shenzhen]]. The two sides exchanged views and agreed that a further round of talks should be held at an appropriate time.<ref name="xinhuanet1">{{cite news|title=China's central gov't officials meet with Dalai Lama's private representatives|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-05/04/content_8104983.htm|publisher=[[Xinhua News Agency]]|date=May 4, 2008|accessdate=May 6, 2008| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080508180107/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-05/04/content_8104983.htm| archivedate= May 8, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> |
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Plans for the meeting had been announced by the Xinhua News Agency on April 25, 2008,<ref>{{cite news| title=China's decision to meet Dalai's representative receives positive responses| url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-04/25/content_8052398.htm| publisher=[[Xinhua News Agency]]| date=April 26, 2008| accessdate=April 26, 2008| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080501153437/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-04/25/content_8052398.htm| archivedate= May 1, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> and was confirmed by the Dalai Lama's spokesman.<ref>{{cite news| title=China to meet Dalai Lama aides| url=https://www.smh.com.au/news/world/china-to-meet-dalai-lama-aides/2008/04/26/1208743292136.html| newspaper=[[Sydney Morning Herald]]| date=April 26, 2008| accessdate=April 26, 2008| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080429203339/http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/china-to-meet-dalai-lama-aides/2008/04/26/1208743292136.html| archive-date=April 29, 2008| url-status=live}}</ref> |
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This was the first high-level dialogue between the Dalai Lama's representatives and the PRC government since the March unrest, and was the continuation of a series of talks between the Chinese government and the Dalai Lama's representatives, including his immediate family and close aides.<ref>{{cite news| title=China says door 'wide open' on Dalai Lama talks| url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/07/29/1991005.htm| publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]]| date=July 26, 2007| accessdate=May 11, 2009 <!--DASHBot-->| archive-date=September 26, 2020| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926145906/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2007-07-29/china-says-door-wide-open-on-dalai-lama-talks/2516234| url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| first=Janine| last=Zacharia| title=China's Tibet Talks May Skirt Autonomy Demands of Dalai Lama| url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=akPS6Pkzcy90| publisher=[[Bloomberg L.P.]]| date=April 26, 2008| accessdate=April 26, 2008| archive-date=September 26, 2020| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926145905/https://www.bloomberg.com/politics?pid=20601087&sid=akPS6Pkzcy90| url-status=live}}</ref> |
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During the Shenzhen meeting, a second meeting was scheduled for June 11, 2008. However, due to the [[2008 Sichuan earthquake]]s, the two sides agreed to postpone the meeting.<ref name="reuters1">{{cite news| title = Tibet, China talks postponed after quake – Dalai aide| url = http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-33939420080606| work = [[Reuters]]| date = June 6, 2008| accessdate = June 12, 2008| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080821162854/http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-33939420080606| archive-date = August 21, 2008| url-status = live}}</ref> The second meeting was held on July 1, 2008.<ref name="reuters2" /> |
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According to an article by [[Doug Saunders]] published in ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', the protests were loosely coordinated by a group of full-time organizers hired by two umbrella groups that were loyal to the Tibetan government in exile. Documents were sent to more than 150 Tibet support groups around the world giving them detailed notes on how to behave when organizing similar disruptions as the [[Olympic flame]] made its six-month trip around the world. This included advice on maintaining [[non-violence]] and following the Dalai Lama's opposition to Tibetan national independence. Protesters were to advocate a more autonomous Tibet within China. However, many of the protestors did not follow this advice.<ref>{{cite news|date=March 29, 2008|title=How three Canadians upstaged Beijing|newspaper=[[The Globe and Mail]]|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080328.wtibetcampaign0328/BNStory/International/|url-status=live|accessdate=April 3, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080401231314/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080328.wtibetcampaign0328/BNStory/International/|archivedate=April 1, 2008}}</ref> Doug Saunders further stated that the torch-relay protests had no relationship with the unrest in Tibet.<ref>{{cite news|date=April 19, 2008|title=Beijing has become the guardian of the Chinese brand|newspaper=[[The Globe and Mail]]|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080419.wreckoning0419/BNStory/International/?query=|accessdate=April 20, 2008}}</ref> |
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== Aftermath and appraisal == |
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According to the [[People's Daily]], on March 24 order returned to some affected areas in Sichuan Province as schools, shops and restaurants reopened to the public.<ref>[http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/90785/6379886.html "Schools in SW China ethnic Tibetan area resume classes after riots"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080410193219/http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/90785/6379886.html |date=April 10, 2008 }}, ''People's Daily Online''</ref> |
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== Impact on the 2008 Summer Olympics == |
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On March 26 a small group of foreign journalists was taken by bus into Tibet, in a move that appeared calculated to bolster government claims that authorities were in control and that the protests which began peacefully were acts of destruction and murder. The heavily armed police presence indicated Lhasa remained under lockdown. Reporters were guided to burned streets in Lhasa hung with a red banner that read, "Construct a [[Socialist Harmonious Society]]", a catchphrase from the Chinese president's efforts to deal with social unrest created by an increasing gap between an urban middle class and the poor.<ref name="Hutlzer" /> The Dalai Lama called the trip "a first step", provided that reporters were given complete freedom. |
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[[File:"OLYMPICS IN CHINA TORTURE IN TIBET" sign detail, Olympics torch protest (2417352003) (cropped).jpg|thumb|Sign from 2008 Olympic protests]]There were rumors that some athletes were considering [[boycotting]] the [[2008 Summer Olympics]] over the unrest. The vice-president of the [[International Olympic Committee]] discouraged this,<ref>{{cite news|date=March 17, 2008|title=Olympic official: athletes mulling Beijing boycott|newspaper=[[The Straits Times]]|url=http://www.straitstimes.com/Latest+News/Sports/STIStory_217583.html|url-status=dead|accessdate=August 6, 2010|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080319014048/http://www.straitstimes.com/Latest%2BNews/Sports/STIStory_217583.html|archivedate=March 19, 2008}}</ref> as well as the [[European Union]] and the [[International Olympic Committee|Olympic Committees]] of [[European Olympic Committees|Europe]] and [[Australian Olympic Committee|Australia]], who condemned politicizing sport.<ref name="Malaysia">{{cite news|date=March 18, 2008|title=China vows to protect its territory, blames Dalai Lama for attacks on embassies|work=[[Yahoo! News]]|url=http://malaysia.news.yahoo.com/ap/20080318/tap-as-gen-china-tibet-9th-ld-writethru-bb10fb8.html|accessdate=March 19, 2008}}{{dead link|date=April 2019|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref> The [[14th Dalai Lama]] also reiterated that he was against any boycott.<ref>{{cite news|last=|first=|date=March 18, 2008|title=Dalai Lama against Olympic boycott|work=ABC News|publisher=ABC News|location=|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2008-03-18/dalai-lama-against-olympic-boycott/1076948|url-status=live|accessdate=October 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180906121518/http://www.abc.net.au/news/2008-03-18/dalai-lama-against-olympic-boycott/1076948|archive-date=September 6, 2018}}</ref> |
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The attendance of government leaders at the [[2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony]] was watched by the media, because some groups called for a boycott of the ceremony on both [[human rights]] and Tibetan violence grounds. Nonetheless, by the end of July 2008, the leaders of more than 80 countries had decided to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, more than in any of the preceding Olympics.<ref name="attendance" /> All but one leader of the countries that did not attend the opening ceremonies emphasized that it was not to boycott the Olympics;<ref>{{Cite web|title=Olympic Torch Draws Buenos Aires Protests for Boycott.'' Bloomberg. April 11, 2008|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601080&sid=akrvDCOedD6U|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926145917/https://www.bloomberg.com/politics?pid=20601080&sid=akrvDCOedD6U|archive-date=September 26, 2020|access-date=March 4, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=April 2, 2008|title=Brazilian president will not attend Olympic ceremony: official|publisher=turkishpress|url=http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=223719|url-status=live|accessdate=April 2, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080405121613/http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=223719|archivedate=April 5, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=April 8, 2008|title=Harper says Olympics boycott would be ineffective: report|publisher=CTV.ca|url=http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080408/torch_relay_080408/20080408?hub=TopStories|url-status=dead|accessdate=April 8, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080410101114/http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080408/torch_relay_080408/20080408?hub=TopStories|archive-date=April 10, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=April 11, 2008|title=Greens call for Olympic boycott|url=http://home.nzcity.co.nz/news/article.aspx?id=83916|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716122528/http://home.nzcity.co.nz/news/article.aspx?id=83916|archive-date=July 16, 2011|accessdate=April 12, 2008|publisher=NZCity News}}</ref> one German [[Angela Merkel|chancellor]] said that there was "no link to Tibet".<ref>{{cite news|last=Lungescu|first=Oana|date=March 28, 2008|title=Call for Olympic boycott rejected|work=BBC News|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7319147.stm|url-status=live|accessdate=March 29, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080329131446/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7319147.stm|archive-date=March 29, 2008}}</ref> [[Prime Minister of Poland]] [[Donald Tusk]] was the one European [[head of government]] to boycott the opening ceremonies because of the violence in Tibet.<ref>{{cite news|date=March 27, 2008|title=Polish government to boycott opening of Olympics|work=[[Warsaw Business Journal]]|location=Warsaw|url=http://www.wbj.pl/?command=article&id=40560|url-status=live|accessdate=March 27, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080405014900/http://www.wbj.pl/?command=article&id=40560|archive-date=April 5, 2008}}</ref> |
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The US State Department issued a warning to US Citizens on March 20, to those who are attending the [[2008 Summer Olympics|Beijing Olympics]], that "Americans' conversations and telephones could be monitored and their rooms could be searched without their knowledge or consent".<ref>{{cite news | first = Howard | last = Berkes | title = Tibet Activists Plan Olympic-Relay Protests | url = https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88883486&ft=1&f=1001 | publisher = [[NPR]] | date = March 23, 2008 | accessdate = March 26, 2008 | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080408164923/http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88883486&ft=1&f=1001| archivedate= April 8, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref><ref>ABC News: Headed for Olympics? Beware of Big Brother: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=4492008&page=1 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190225223813/https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=4492008&page=1 |date=February 25, 2019 }}</ref> |
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On 20 March, the [[United States Department of State|U.S. Department of State]] issued a warning to U.S. citizens attending the [[2008 Summer Olympics|Beijing Olympics]], stating that "Americans' conversations and telephones could be monitored and their rooms could be searched without their knowledge or consent".<ref>{{cite news|last=Berkes|first=Howard|date=March 23, 2008|title=Tibet Activists Plan Olympic-Relay Protests|publisher=[[NPR]]|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88883486&ft=1&f=1001|url-status=live|accessdate=March 26, 2008|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408164923/http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88883486&ft=1&f=1001|archivedate=April 8, 2008}}</ref><ref>ABC News: Headed for Olympics? Beware of Big Brother: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=4492008&page=1 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190225223813/https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=4492008&page=1|date=February 25, 2019}}</ref> |
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The [[Open Constitution Initiative]], operated by several Weiquan lawyers and intellectuals, issued a paper in May 2009 challenging the official narrative, and suggesting that the protests were a response to economic inequities, Han Chinese migration, and religious sentiments. The OCI recommended that Chinese authorities better respect and protect the rights and interests of the Tibetan people, including religious freedom.<ref>Congressional Executive Commission. [http://www.cecc.gov/pages/annualRpt/annualRpt09/CECCannRpt2009.pdf 2009 Annual Report] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091103235417/http://www.cecc.gov/pages/annualRpt/annualRpt09/CECCannRpt2009.pdf |date=November 3, 2009 }}. Oct 10, 2009.</ref> |
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== |
== Aftermath == |
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According to the [[People's Daily|''People's Daily'']], normalcy returned on 24 March to some affected areas in Sichuan Province, as schools, shops and restaurants reopened to the public.<ref>[http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/90785/6379886.html "Schools in SW China ethnic Tibetan area resume classes after riots"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080410193219/http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/90785/6379886.html |date=April 10, 2008 }}, ''People's Daily Online''</ref> |
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[[File:"OLYMPICS IN CHINA TORTURE IN TIBET" sign detail, Olympics torch protest (2417352003) (cropped).jpg|thumb|Sign from 2008 Olympic protests]] |
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On March 26, a small group of foreign journalists were taken by bus into Tibet, in a move that appeared calculated to bolster government claims that authorities were in control and that the protests which began peacefully were acts of destruction and murder. The heavily armed police presence indicated Lhasa remained under lockdown. Reporters were guided to burned streets in Lhasa hung with a red banner that read, "Construct a [[Socialist Harmonious Society]]", a catchphrase from the Chinese president's efforts to deal with social unrest created by an increasing gap between an urban middle class and the poor. The Dalai Lama called the trip "a first step", provided that reporters were given complete freedom.<ref name="Hutlzer" /> |
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[[File:2008 Olympic Torch Relay in SF - Embarcadero 03.JPG|thumb|Protest in San Francisco]] |
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There were rumors that some athletes were considering [[boycotting]] the [[2008 Summer Olympics]] over the Tibetan violence. The vice-president of the [[International Olympic Committee]] discouraged this,<ref>{{cite news|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080319014048/http://www.straitstimes.com/Latest%2BNews/Sports/STIStory_217583.html |archivedate=March 19, 2008 |accessdate=August 6, 2010 |date=March 17, 2008 |url=http://www.straitstimes.com/Latest+News/Sports/STIStory_217583.html |title=Olympic official: athletes mulling Beijing boycott |newspaper=[[The Straits Times]] |url-status=dead }}</ref> as well as the [[European Union]] and the [[International Olympic Committee|Olympic Committees]] of [[European Olympic Committees|Europe]] and [[Australian Olympic Committee|Australia]], who condemned politicizing sport.<ref name="Malaysia">{{cite news|title=China vows to protect its territory, blames Dalai Lama for attacks on embassies|url=http://malaysia.news.yahoo.com/ap/20080318/tap-as-gen-china-tibet-9th-ld-writethru-bb10fb8.html|work=[[Yahoo! News]]|date=March 18, 2008|accessdate=March 19, 2008}}{{dead link|date=April 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Even the [[14th Dalai Lama]] reiterated that he was against any boycott.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2008-03-18/dalai-lama-against-olympic-boycott/1076948|title=Dalai Lama against Olympic boycott|last=|first=|date=March 18, 2008|work=ABC News|accessdate=October 18, 2017|publisher=ABC News|location=|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180906121518/http://www.abc.net.au/news/2008-03-18/dalai-lama-against-olympic-boycott/1076948|archive-date=September 6, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> |
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The [[Open Constitution Initiative]], operated by several Weiquan lawyers and intellectuals, issued a paper in May 2009 challenging the official narrative and suggesting that the protests were a response to economic inequities, Han Chinese migration, and religious sentiments. The OCI recommended that Chinese authorities better respect and protect the rights and interests of the Tibetan people, including religious freedom.<ref>Congressional Executive Commission. [http://www.cecc.gov/pages/annualRpt/annualRpt09/CECCannRpt2009.pdf 2009 Annual Report] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091103235417/http://www.cecc.gov/pages/annualRpt/annualRpt09/CECCannRpt2009.pdf |date=November 3, 2009 }}. Oct 10, 2009.</ref> |
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The attendance of government leaders at the [[2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony]] was watched by the media, because some groups called for a boycott of the ceremony on both [[human rights]] and Tibetan violence grounds. Nonetheless, by the end of July 2008, the leaders of more than 80 countries had decided to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, more than in any of the preceding Olympics.<ref name="attendance" /> All but one leader of the countries that did not attend the opening ceremonies emphasized that it was not to boycott the Olympics;<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601080&sid=akrvDCOedD6U |title=Olympic Torch Draws Buenos Aires Protests for Boycott.'' Bloomberg. April 11, 2008 |access-date=March 4, 2017 |archive-date=September 26, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926145917/https://www.bloomberg.com/politics?pid=20601080&sid=akrvDCOedD6U |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=223719|title=Brazilian president will not attend Olympic ceremony: official|publisher=turkishpress|date=April 2, 2008|accessdate=April 2, 2008| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080405121613/http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=223719| archivedate= April 5, 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080408/torch_relay_080408/20080408?hub=TopStories |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080410101114/http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080408/torch_relay_080408/20080408?hub=TopStories |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 10, 2008 |title=Harper says Olympics boycott would be ineffective: report |publisher=CTV.ca |date=April 8, 2008 |accessdate=April 8, 2008 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://home.nzcity.co.nz/news/article.aspx?id=83916|title=Greens call for Olympic boycott|publisher=NZCity News|date=April 11, 2008|accessdate=April 12, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716122528/http://home.nzcity.co.nz/news/article.aspx?id=83916|archive-date=July 16, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> one German [[Angela Merkel|chancellor]] said that there was "no link to Tibet".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7319147.stm|title=Call for Olympic boycott rejected|work=BBC News|date=March 28, 2008|accessdate=March 29, 2008|first=Oana|last=Lungescu|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080329131446/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7319147.stm|archive-date=March 29, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Prime Minister of Poland]] [[Donald Tusk]] was the one European [[head of government]] to boycott the opening ceremonies because of the violence in Tibet.<ref>{{cite news|title=Polish government to boycott opening of Olympics|url=http://www.wbj.pl/?command=article&id=40560|work=[[Warsaw Business Journal]]|location=Warsaw|date=March 27, 2008|accessdate=March 27, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080405014900/http://www.wbj.pl/?command=article&id=40560|archive-date=April 5, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> |
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== See also == |
== See also == |
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{{Portal|China|Asia|Society}} |
{{Portal|China|Asia|Society}} |
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* [[Reactions to Innocence of Muslims]] |
* [[Reactions to Innocence of Muslims|Reactions to ''Innocence of Muslims'']] |
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* [[Buddhism and violence]] |
* [[Buddhism and violence]] |
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* [[Oka Crisis]] |
* [[Oka Crisis]] |
Revision as of 20:56, 27 November 2020
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The 2008 Tibetan unrest (also referred to as the 2008 uprising in Tibetan media[1] or the 3-14 Riots in Chinese media[2][3]) was a series of protests and demonstrations over the Chinese government's treatment and alleged persecution of Tibetans. The unrest also included ethnic conflicts between Tibetans and Han and Hui Chinese.
Protests in Lhasa by monks on 10 March have been viewed as the start of the demonstrations. Numerous peaceful protests and demonstrations were held to commemorate the 49th anniversary of the 1959 Tibetan Uprising Day, when the 14th Dalai Lama escaped from Tibet.[4] The protests and demonstrations spread spontaneously to a number of monasteries and throughout the Tibetan plateau, including into counties located outside the designated Tibet Autonomous Region.[1] The arrest of monks at Labrang Monastery increased the tenseness of the . Violence began when Chinese police and People's Liberation Army units used force on non-violent protests by monks, and spread when protesting Tibetans later clashed with security forces. Clashes also occurred between Tibetans and Chinese Han and Hui settlers, resulting in Han and Hui stores and buildings being destroyed and numerous Chinese civilians being injured or killed.[5][6][7][8]
The use of force by Chinese police and military forces during the demonstrations have been controversial, with some deeming it excessive force. The demonstrations in Lhasa were met with electric prods, tear gas, and shootings,[9] according to a report by Human Rights Watch on the use of force by Chinese forces.[10][11][12] The International Campaign for Tibet estimates a total of 235 protests occurred from 10 March until the end of October 2009.[13] The Chinese government's Xinhua News Agency estimated that 150 protests occurred between 10 March and 25 March.[14][13] A casualty estimate according to the Chinese government claims 23 people were killed during the riots themselves; the Central Tibetan Administration claims 203 were killed in the aftermath alone,[15] while the Dalai Lama stated 400 Tibetans were killed in total. Foreign journalists were expelled or forced to leave during the uprising anniversary. Amnesty International reported 1,000 Tibetan protestors remained "unaccounted for" by June 2008,[16] while the Central Tibetan Administration reported 5,600 arrests of Tibetans between March 2008 and January 2009, with 1,294 injuries within the same period.
Protests supporting Tibetans were held in cities in North America and Europe,[17] as well as in Beijing, Australia,[18] India,[19] and Nepal.[20] Many of the international protests also called for a boycott of the Beijing Olympics. On 24 March, the torch lighting ceremony in Greece was disrupted by activists, including some from Reporters Without Borders. At Chinese embassies, protests ranged from pelting the embassies with eggs and rocks[21] to protestors entering the premises and raising Tibetan flags, which was outlawed in Tibet by the Chinese government in 1959.[22][23][24][25]
Protesters in Tibet that were arrested and detained claimed they were tortured and told to admit they were paid to protest by the 14th Dalai Lama. [26] The Chinese government stated the unrest was motivated by separatism and blamed the Dalai Lama for orchestrating it.[27] The Dalai Lama denied the accusation and said that the situation was caused by "deep seated disillusionment and despair" in Tibet, and invited Chinese officials to come to India with its evidence.[1][28] Representatives of the Chinese government and the Dalai Lama held talks on China's Tibet policies on 4 May and 1 July of the same year.[29][30]
Background

The protests erupted amid growing frustrations amongst TIbetans concerning China's anti-religious campaigns against Tibetan Buddhists,[1][31][32][33] which Tibetans assert began after the military annexation in 1950. Unresolved situations remained regarding Tibet's three highest spiritual leaders—the 14th Dalai Lama and the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa had been in exile in India since 1959, while the 11th Panchen Lama's location remains unknown since his kidnapping in 1995 by the Chinese government. Photographs of the Dalai Lama remain outlawed, as are Tibetan flags.[34] Efforts at brokering agreements on behalf of Tibetans by the Dalai Lama with China had stalled.[35]
The protests and uprisings in Tibet since 1950 include earlier mass protests in Lhasa—the 1959 Tibetan uprising, and the 1987 protests which were likewise led by monks from Sera monastery, Drepung monastery and Ganden monastery, as reported by Tibet Watch.[36] Both protests were met with force by the Chinese government, and by a declaration of martial law in 1989.
Of the 1989 suppression in Lhasa, journalist Jim Yardley wrote:
"In the past China has not hesitated to crush major protests in Tibet or to jail disobedient monks. President Hu Jintao, who is also the general secretary of the Communist Party, served as party boss in Tibet during a violent crackdown in 1989. His support for the bloody suppression of unrest that year earned him the good will of Deng Xiaoping, then the paramount leader, and led directly to his elevation to the Politburo Standing Committee and eventually to China’s top leadership posts."[37]
The Dalai Lama and the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) proposed the "Middle Way" approach to address the government of China's policies in Tibet. Specific agreements offered to China include the Five Point Peace Plan in 1987, the Strasbourg proposal in 1988, and the Memorandum on Genuine Autonomy in 2008.[38] China has not agreed to the proposals for an autonomous cultural and Buddhist Tibetan region within the state. As a policy begun by Mao Zedong in 1950, China promotes settlements of Han Chinese within Tibet, which, according to the Dalai Lama and others, dilutes Tibetan culture and identity.[39][40] The Central Tibetan Administration also states:
"Under the guise of the economic and social development, Beijing encourages its population to migrate to Tibet with the clear aim to marginalize Tibetans from the economic, educational, political and social life of the region."[41]
A railway link opened in 2006 delivers three thousand Han a day to the region. Within Lhasa, Tsering Woeser reports that Tibetans are discriminated against at spiritual sites, and residents were relocated to rural areas, as urban areas were redeveloped for Han residents and businesses.[42][43][41] Nomadic Tibetans are forced to build homes and borrow money for construction costs,[44][34] while their grazing lands are redistributed, as reported by Free Tibet.[45]
Environmental concerns[33] also motivated the protests.[31] Some of Asia's most important rivers[which?] flow from the Tibetan plateau, and "are being polluted and are, according to the Dalai Lama, "diminished by careless industrialisation and unplanned irrigation".[39]
Tibetan disobedience to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), both violent and non-violent, is considered by the Chinese government as a crime of separatism and a threat to China's national security and expansionism. Kelsang Dolma wrote, "when the 2008 Tibet protests erupted, fomented by discontent with decades-long repression, the CCP ruthlessly responded by killing and arbitrarily arresting protesters".[32]
China's policies in Tibet also created simmering socio-economic issues in Lhasa.[46] Tibetans have complained about social discrimination and unequal pay. The arrests of Tibetan monks, and reports of a monk being killed, are believed to have also led to the clashes.[47]
Economic issues created by the policy of settling Han Chinese into Lhasa includes the alleged marginalization of Tibetan shop owners in favor of Han owners. According to the Tibetan Independence Movement and other sources, Tibetans in Lhasa were angered by inflation that caused the prices of food and consumer goods to increase. Prices also continued to rise in other parts of the country,[48] while Tibetan youth stated that equal access to jobs and education is another economic issue related to the mass settling of Han Chinese.[49]
The scheduled 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing was a rallying point before 2008.[1]
Protests in Tibet
Lhasa

Various sources[which?] state the demonstrations began on 10 March near midday, when a group of 300–400 monks from Drepung monastery marching to Lhasa's center demanding religious freedom and the release of Drepung monks arrested a year earlier. Chinese police blocked their route, and a sitting protest began. The monks were reportedly kicked and beaten with batons, and Human Rights Watch reported that 60 monks were arrested.[1][50] Around 5:00 p, a group of monks from Sera monastery began a protest in front of Jokhang Temple, and reports state nearly all were arrested after electric prods were used.
The next day on 11 March as 300–400 monks from Sera monastery departed in a line to demand the release of the arrested Sera monks. An eyewitness told the BBC that Chinese police kicked and beat them on their sides, and beat a monk to the ground, describing it as "gratuitous violence".[51] Outside the monastery, the monks began a sitting protest and were surrounded by riot police and armed military units. Radio Free Asia reported that an eyewitness saw tear gas being fired into the crowd.[50][52] The Human Rights Watch report stated hundreds of monks and nuns from Ganden Monastery and Mani Nunnery also began marching into Lhasa on 11 March. Participants claimed that they were stopped by police and returned to their monastic centers, which were promptly cordoned off.[citation needed]
On 14 March, a group of monks preparing to depart from Ramoche Temple in the center of Lhasa to demand the release of monks from Drepung and Sera were barred from leaving by police. A commotion was reportedly witnessed by nearby residents that began congregating outside before throwing stones at the police and overturning their vehicles.[citation needed] Crowds swelled as the police withdrew, and it soon led to ethnic-targeted clashes. Reports state Han Chinese businesses were ransacked and their inventory piled into the streets and burned. Fires were spread to buildings, and Han and Hui Chinese people were beaten, while a fire killed several[quantify] Han and a Tibetan in the same building.[citation needed]
When Chinese police and military units reentered Lhasa on 14 March, reports state tear gas canisters were launched and shootings began. Amnesty International reports that machine guns were used.[53] State hospitals were reported by Human Rights Watch as closed to protestors by Chinese authorities, and reports of wounded and killed Tibetans were suppressed.[50]
Police cars, fire engines and other official vehicles were reportedly set on fire. Reports state Tibetans attacked Han and Hui passerby using stones, and an eyewitness stated from their hotel window, "It seems like it's ethnic—like they want to kill anyone not Tibetan." The witness also said he saw a group of 20 armed men firing guns, and that he was unsure if they were police officers or armed rioters.[54] Chinese state media reported non-Tibetan-owned businesses and banks were robbed and houses were attacked and burned down, including government buildings and schools. Police used tear gas and cattle prods. According to Chinese state media, 18 civilians were killed by rioters.[3]
A crowd tried to storm the Lhasa Great Mosque and set fire to the front gate. Shops and restaurants in the Muslim quarter were destroyed.[55] A Chinese businessman reported that many Hui Muslim stores were burnt. Also burnt were stationery shops, banks, and a wholesale market at Tsomtsikhang, where many shops are owned by Han Chinese and Hui Muslims.[7]
Throughout Lhasa, raids, security sweeps and arrests by Chinese security forces reportedly continued for several days. Tsondru, a monk, is reported to have died after being thrown off a roof while under arrest by Chinese security forces.[citation needed] An early official statement by Tibet Autonomous Region Chairman Pema Trinley reported, "Only three law-breakers died during the pacification of the Lhasa unrest, no participation from the PLA" was revised to add that another person "jumped from a building" to avoid arrest.[56]
Amdo/Gansu

The Tibetan protests and demonstrations spread outside of Lhasa, and the boundaries of the Tibet Autonomous Region, but were within the boundaries of Tibet.
On 14 March, 200 Labrang Monastery monks were assaulted by Chinese police when leaving their monastery in Amdo (Gansu), before being surrounded by military units while conducting a sitting protest outside.[57] Local residents from Xiahe, numbering around 300, were prevented from approaching and roads were blocked by Chinese forces.[58]
On 15 March, 4,000 Tibetans gathered near the Labrang Monastery and clashed with Chinese forces.[59][60] The clashes centered around the Gelug school's Labrang monastery, one of the largest Buddhist monasteries in Tibet.[60] Demonstrators marched through the streets of Xiahe.[61] There were reports of government offices being damaged by the protesters, as well as reports of police using tear gas and shooting at protesters.[60]
In Lanzhou on 16 March, 100 students participated in a sitting protest.[62]
In Machu on 16 March, rioters set a government building on fire, while clashes continued on 18 March.
In Hezou on 19 March, footage emerged showing protestors tearing apart Chinese flags and raising Tibetan flags in their place.[citation needed]
China's Xinhua News Agency reported the cost of damage in Gansu at an estimated ¥230 million (US$32.7 million).[63]
The Tibetan government-in-exile stated that 19 Tibetans were shot and killed on 18 March.[64]
Amdo/Qinghai

Chinese authorities have reportedly arrested twelve Tibetan monks after an incident in the historic region of Rebkong, which is located in the Huangnan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Qinghai (known to Tibetans as Amdo).[61] Chinese security forces surrounded the Ditsa monastery in Bayan County.[61][dubious – discuss] Qinghai province borders the Tibet Autonomous Region.
On 19 March, Chinese forces cordoned off the village of Taktser, where the 14th Dalai Lama was born.[62]
In Tongren, demonstrations occurred at the Rongwo Monastery between 14 and 16 March.
In the capital city of Xining, a journalist with Neue Zürcher Zeitung reported that residents were receiving intimidating calls from the Public Security Bureau. A call received by a Tibetan professor was reported as having said "Take good care of yourself" in a threatening manner.[citation needed]
During special classes for students in the region, videos Tibetans demolishing stores and attacking police were shown. The sessions have been deemed propaganda by some. Tibetan students at the Medical University of Xining held demonstrations to express their solidarity with the protestors, as well as a vigil for killed protestors in Lhasa.[65]
Passports belonging to Tibetans were confiscated to prevent returns to India and the delivery of reports on events to Tibetan exiles. Tourists and foreign residents were surveilled and informed about their possible expulsion in case they got involved in Tibetan protests.[citation needed]
Kham & Amdo/Sichuan

On 16 March, Tibetan monks and local residents clashed with police in Ngawaafter monks held a protest at the traditional Tibetan grounds of Kham and Amdo. A BBC eyewitness reported that approximately 17 Tibetans were killed, including a school girl. By 18 March, the town was "teeming with police and soldiers".[66]
The India-based Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy reported that at least seven people were shot.[67] There are other reports that police shot between 13 and 30 protesters after a police station was set on fire, reports of at least one policeman being killed, and the burning three or four police vans. Reports on the exact number of deaths were difficult due to the expulsion of journalists.[68] The Chinese government stated that it opened fire on protestors in self defense on 20 March, reporting that four were wounded.[62][69]
In Ngawa Town, after days of protests by 3,000 monks and 300 nuns, 27 of the nuns at the Kirti monasteries and nunneries were arrested by Chinese police forces on 20 March. Photographs of killed protestors near Kirti were circulated.[62]
Neue Zürcher Zeitung reported that phone calls into the region from Zurich were intercepted, and exiled Tibetans were harassed during the calls. The arrested nuns were not heard from afterwards. During a telephone call, a nun stated she and the other nuns had no regrets, and that "the road of liberty is long and arduous".[70]
A wave of arrests occurred in Sertar on 21 March, where police shot and killed a protestor. Chinese army troops blocked roads in Sertar, and many Tibetans were arrested. The London-based Free Tibet Campaign reported that troops had been sent to the county after residents used explosives to destroy a bridge near the village of Gudu.[71][70]
In Kardze, Radio Free Asia reported demonstrations on 23 April, and on 11–12 May when 14 of the nuns demanding the release of two arrested in April were beaten and detained. The report states nuns were from nearby nunneries, and armed Chinese forces continued to patrol the area.[72] Other protests were held in Chori.
The TCHRD reported that three people were killed by Chinese forces on 15–16 March.[citation needed]
The BBC reported that around 16 March, 600 monks from Lhasa were flown to Chengdu by Chinese security forces.[62]
Chinese response
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao blamed supporters of the Dalai Lama for the recent violence in Tibet, claiming "There is ample fact and we also have plenty of evidence proving that this incident was organised, premeditated, masterminded and incited by the Dalai clique."[73] However, younger and more radical Tibetans were reportedly dissatisfied with the Dalai Lama's nonviolent methods, choosing to riot instead.[74] The Dalai Lama denied any involvement in organizing or inciting the unrest.[75] The Economist reporter James Miles, when asked in an interview if the Dalai Lama was responsible for the riots, responded that he "didn't see any evidence of any organized activity", opining that "it's more likely that what we saw was inspired by a general desire of Tibetans both inside Tibet and among the Dalai Lama's followers, to take advantage of this Olympic year, but also inspired simply by all these festering grievances on the ground in Lhasa."[76] He noted in another report that the rioting "seemed to be primarily an eruption of ethnic hatred".[48]
On April 1, the Chinese government accused supporters of the Dalai Lama of planning suicide attacks. Samdhong Rinpoche, prime minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile, denied these allegations, stating "Tibetan exiles are one-hundred-percent committed to nonviolence. There is no question of suicide attacks."[77]
On March 31, the PRC state-owned news agency Xinhua published what it claimed to be an account of the process by which the Dalai Lama allegedly masterminded the riots. Key claims include that five groups associated with the Government-in-Exile recruited agents for the "Tibetan People's Great Uprising" in India in February, that 101 agents sent from Dharamsala were instrumental in organising the protests and riots, that the Government-in-Exile directly funded the protests and that the Tibetan Youth Congress intends to conduct an armed guerilla campaign in China.[78]
The West Australian reported that Chinese forces claimed to have found semi-automatic firearms hidden throughout a temple in Ngawa.[79][80] Police officers told state television, "they were modified semi-automatic weapons."[79]
Riot actions
China responded by deploying the People's Armed Police. The BBC reported seeing over 400 troop carriers mobilizing into Tibet,[81] which would represent a deployment of up to 4,000 troops. The Chinese authorities ordered all Hong Kong and foreign journalists to leave Lhasa.[82] According to General Yang Deping, regular military troops from the People's Liberation Army were not deployed.[83]
Chinese authorities were also reportedly concerned that the Tibetan protests could "embolden activists in restive Xinjiang province" to organise street protests as well.[61] The Chinese government's People's Daily reported a statement by Gyaincain Norbu, which condemned the unrest, stating
"the rioters' acts not only harmed the interests of the nation and the people, but also violated the aim of Buddhism [...] We strongly condemn the crime of a tiny number of people to hurt the lives and properties of the people."[84]
In addition to sealing off monasteries, an eyewitness at Sera Monastery claimed, "they [Chinese authorities] were grabbing monks, kicking and beating them."[85] In Ngawa, police fired at the crowd after protestors reportedly burned down government buildings including the local police station, destroyed vehicles including police vehicles, stabbed police officers with swords, and attempted to take firearms from the police, during which the police fired warning shots to no avail.[69] The government claimed that the police acted in self-defense. According to the Chinese government, four protesters were wounded, and 18 civilians, along with a police officer, were killed. The Tibetan government-in-exile claimed there were at least 99 deaths across the region.[86]
PRC and Dalai Lama dialogues
On March 19, Premier Wen Jiabao condemned the Dalai Lama's alleged role in the riot, but said the possibility for a dialogue remained open if he renounced Tibetan independence, and if he "recognizes Tibet and Taiwan as inalienable parts of the Chinese territory".[87][88] The Dalai Lama has repeatedly stated he seeks autonomy, not independence, citing the need for Tibet to develop as a modern nation.
On May 4, two representatives of the PRC government, Zhu Weiqun and Sitar met with two representatives of the Dalai Lama, Lodi Gyari and Kelsang Gyaltsen, in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen. The two sides exchanged views and agreed that a further round of talks should be held at an appropriate time.[89]
Plans for the meeting had been announced by the Xinhua News Agency on April 25,[90] and was confirmed by the Dalai Lama's spokesman.[91]
This was the first high-level dialogue between the Dalai Lama's representatives and the PRC government since the March unrest, and was the continuation of a series of talks between the Chinese government and the Dalai Lama's representatives, including his immediate family and close aides.[92][93]
A second meeting was scheduled for June 11. However, due to the 2008 Sichuan earthquakes, the two sides agreed to postpone the meeting.[94] The second meeting was held on July 1.[30]
Casualties and fatalities
Reports of casualties, deaths and gunfire from independent media sources and from Tibetan sources contradict reports from Chinese government sources.[95]
China's state media Xinhua News Agency reported on early Saturday, 15 March, that 10 people had been burned to death by Tibetans, including two hotel employees and two shop owners.[96] It also reported that the victims were all innocent civilians[97] and that most of them were business people.[98] It again reported on 21 March that, according to the Tibet regional government, 18 civilians and 1 police officer had been confirmed dead in the unrest by the night of Friday, 14 March. In addition, the number of injured civilians rose to 382 from 325, 58 of whom were critically wounded. 241 police officers were injured, 23 of whom were critically wounded.[99]
The Associated Press reported on a press conference from 17 March that Tibet Autonomous Region governor Champa Phuntsok announced that 16 had been confirmed dead over the weekend's violence and dozens injured.[100] Other sources published after the same press conference indicate that China put the death toll in Lhasa at 13.[101][102] The Associated Press later reported that the Chinese government's official death toll from the previous week's rioting in Lhasa had risen to 22.[103] Accordingly, the death toll reported by Xinhua had risen to 19.[104]
The Central Tibetan Administration reported by 16 March to have confirmed at least 80 deaths,[105] then increased the death count by Chinese forces to more than 140 people, as reported on 5 April.[106] The Central Tibetan Administration's number of Tibetans killed since increased to 220, including subsequent deaths through to January 2009.
A month after the unrest began on 10 March, the Dalai Lama stated that since the beginning of the demonstrations in Tibet at least 400 people had been killed and thousands of others arrested.[107]
Foreign tourists and Chinese eyewitnesses in Lhasa said "they saw and heard repeated gunfire there on Friday", 14 March.[95] Although Phuntsok claimed that Chinese police did not fire their guns or use anti-personnel weapons against the Tibetan protesters, additional reports from BBC, Central Tibetan Administration, Tibetan Review, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International contradict Puncog's claim and state "indiscriminate shootings" by Chinese forces occurred, and that leaked evidence of machine gun use has been documented.[26][108][109][53] Puncog also states Tibetans wounded 61 police officers, including six seriously,[110] and reported that 13 innocent civilians had been killed.[111] According to reporter James Miles, the police fatalities included both Tibetans and the Han Chinese.
A blockade by China of monasteries was reported by an Indian newspaper and Phayul, a news source affiliated with Central Tibetan Administration. The People's Armed Police had blocked off water, electricity, food and health facilities in Sera Monastery, Drepung monastery, Ganden monastery and at other monasteries active in the demonstrations. As a consequence, monks were suffering starvation, and on 25 March one monk died from starvation at Ramoche Temple.[112][113][114]
On 28 March, the International Herald Tribune reported 5 shopgirls had been burned alive when Tibetan rioters set fire to the Yishion clothing store where they worked. The article noted one of them was Tibetan.[115]
In October 2009, four Tibetans were executed in connection with their involvement with the unrest.[116] According to the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy, "the executions were not announced by the Chinese news media, and a woman who answered the phone at the Lhasa Municipal Intermediate People’s Court hung up when asked to confirm the accounts provided by the exile group.[citation needed]
Arrests and disappearances

The arrests of monks during non-violent protests began on 10 March, and among those were monks from Drepung Monastery demanding the release of Drepung monks arrested a year earlier. The BBC[26], sourcing information from a Human Rights Watch report,[50] reported that"witnesses recounted that monks who initially tried to go through the police lines were thrown to the ground, kicked, and taken away." The arrest of 15 monks from Sera Monastery was confirmed by state-run China Tibet News, which added 13 of the monks were prosecuted. Their whereabouts were still unknown as of 2010.[citation needed] The Human Rights Watch report stated approximately 60 monks were arrested on 10 March in Lhasa.
The first non-monastic Tibetans were reportedly arrested in Barkhor Square on 11 March.[66]
Accounts from 14–15 March state that Chinese forces in Lhasa began a search and arrest campaign, which continued for days and into the subsequent months in other towns and villages.
In Aba Town, Free Tibet reported on 21 March that dozens of nuns from Mani Nunnery were arrested, while many more Tibetans in the area were reported as missing.[117]
Another report on the Kardze area from Radio Free Asia in May 2008 states at least 200 people were detained after 24 March, while 7 nuns were sentenced to prison and 107 nuns were detained.[72] The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy reported that three nuns from Dragkar Nunnery detained in Kardze were tortured, reportedly leading to the death and disappearance of one of the nuns.[118]
During a Chinese state sponsored tour for journalists on 7 April, two monks at Labrang Monastery that spoke out to reporters have since disappeared.[119] At Drepung Monastery, 80 monks have disappeared. Numerous monasteries and nunneries were reported as cordoned off by Chinese forces, while reports state these restrictions on movement arrests evolved into full-scale blockades of water, food, medical care and access to communication at several monastic centers.
Amnesty International reported in June 2008 that over 1,000 Tibetan protesters detained by Chinese authorities were "unaccounted for",[120] while more than 1,000 monks, nuns, students and citizens had disappeared by 2008.[119][118] Another report from Amnesty International stated 5,600 Tibetans were arrested through to January 2009.[53]
By 5 April, the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy reported that the Chinese authorities had arrested over 2,300 Tibetans from various parts of Tibet,[121] and claimed that "Tibetans are sometimes secretly killed in detention".[122]
The TCHRD also reported that a 38-year-old Tibetan woman, who was involved in peaceful protests on 16 and 17 March in Ngaba County, died after reportedly being tortured in a Chinese prison. Following her release, the government hospital had reportedly refused to admit her.[123]
According to a 10 October 2009 report by the U.S. Congressional-Executive Commission on China, at least 670 Tibetans had been jailed in 2009 for activities that included peaceful protest or leaking information to the outside world.[116][124]
On 7 November, the state-run Lhasa Evening News reported a retired doctor was sentenced in Lhasa to 15 years imprisonment on espionage charges for passing information to the Central Tibetan Administration. The sentencing corresponds to the PRC's concealment of hospital records, as Human Rights Watch reported.[citation needed]
Media coverage
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During the protests and demonstrations, Chinese authorities prohibited foreign and Hong Kong media from entering Tibet and expelled those already there.[125][126] Two German reporters, Georg Blume of Die Zeit and Kristin Kupfer of Profil, left Tibet on March 18 due to pressure from the authorities, and James Miles, a correspondent from The Economist, said that China "insisted however that when my permit did expire on the 19th that I had to leave. I asked for an extension and they said decisively no."[127][128] Domestic Chinese media initially downplayed the riots, but this changed relatively quickly as they began to focus on the violence against Han citizens.[129] There was speculation that the violence would affect attendance at the 2008 Olympic Games,[130] particularly amid pressure for leaders to boycott the games,[131] but the calls for boycott went largely unheeded.[132][133]
Tania Branigan of The Guardian reported the Chinese government blocked foreign broadcasters and websites, and denied journalists access to protest areas. Websites such as YouTube, the The Guardian website, portions of the Yahoo! portal, and sections of The Times website had been restricted.[134]
The Chinese media accused Western media of reporting with inaccuracy and little independent cross-checking. The Chinese state-run newspaper China Daily claiming Western media deliberately misrepresented the situation. The newspaper stated that The Washington Post used pictures of baton-wielding Nepalese police in clashes with Tibetan protesters in Kathmandu, claiming that the officers were Chinese. The article stated that Chinese citizens had been angered by what they saw as biased and sometimes dishonest reporting by Western media.[135] There was also criticism of CNN's use of a cropped picture that shows only the military truck but not rioters who were attacking it.[citation needed] John Vause, who reported this story, responded to the criticism saying, "technically it was impossible to include the crashed car on the left".[136] The CNN image was later replaced with one that was cropped differently. On 24 March, the German TV news channel RTL Television disclosed that a photograph depicting rioters had been erroneously captioned. Separately, another German station, n-tv, admitted that it had mistakenly aired footage from Nepal during a story on Chinese riots.[137] The Agence France-Presse reported that Chinese students abroad had set up the website Anti-CNN to collect evidence of "one-sided and untrue" foreign reporting. Media accused of falsified reporting include CNN, Fox News Channel, the Times Online, Sky News, Spiegel Online and the BBC. Spiegel Online has rejected the accusations in an article.[138][139] According to The New York Times, CNN apologized on May 18 over some comments made on April 9.[140]
Riots against non-Tibetans began on Friday, 14 March. Chinese TV channels aired hours of anti-Chinese riots in Lhasa and the aftermath. Employees at the state television service CCTV's English service were instructed to keep broadcasting footage of burned-out shops and Chinese wounded in attacks.[dubious – discuss] As of 18 March, no footage of demonstrators acting peacefully was shown.[141] China's Communist Party newspaper, the People's Daily, called on the government to "resolutely crush the 'Tibet independence' forces' conspiracy and sabotaging activities".[103][142] The People's Daily also accused the Dalai Lama and the Central Tibetan Administration of orchestrating the protests in its commentary.[103] Yahoo! China published "most wanted" posters across its homepage to assist Chinese police in apprehending protestors; 24 Tibetans are believed to have been arrested as a result.[143]
After expelling foreign journalists, the Chinese government selected a group of foreign journalists which were given restricted access to the region.[144][145] The Agence France-Presse and Deutsche Welle reported on the decision by the Chinese government, which allowed a small group of reporters to tour Tibet. The journalists allowed to tour Tibet included those from The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Financial Times, Kyodo News Agency, the Korean Broadcasting System, Al-Jazeera, and the Associated Press.[146] The journalists were kept under close control while in Lhasa. Chinese authorities said the limited number of journalists permitted to attend and the restrictions on their movements were based on logistical considerations.[147]
On 27 March, the media tour through Lhasa was disrupted by a group of detained monks from Jokhang Monastery.[148] Reports from Taiwanese journalists also invited on the tour stated that the Jokhang monks told them that they had been locked down in the temple even though they had not participated in the riots, and implored the journalists to report the information. Padma Choling, the vice-chairman of the Tibetan Autonomous Region, stated that they were locked down pending police interviews in relation to the riots, and that they were released once interviewed. He also promised that the monks involved in the protest would be "dealt with" according to law.[149][150] The Tibetan activist group International Campaign for Tibet stated on 28 March that it feared for the welfare and whereabouts of the monks which spoke out during the media tour, specifically those monks from Sera Monastery, Drepung Monastery, Ganden Monastery and Ramoche Temple.[151] The group did not explain why it identified four monasteries when the protest involved only monks from Jokhang. Choling later told reporters the monks would not be punished.[152] Detained monks at Labrang Monastery also reportedly spoke to the journalists on tour, and likewise implored them to report their detainment. Subsequent reports of blockades by Chinese authorities at Sera, Drepung, Ramoche and Labrang monasteries reportedly led to starvation conditions.[citation needed]
On 17 March, the Toronto Star reported the accounts of various Canadian witnesses who were caught up in the violence.[153] One Canadian witnessed an attack by a mob on a motorcyclist, others recounted how the violence of the riots forced them to escape with help from taxi drivers and guides, and another described how they intervened to save a Han Chinese man from a mob.[8]
International reaction

According to Wen Jiabao, the Premier of the People's Republic of China, attacks on between ten and twenty Chinese embassies and consulates occurred around the same time as attacks on non-Tibetan interests in the Tibet Autonomous Region and several other ethnic Tibetan areas.[154]
According to an article by Doug Saunders published in The Globe and Mail, the protests were loosely coordinated by a group of full-time organizers hired by two umbrella groups that were loyal to the Tibetan government in exile. Documents were sent to more than 150 Tibet support groups around the world giving them detailed notes on how to behave when organizing similar disruptions as the Olympic flame made its six-month trip around the world. This included advice on maintaining non-violence and following the Dalai Lama's opposition to Tibetan national independence. Protesters were to advocate a more autonomous Tibet within China. However, many of the protestors did not follow this advice.[155] Doug Saunders further stated that the torch-relay protests had no relationship with the unrest in Tibet.[156]
Impact on the 2008 Summer Olympics

There were rumors that some athletes were considering boycotting the 2008 Summer Olympics over the unrest. The vice-president of the International Olympic Committee discouraged this,[157] as well as the European Union and the Olympic Committees of Europe and Australia, who condemned politicizing sport.[158] The 14th Dalai Lama also reiterated that he was against any boycott.[159]
The attendance of government leaders at the 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony was watched by the media, because some groups called for a boycott of the ceremony on both human rights and Tibetan violence grounds. Nonetheless, by the end of July 2008, the leaders of more than 80 countries had decided to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, more than in any of the preceding Olympics.[133] All but one leader of the countries that did not attend the opening ceremonies emphasized that it was not to boycott the Olympics;[160][161][162][163] one German chancellor said that there was "no link to Tibet".[164] Prime Minister of Poland Donald Tusk was the one European head of government to boycott the opening ceremonies because of the violence in Tibet.[165]
On 20 March, the U.S. Department of State issued a warning to U.S. citizens attending the Beijing Olympics, stating that "Americans' conversations and telephones could be monitored and their rooms could be searched without their knowledge or consent".[166][167]
Aftermath
According to the People's Daily, normalcy returned on 24 March to some affected areas in Sichuan Province, as schools, shops and restaurants reopened to the public.[168]
On March 26, a small group of foreign journalists were taken by bus into Tibet, in a move that appeared calculated to bolster government claims that authorities were in control and that the protests which began peacefully were acts of destruction and murder. The heavily armed police presence indicated Lhasa remained under lockdown. Reporters were guided to burned streets in Lhasa hung with a red banner that read, "Construct a Socialist Harmonious Society", a catchphrase from the Chinese president's efforts to deal with social unrest created by an increasing gap between an urban middle class and the poor. The Dalai Lama called the trip "a first step", provided that reporters were given complete freedom.[146]
The Open Constitution Initiative, operated by several Weiquan lawyers and intellectuals, issued a paper in May 2009 challenging the official narrative and suggesting that the protests were a response to economic inequities, Han Chinese migration, and religious sentiments. The OCI recommended that Chinese authorities better respect and protect the rights and interests of the Tibetan people, including religious freedom.[169]
See also
- Reactions to Innocence of Muslims
- Buddhism and violence
- Oka Crisis
- May 1998 riots of Indonesia
- Censorship in China
- Human rights in Tibet
- Protests and uprisings in Tibet since 1950
- Persecution of Buddhists § Tibet
- Sinophobia § Tibet
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Further reading
- Muni, S.D. The Third Tibetan Uprising: India's Response in ISAS Background Briefs, Issue: 61, Mar 24, 2008. Singapore: Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS).
- Zellen, Barry. Tibetans Rise Up, as Hope Overtakes Fear on China’s Western Front in Strategic Insights, Volume VII, Issue April 2, 2008. Monterey: Center for Contemporary Conflict (CCC).
- Hillman, Ben. Rethinking China's Tibet Policy in The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, August 2008.
External links
- Anti-China protesters clash with police in Tibet
- Tibetans say 80 killed in protests; China continues to crack down
- China: Dalai Lama's comments are 'downright nonsense'
- Dalai Lama threatens to resign if situation in Tibet worsens
- China: 'the Dalai Lama is scheming to take the Beijing Olympics hostage'
- Olympic flame for Beijing Games lit amidst protest
- 2008 Uprising in Tibet: Chronology and Analysis (CTA)
- Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD)
- Uprising Archive: photos, videos, and documents of the 2008 Tibetan Uprising
- Eyewitness accounts of the Tibet unrest from foreign travelers, Christian Science Monitor
- BBC News Special report: Tension in Tibet
- BBC News: In pictures: Protests in Tibet
- BBC News: In pictures: Tibet aftermath
- BBC News: Eyewitness accounts: Tibet clashes
- Wikileaks defies Chinese "Great Firewall" with 120 pictures and videos
- "Tibet, the 'great game' and the CIA", Richard Bennett, Asia Times, March 26, 2008
- Crackdown on Tibet
- Dubious politics behind anti-Chinese protests
- After Tibet, protests reported in China's Xinjiang
- Real Reason For Tibet Protests
- The Olympic Torch Relay Campaign
- China's Forbidden Zones (Human Rights Watch)