The Invasion Of Tibet In The 1950's

During the 1950s, a population of indigenous and peaceful Buddhists were unsettled by Chinese chairman, Mao Zedong. Although most people believe the genocide was strictly caused by religion and culture, history and geography also played a role. Mao became concerned that Buddhism was becoming more popular, threatening the main religion, Han Chinese. In 1949, Mao invaded Tibet to assert an authority over the Tibetans. He also wanted to suppress the Buddhists. Overall, his ideology was to seize Tibet, uniting the Chinese sovereign nation. Also, Tibet could be used for China’s economic benefit. China took Tibet’s natural resources so they could supply themselves (Human 3). Mining and water were big sources obtained by the Chinese. Many of the agricultural

Between 1987 and 1992, over one hundred and fifty demonstrations were created (Tibet 3). However, during the invasion of Tibet, over six thousand monasteries were destroyed (China 1). In the eyes of China, bombing the center of Tibet’s religious practice would break down the Tibetans faster or kill the religion itself. The monasteries were where they could be spiritually connected to Dalai Lama. Without them, they could no longer fully connect themselves to Dalai. As China forced Tibetans to denounce Dalai Lama, he fled while taking thousands of Tibetans with him. Today, over one hundred and fifty thousand Tibetans are still in exile. Not only did China take away their spiritual leader and hope, they also raided their environment into further destruction. China removed vast forests and animals for their own food sources. This declined the ecosystem of Tibet. In fact, around eighty percent of all Tibetans are below poverty due to the lack of resources. Adding to that devastation, China used Tibet as a dumping ground for nuclear waste. On top of that, eight million Chinese people were moved into Tibet. This made Tibetans a minority within their own country. After year of torture and devastation, Dalai Lama sought out for his country an agreement, the 17-Point Plan. However, the agreement still gave China control over Tibet. Although that was a small victory, the effects of the genocide

Today, there are four hundred thousand Chinese troops stationed in Tibet for monitoring (Human 2-3). Not only is there a treat with troops everywhere, but one quarter of China’s missiles are stationed in Tibet as well. They are ready to be used if necessary. There is fear rising from surrounding countries that China will use their army or missiles on them. The surrounding country’s worries were reasonable with the amount of deaths that occurred during the genocide. The statistics are truly devastating. During 1949 and 1979, over one million and two hundred thousand Tibetans were killed: 173,221 people were tortured in prison, 156,758 people were executed, 432,705 were killed while fighting, 342,970 starved to death, 9,002 committed suicide, and 92,731 struggled to their death (Tibet