March 10 - Tibetan Uprising

This Day in History: 10 March 2020

 

10 March 1959

 

61 years ago, today, Tibetans joined one another in a revolt of defiance against the Chinese occupation forces, as they surrounded the summer palace of the Dalai Lama. China had occupied Tibet nearly a decade prior, in October 1950, when troops from the PLA, the People's Liberation Army, invaded the country. This occurred just over a year after the Communists had gained full control of China. Tibet's government caved under Chinese pressure the next year, and so signed a treaty that ensured the power of the Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader, over Tibet's domestic affairs. Resistance built over the next few years, but by December 1958, rebellion was simmering in Lhasa, the capital, and the PLA threatened to bomb the city, unless all was controlled.

 

The Lhasa uprising was triggered by fears of a plot to kidnap the Dalai Lama and take him to Beijing, as Chinese officers had invited him to the PLA headquarters for a theatrical performance and tea. However, he was suspiciously told to come alone. On this day, 300,000 Tibetans surrounded Norbulinka Palace, preventing the Dalai Lama from accepting the invitation. A week later, Chinese artillery was aimed at the palace, so the Dalai Lama was evacuated to India, before fighting broke out in Lhasa, leading to the Chinese shelling Norbulinka, murdering thousands of men, women and children. Afterwards, the PLA disunited the Tibetan resistance, executed Dalai Lama's guards, and destroyed Lhasa's monasteries and thousands of their inhabitants. China's grip and suppression towards Tibet has continued throughout the years, and the Dalai Lama has maintained a government-in-exile while living in the Himalayas.

 

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