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Archive-name: tibet-faq
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Last-modified: 12 Oct 1997
Version: 4.40

This FAQ was created for the Usenet newsgroup talk.politics.tibet and
addresses various issues that are discussed in that newsgroup on a recurring
basis. Also included are the addresses of various organizations that deal
with Tibet and a guide to the additional sources of information that are
available, both on the Internet and in print.

The maintainers of this FAQ are:
                     
          Peter Kauffner (Peter.Kauffner@bearsden.org)
          Nima Dorjee (tibet@acs.ucalgary.ca)

Suggestions for improvement should be sent to (Peter.Kauffner@bearsden.org).
The e-mail addresses for the mailing list Tibet-L, given in question E3,
have been updated for this edition.


 ----TABLE OF CONTENTS----

Introduction
  A1) What are the meanings of specialized words used on TPT (glossary)?

Historical Issues
  B1) What are the major events of Tibetan history (timeline)?
  B2) What were the roles of the Dalai and Panchen Lamas in Tibetan history?
  B3) Did slavery exist in old Tibet?
  B4) Was human sacrifice practiced in old Tibet?
  B5) What is the historical basis of the Chinese claim to Tibet?
  B6) What was Tibet's status during China's Qing dynasty (1644-1912)?  
  B7) What was Tibet's status immediately prior to China's 1950-51 invasion?

Human Rights
  C1) Are Tibetan women being forced to have abortions?
  C2) How are Tibetan political prisoners treated?         
  C3) How many Tibetans have died as a result of the Chinese occupation?

Statistical Issues
  D1) What is the total population of Tibet?
  D2) How many ethnic Chinese live in Tibet (population transfer)? 
  D3) What are Tibet's economic statistics?

Further Information
  E1) What World-Wide Web sites have further information about Tibet?
  E2) Where do I find information concerning travel to Tibet?
  E3) What Tibet-oriented mailing lists can I subscribe to?
  E4) What are the addresses of some organizations that deal with Tibet?
  E5) What books about Tibet would you recommend?

F0) Sources


Section A: INTRODUCTION

A1) What are the meanings of specialized words used on TPT (glossary)?


 The following is a glossary of words related to Tibet. When the
 pronunciation of a word differs from what one might expect from the 
 standard spelling, a phonetic spelling is given between slash marks (//).
 Words in all CAPITAL letters have glossary entries of their own. The tonal
 indicators for Tibetan are as follows: 1 -- high; 2 -- low; 3 -- falling;
 and 4 -- middle. For Chinese (Mandarin), the tonal indicators are: 1 --
 level; 2 -- high rising; 3 -- low rising; and 4 -- falling.

 AMBAN -- A representative of the QING emperor who resided in the territory of
      a tributary state or dependency. The Qing mission in Lhasa was usually
      headed by two Ambans of equal status. The mission was established in
      1728 and lasted until 1912.
 AMDO /ahm'doh'/ -- The Tibetan name for a region located northeast of Lhasa.
      It includes the bulk of QINGHAI province, as well as the Kanlho Tibetan
      Autonomous Prefecture in Gansu province. Along with KHAM and U-TSANG, 
      it is one of Tibet's three historic regions. Each of these regions 
      speaks its own distinctive dialect of Tibetan.
 BOD [Tibetan /puh3/] -- The Tibetan word for TIBET. The word Bod may be
      derived from BON.
 BODPA [Tibetan /puh4ba4/] -- The Tibetan word for "Tibetan," both as a noun
      and as an adjective.
 BON [Tibetan /puhm2/] -- Tibet's pre-Buddhist, animist religion.
      Cf. NYINGMAPA
 CCP -- Chinese Communist Party. The ruling party of China since 1949. (The 
      Chinese government prefers "CPC" -- Communist Party of China.)
 COMMISSION OF PEOPLE'S DEPUTIES -- TGIE's legislative branch. The Tibetan
      exile community has held CPD elections every three years since 1960.
 DALAI LAMA [Tibetan /ta1le4 la1ma4/] -- Tibet's most renown line of incarnate
      LAMAs. The Dalai Lamas reigned as kings of Tibet from 1642 until 1959.
      The current Dalai Lama has lived in exile since 1959. See question B2.
 DL -- DALAI LAMA
 GELUGPA /ge'luk'pa'/ -- The dominate Buddhist sect in Tibet and Mongolia. The
      literal translation of Gelugpa is "model of virtue." The sect was
      founded by the Tibetan monk Tsongkhapa in the 15th century and is also
      known as the Yellow Hat sect. Cf. RED HAT.
 HAN /han4/ -- The Chinese word for an ethnic Chinese. More precisely, a Han
      is someone whose primary or ancestral language is Chinese (_Han4yu3_)
      and who does not belong to any of China's various other officially
      recognized ethnic groups.
 KAGYUPA -- Tibet's third largest monastic order. The name means "transmitted
      word." The Kagyupa order consists of several sub-orders, including Karma
      Kagyupa, widely practiced in both Tibet and Sikkim, and Dukpa Kagyupa,
      the dominate faith of Bhutan. Cf. KARMAPA.
 KARMAPA -- A line of incarnate LAMAs whose traditional residence is at
      Tsurphu Monastery near Lhasa. The Karmapa heads the Karma KAGYUPA order
      and is also known as the Black Hat Lama. The 16th Karmapa died in
      Chicago in 1981. A successor was enthroned at Tsurphu in 1993, although
      some Karma Kagyupa members still support a rival candidate.
 KASHAG [Tibetan /ka1shaa3/] -- A group of four men appointed by the Dalai
      Lama to supervise day to day government administration. The group is
      often referred to as Tibet's cabinet. In 1992, TGIE's constitution was
      amended to make the Kashag responsible to the COMMISSION OF PEOPLE'S
      DEPUTIES.
 KHAM -- A region of eastern Tibet. Western Kham is now in TAR (q.v.) while
      eastern Kham is in China's Sichuan (Szechwan) province. 
 KMT -- Kuomintang [Chinese /gwo2min2dang3/] The ruling party of China from 
      1928 to 1949. The ruling party of Taiwan since 1949. It is also known
      as the Nationalist Party.
 LAMA [Tibetan /la1ma4/] -- The literal translation of this Tibetan word is
      "superior one." The word has several meanings, but is most commonly
      used to refer to incarnate lamas or TULKU. Other Buddhist spiritual
      teachers may be referred to as root lamas. Cf. YOGIN.
 LHASA [Tibetan /lhe1sa4/] -- The capital and largest city in Tibet with a
      population of 170,000. Lhasa is a shortened form of _lha sacha_, which
      means "god's place."
 LOSAR -- Tibetan new year. The next Losar will be on February 27, 1998.
      By the Tibetan calendar, it is currently 2124, the year of the fire ox.
      Cf. MONLAM CHENMO.
 MCMAHON LINE -- The boundary for the eastern section of the frontier between
      Tibet and India. It runs from the eastern end of Bhutan to the great
      bend in the Brahmaputra River. British and Tibetan negotiators agreed
      to this boundary in a conference held in Simla, India in 1914. The line
      is named for Sir Henry McMahon, the head of the British negotiating
      team. Although China claims territory south the McMahon Line, it has 
      generally respected the line in practice.
 MANCHU -- a people who lived in what is now northeastern China for many 
      centuries. Until 1636, they were known as the Jurchen. From 1644 to
      1912, China was ruled by emperors of Manchu ancestry. Cf. QING.
 MONLAM CHENMO -- The "great prayer festival," which begins three days after
      LOSAR and continues for ten days. China currently prohibits the public
      celebration of Monlam and other Buddhist holidays in Tibet.
 NYINGMAPA -- "The old order," Tibet's second largest monastic order.
      Nyingmapa priests are not usually required to be celibate. The sect's
      rituals include many elements that were derived from BON.
 PANCHEN LAMA [Tibetan /pen1jeen4 la1ma4/] -- A title used by the head LAMA of
      Tashilhunpo Monastery in Shigatse. His spiritual authority is second
      only to that of the DALAI LAMA within the GELUGPA sect. See question B2.
 PAP -- People's Armed Police. A paramilitary force created in 1983 to patrol
      border areas and to guard government buildings. It was used extensively
      to suppress demonstrations in Lhasa between 1987 and 1991. Cf. PSB.
 PLA -- People's Liberation Army. The official name of the Chinese armed
      forces since 1949. The PLA is a combined service and includes ground,
      air, and naval units.
 PRC -- People's Republic of China. China's official long form name since
      1949.
 PSB -- Public Security Bureau. China's principle agency for enforcing
      criminal law, i.e. the regular police. Cf. PAP.
 QING /ching1/ -- A dynasty of MANCHU origin which was founded in 1636 and
      ruled China from 1644 to 1912.
 QINGHAI /ching1hi3/ -- A Chinese province created in 1928 to administer the 
      bulk of Tibet's AMDO region. In 1992, the population of Qinghai was 
      estimated to be 4.61 million, [Fiske94] of whom 58 percent were ethnic
      Chinese, 20 percent were ethnic Tibetan, and 14 percent were Hui
      (Chinese Muslim). The ethnic Chinese population is concentrated in the
      vicinity of Xining, the capital. All six of the province's rural
      prefectures are classified as "Tibetan autonomous." Qinghai can also be
      referred to as Kokonor, the region's Mongolian name.
 RANG-BTSAN /rang2dsen4/ -- The Tibetan word for "independence" or "self- 
      government."
 RED HAT -- Any of various Tibetan monastic orders established prior to the
      15th century when the GELUGPA order was founded. The three largest Red
      Hat sects, in order of membership, are: NYINGMAPA, KAGYUPA, and Sakyapa.
      The Tibetan term corresponding to Red Hat (_Zhvamar_) refers only to
      the followers of the Sharmapa, a TULKU of the Karma Kagyupa sub-order.
 ROC -- Republic of China, China's official long form name from 1911 to 1949. 
      Although the ROC government has ruled only Taiwan since 1949, it still
      claims to be the legitimate government of all China, including Tibet.
 SELF-DETERMINATION -- The determining by a people of the form their
      government shall have, without reference to the wishes any other people.
      The Charter of the United Nations calls for, "respect for the principle
      of equal rights and self-determination of peoples." A 1961 U.N. General
      Assembly resolution describes Tibetans as a people entitled to the 
      right of self-determination.
 SERF -- A peasant bound to perform feudal obligations for a lord. In 1959,
      about 60 percent of Tibet's population were legally classified as serfs.
      (In Tibetan, serfs are known as _miser_ or "yellow people"). [Grunfeld1]
      The basic difference between a serf and a tenant farmer is that a serf
      pays rent and taxes in the form of labor, as opposed to money.
 TAR -- Tibet Autonomous Region. China created TAR in 1965 to administer the
      Tibetan regions of U-TSANG and western KHAM. Despite its name, the TAR 
      government does not in fact enjoy any significant degree of autonomy. 
      The region's top policymaker is CCP Secretary Chen Kuiyuan, an ethnic
      Chinese appointed by Beijing.
 TASHI DELEK -- A common Tibetan greeting.
 TGIE -- Tibetan government-in-exile. See question B2.
 TI -- Tibetan independence. TI can also stand for "Taiwan independence."
 TIBET -- The Tibetan government-in-exile refers to the entire Tibetan
      Plateau as "Tibet." But the word can also be used to refer to TAR (q.v.)
      only, thus excluding QINGHAI and eastern KHAM. "Tibet" is a word used
      in various European languages and was derived from the Arabic _Tubbat_,
      which was in turn derived from the Chinese TUFAN. [Partridge66]
 TPT -- talk.politics.tibet. The Usenet newsgroup for which this document is 
      the FAQ.
 TSAMPA -- roasted barley flour, a staple of the Tibetan diet. Various Tibetan 
      celebrations, such as LOSAR, are marked by tossing tsampa into the
      air.
 TSHONGDU -- Old Tibet's national assembly, established in the 1860s. It
      included the heads of major government departments as well as
      representatives from the larger monasteries. Decisions were made by
      consensus. Cf. COMMISSION OF PEOPLE'S DEPUTIES
 TUFAN /tu3fan1/ -- A Chinese name for Tibet used during the Tang dynasty
      (618-907). The second syllable of Tufan was traditionally pronounced
      /bo/ and is probably a corruption of BOD. [Giles1] 
 TULKU [Tibetan /drue1ue1ku4/] -- A person who is considered to be the
      reincarnation of a great spiritual teacher. The preferred translation
      of tulku is "incarnate LAMA." An older, less accurate, translation is
      "living Buddha." The Dalai and Panchen Lamas are Tibet's best-known
      tulku.
 U-TSANG /oh'tsong'/ -- The Tibetan name for central Tibet, now included in 
      TAR (q.v.).
 XIZANG /she1tsong4/ -- The modern Chinese name for Tibet. The word is derived
      from U-TSANG and has been in use since the 18th century. [Kolmas67]
      The literal translation of Xizang is "western storehouse" or "western
      storeroom," not "western treasure house" as is sometimes claimed.
      [Giles2]
 YOGIN -- A spiritual teacher who is not bound by monastic vows.


Section B: HISTORICAL ISSUES

B1) What are the major events of Tibetan history (timeline)?


  Year                           Description of Event

  416 BC Nyatri Tsenpo founds a dynasty in Yarlung valley, according to legend
  602 AD Tibet is unified under King Namri Songtsen of the Yarlung dynasty
  641    King Songtsen Gampo marries Princess Wencheng of China, his 2nd wife
  670    Tibet conquers Amdo, Tarim Basin; prolonged warfare with China begins
  747    King Trisong Detsen invites Padmasambhava, yogin of Swat, to Tibet
  763    Tibet captures Changan, capital of Tang China; tribute paid to Tibet
  779    Samye, Tibet's 1st monastery, built by Trisong Detsen & Padmasambhava
  792    Exponents of Indian Buddhism prevail in debate with Chinese at Samye
  821    Tibet signs its last peace treaty with Tang China: "Tibetans shall 
             be happy in Tibet and Chinese shall be happy in China." [Walt1]
  842    King Langdarma murdered by a monk; Tibet splits into several states
 1040    Birth of Milarepa, 2nd hierarch of Kagyupa order and a renown poet
 1073    Founding of Sakya, the first monastery of the Sakyapa monastic order
 1206    An assembly names Genghis Khan first ruler of a unified Mongol nation
 1227    Mongols destroy Xixia, a Tibetan-speaking kingdom of northwest China
 1247    Sakya Pandita submits to Godan Khan; beginning of the first priest/
             patron relationship between a Tibetan lama and a Mongol khan
 1261    Tibet is reunited with Sakya Pandita, Grand Lama of Sakya, as king
 1279    Final defeat of Song by Mongols; Mongol conquest of China complete
 1350    Changchub Gyaltsen defeats Sakya and founds the secular Sitya dynasty
 1368    China regains its independence from the Mongols under Ming dynasty
 1409    Ganden, 1st Gelugpa monastery, built by monastic reformer Tsongkhapa
 1435-81 In prolonged warfare, Karmapa supporters gain control of Sitya court
 1578    Gelugpa leader gets the title of Dalai ("Ocean") from Altan Khan
 1635    Sitya dynasty is overthrown by the ruler of Tibet's Tsang province
 1640    Gushri Khan, leader of Khoshut Mongols, invades and conquers Tibet
 1642    Gushri Khan enthrones the 5th Dalai Lama as temporal ruler of Tibet
 1644    Manchu overthrow Ming, conquer China, and establish the Qing dynasty
 1653    "Great Fifth" Dalai Lama meets Qing Emperor Shunzhi near Beijing
 1682    Fifth Dalai Lama dies; regent conceals death for the next 14 years
 1716-21 Italian Jesuit priest Ippolito Desideri studies and teaches in Lhasa
 1717    Dzungar Mongols invade Tibet and sack Lhasa; 5th DL's tomb looted
 1720    Dzungars driven out; Qing forces install Kesang Gyatso as the 7th DL
 1721    The position of Amban is created by a 13-point Qing decree on Tibet
 1724    A Chinese territorial government is created for Qinghai (Amdo)
 1750    Ambans murder regent; rioters kill Ambans; Qing troops sent to Tibet
 1792    Qing troops enter Tibet to drive out Gorkha (Nepalese) invaders
         29-point Qing decree prescribes "golden urn" lottery for picking DL
             and PL, bans visits by non-Chinese, and increases Ambans' powers
 1854-56 Nepal defeats Tibet; peace treaty requires that Tibet pay tribute
 1876    China agrees to provide passports for a British mission to Tibet
 1885    Tibet turns back British mission, rejects Chinese-granted passports
 1893    China and Britain agree to regulations on trade between India & Tibet
 1894    Tibetans build a wall north of Dromo to prevent trade with India
         The 13th Dalai Lama takes control of the Tibetan government at age 18
 1904    British troops under Colonel Younghusband enter Tibet & occupy Lhasa
         A treaty signed which required Tibet to pay an indemnity to Britain
 1906    The 1904 Anglo-Tibetan treaty is "confirmed" in Anglo-Chinese treaty
 1907    "Suzerainty of China over Thibet" recognized in Anglo-Russian treaty
 1910-12 Qing troops occupy Tibet, shoot at unarmed crowds on entering Lhasa
 1912    Last Qing emperor abdicates; Republic of China claims Mongolia,Tibet
 1913    13th Dalai Lama proclaims Tibet a "religious and independent nation"
         Mongolia and Tibet recognize each other in a treaty signed in Urga
 1914    Britain and Tibet agree to McMahon Line in a treaty signed in Simla
 1917-18 Tibet defeats Chinese forces in Kham, recovers Chamdo (lost in 1910)
 1921    Britain recognizes Tibet's "autonomy under Chinese suzerainty"
 1924    At a KMT congress, Sun Yat-sen calls for "self-determination of all
             national minorities in China" within a "united Chinese republic"
 1924-25 Pressure from monks causes DL to dismiss his British-trained officers
 1928    Chiang Kai-shek defeats northern warlords, reunites China under KMT
 1930-33 China captures Derge in Kham in first Sino-Tibetan clash since 1918
 1933    Truce ends China/Tibet fighting; the 13th Dalai Lama dies at age 58
 1934    Reting Rimpoche named regent; China permitted to open Lhasa mission
 1940    The five-year-old Tenzin Gyatso is enthroned as the 14th Dalai Lama
 1941    Unable to keep celibacy vow, Reting is replaced as regent by Taktra
 1942    U.S. army officer goes to Lhasa to present a letter for DL from FDR
 1944    U.S. military aircraft crash lands near Samye; crew escorted to India
 1945    Newly opened English-language school is closed after monks protest
 1947    ex-Regent Reting attempts to kill Regent Taktra with a package bomb
         Reting dies while under house arrest; he was apparently poisoned
         British mission in Lhasa is transferred to a newly independent India
 1947-49 Tibetan Trade Mission travels to India, China, U.S., and Britain;
             mission meets with British Prime Minister Clement R. Attlee
 1949    People's Republic of China is proclaimed by Chinese Communist Party
         PRC recognizes Mongolia, announces its intention to "liberate" Tibet
 1950    Red China invades Tibet; Tibetan army destroyed in battle at Chamdo
 1951    17-point agreement between China and Tibet; Chinese occupy Lhasa
 1955    Tibetans in Kham and Amdo (Qinghai) begin revolt against Chinese rule
 1956    Dalai Lama visits India for 2,500th anniversary of the Buddha's birth
         The United States begins to arm the Tibetan resistance via CIA
 1959    DL flees to India; 87,000 Tibetans die in anti-Chinese revolt [Walt2]
 1960    International Commission of Jurists: "acts of genocide [have] been
             committed...to destroy the Tibetans as a religious group." [ICJ1]
 1960-62 Tibet experiences its first famine as grain is requisitioned by PLA
 1962    China-India War: China advances beyond McMahon Line, then withdraws
 1962-75 TAR's peasants are herded into communes by collectivization campaign
 1963    DL approves a democratic constitution for the Tibetan exile community
 1964    The Panchen Lama is arrested after calling for Tibetan independence
 1965    China sets up Tibet Autonomous Region in U-Tsang and western Kham
 1966    The United States America recognizes China's sovereignty over Tibet
 1966-69 Cultural Revolution: Red Guards vandalize temples, attack "four olds"
 1969-71 Tibet is put under PLA military rule in order to suppress Red Guards
 1971    The United States cuts off military aid to the Tibetan resistance
 1974    Nepal forces the Tibetan resistance to abandon its base in Mustang
         Sikkim votes overwhelmingly to join India; Ladakh opened to tourists
 1976    The first permanent ethnic Chinese settlers arrive in TAR [Donnet94] 
 1977    Resistance burns 100 PLA vehicles in last major military operation
 1978    Visitors find 8 temples left in TAR, down from 2,700 in 1959 [Far95]
 1979    Tibet is opened to non-Chinese tourism for the first time since 1963
 1979-80 China allows a series of three delegations from DL to visit Tibet
 1980    CCP leader Hu Yaobang visits Lhasa; he promises to "relax" controls 
             and "restore the Tibetan economy to its pre-1959 level."[Strauss]
         "Responsibility system" distributes collectivized land to individuals
 1982    Writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn calls CCP regime in Tibet "more brutal
             and inhuman than any other communist regime in the world."[Walt3]
 1985    Bomb defused in Lhasa during the TAR 20th anniversary celebration
 1987    Police fire on a massive pro-independence demonstration in Lhasa 
 1988    Qiao Shi, politburo member and internal security chief, visits Tibet
             and vows to "adopt a policy of merciless repression." [Asia90] 
         Speaking in Strasbourg, France, the Dalai Lama elaborates on his 1987
             "five point" proposal for Tibetan self-government within China. 
 1989    Police kill 80-150 in Lhasa's bloodiest riots in 30 years[Schwartz94]
         Martial law imposed in Lhasa; Dalai Lama receives Nobel Peace Prize
 1990    China lifts martial law in Lhasa 13 months after imposing it
         The Voice of America initiates a Tibetan-language broadcast service
 1992    Chen Kuiyuan named CCP leader for Tibet, calls for a purge of those 
             who "act as internal agents of the Dalai Lama clique."[Kristof93]
         Over 30,000 visitors arrive in TAR's "Golden Year of Tibetan Tourism"
 1991    1,000 Tibetan refugees, chosen by lottery, are admitted to the U.S.
 1993    Residents of Lhasa protest for independence, against inflation and
             the charging of fees for formally free medical services [Kaye93]
 1994    Potala, former residence of the DL, is restored at a cost of $9 mln.
 1995    A report on Chinese human rights violations, including one case where
             a Tibetan nun was beaten to death, is narrowly rejected by the UN
         DL recognizes six-year-old Gedhun Choekyi Nyima as 11th Panchen Lama
         China denounces the Dalai Lama's choice of Panchen Lama as a "fraud,"
             selects rival candidate Gyaincain Norbu by golden urn process
         Tibet's worst snowstorm in a century leaves more than 50 dead
 1996    Earthquake in Lijang rates 7.0 on the Richter scale and kills 200
         The U.S.-funded Radio Free Asia begins broadcasting on shortwave
         Bomb explodes near government offices in Lhasa on Christmas day;
             a 1 million yuan ($120,000) reward is offered to solve crime
         DL takes steps to limit Shugden worship in Tibetan exile community
 1997    Three monks close to DL are murdered; Shugden supporters suspected
         Dalai Lama visits Taiwan and meets with ROC President Lee Teng-hui
         Several major movies on Tibet, including _Kundun_ are released


B2) What were the roles of the Dalai and Panchen Lamas in Tibetan history?


 The Dalai Lama was traditionally considered supreme in both temporal and 
 spiritual matters while the Panchen Lama was traditionally considered  
 supreme in spiritual matters. A contradiction is therefore created when the
 two lamas disagree, a recurring problem in Tibetan history.

 Tenzin Gyatso, the current Dalai Lama, was born to a Tibetan peasant family
 in Qinghai in 1935. He was discovered at the age of two by a search party of
 high-ranking monks who gave him various traditional tests and concluded that
 he was the reincarnation of the 13th Dalai Lama (1876-1933). He was
 proclaimed 14th Dalai Lama in 1939 by the Tshongdu, Tibet's national
 assembly.

 When the Chinese occupied Tibet in 1951, the Dalai Lama at first attempted to
 cooperate with the new rulers. But concern for his personal safety sparked an
 anti-Chinese revolt in 1959. He then fled to India, crossing the border just
 ahead of pursuing Chinese troops. He now heads a government-in-exile which
 administers Tibetan refugee camps and has its headquarters in Dharamsala,
 India. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 and has met with U.S. presidents
 George Bush and Bill Clinton. His autobiography, entitled _Freedom in Exile_
 (1990), is banned in Tibet.

 "Panchen" is a traditional title of the abbot of Tashilhunpo and means
 "great scholar." In the 17th century, the "great fifth" Dalai Lama (1617-
 1682) declared that his tutor, the fourth abbot of Tashilhunpo (1570-1662),
 would reincarnate. Although the three earlier abbots did not reincarnated,
 they are usually counted as the first three Panchen Lamas.

 As a result of a dispute between the Tibetan government and the Tashilhunpo
 Monastery over tax arrears, the 9th Panchen Lama (1883-1937) fled to
 Mongolia in 1923. He died fourteen years later at Jyekundo in Qinghai,
 still an exile. 

 His officers (_labrang_) chose as 10th Panchen Lama (1938-89) a boy born in 
 Qinghai. At the insistence of China, the Tibetan government confirmed this 
 choice in 1951. The Panchen Lama was then brought to Tibet by a Chinese 
 military escort and enthroned.

 In 1962, the Panchen Lama sent a "70,000 character letter" to the CCP
 Central Committee in which he accused China of pursuing a policy aimed at
 "genocide and elimination of religion." In a 1964 sermon delivered to an
 enormous crowd in Lhasa, the Panchen Lama hailed the Dalai Lama's leadership
 and declared that, "Tibet will soon regain her independence." [Dhondup78]

 In response, the Chinese accused the Panchen Lama of "counterrevolutionary
 crimes." He was then arrested, imprisoned, and tortured. He was released in
 1978, married an ethnic Chinese, and moved to a large house near the center
 of Beijing. As a vice chair of the National People's Congress, China's
 national assembly, he often appeared on Chinese television. He died in 1989
 of a heart attack, according to reports in the Chinese media. [Southerland89]
 In 1995, the Dalai Lama recognized the six-year-old Gedhun Choekyi Nyima as
 the 11th Panchen Lama. China denounced this choice as a "fraud" and instead
 recognized Gyaincain Norbu, the six-year-old son of a security officer.


B3) Did slavery exist in old Tibet?


 The following account was written by Sir Charles Bell, who was the British
 administrator for Chumbi Valley in 1904-05. At that time, Chumbi Valley was
 under British occupation pending payment by Tibet of an indemnity which
 resulted from the Younghusband Expedition of 1904.

     Slaves were sometimes stolen, when small children, from their parents.
     Or the father and mother, being too poor to support their child, would
     sell it to a man, who paid them _sho-ring_, "price of mother's milk,"
     brought up the child and kept it, or sold it, as a slave. These children
     come mostly from south-eastern Tibet and the territories of the wild
     tribes who dwell between Tibet and Assam. [Bell24]

 Although the CCP cites slavery as a justification for liquidating the Dalai
 Lama's government, the practice was by no means confined to Tibet. It is
 estimated that in 1930 there were about 4 million child slaves in China
 proper (Cantonese: _mui1jai_). [Meltzer93] 


B4) Was human sacrifice practiced in old Tibet?


 The Chinese Communists put a great deal of emphasis on the ritual use of
 human body parts in Tibetan Buddhism, especially with regard to human skulls
 and thigh-bones. It is implied that these body parts were obtained by human
 sacrifice -- an idea firmly rejected by scholars of Tibetan culture.

 Another version of the human sacrifice charge is that Tibetans would
 commonly, "bury living boys beneath important buildings or images, so that
 they would `stand forever.'" It appears that this version is also
 uncollaborated by independent scholarship. Perhaps this claim has it's origin
 in the occasional Tibetan practice of burying bodies in the walls of houses.

 Human sacrifice was a part of pre-Buddhist Tibetan tradition and there are
 reports which suggest that it was occasionally practiced in more recent
 times. [Grunfeld2], [Epstein83]


B5) What is the historical basis of the Chinese claim to Tibet?


 Here is how the Chinese Communist magazine _Beijing Review_ explains it:

     From ancient times, the Mongolians had been one of China's
     nationalities. In the 13th century, their power expanded rapidly.
     Genghis Khan united the tribes under a centralized Khanate in 1206.
     The outcome was a unified country [China] and the formation of the
     Yuan Dynasty in 1271.

     In the process, the Mongol Khanates peacefully incorporated Tibet
     in 1247 after defeating the Western Xia [1227] and the Jin [1234].

     With a unified China, the Yuan Dynasty  contributed greatly to the
     political, economic and cultural development of the nation's various
     nationalities -- in strict contrast to the feuding that had gone on
     since the late years of the Tang Dynasty (618-907). To argue that the
     Mongolians' campaign to unify China was fundamentally the imposition
     of rule by a foreign power is wrong because it misses the basic point
     of Chinese history that China is a multi-national country. Whether it
     was the Mongolians, the Manchus (who founded the Qing Dynasty [1644-
     1912], or any other peoples, it has always been a case of one Chinese
     nationality replacing another. It is completely out of the question to
     claim that the Mongolians or the Manchus were outsiders who conquered
     China. [BR-F89]

 The Dalai Lama's view is as follows:

     During the Vth Dalai Lama's time [1617-1682], I think it was quite
     evident the we were a separate sovereign nation with no problems. The
     VIth Dalai Lama [1683-1706] was spiritually pre-eminent, but
     politically, he was weak and disinterested. He could not follow the
     Vth Dalai Lama's path. This was a great failure. So, then the Chinese

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