Tibet A Net Loss By Spencer Glesby

The Sinicization of Tibet: A Net Loss

By Spencer Glesby

On the 6th or 7th of October 1950 (in what would be known as The Battle of Chamdo), the newly established People’s Republic of China (PRC), after months of failed negotiations between China and Tibet to form a peace agreement and a successful invasion of the neutral Kham region, sent troops across the Jinsha River and into Kham (which had recently severed it’s ties with both the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan capital of Lhasa). By the end of the day, 180 out of 8500 Tibetan soldiers and 118 out of 40000 of the People’s Liberation Army (PLR) were killed. The Chinese had taken the border town of Chamdo, confiscating the Tibetan’s weapons, and sending one of the captured

After much of the religious foundation of the country had been decimated, the Chinese kept a close eye on the religion. Although religion in Tibet has never been fully restricted, Tibetan Buddhism is definitely not a aspect of the Tibetan lifestyle that the Communist Chinese found welcome. This very unusual form of Buddhism is an amalgamation of Mahayana ideas mixed with the original Tibetan ethnic religion, called Bön. Buddhism was brought to Tibet when the ruler of Tibet, Songtsän Gampo, married the Chinese princess Wencheng, who was a devout Buddhist. She, along with Gampo’s other wife, Princes Bhrikuti of Nepal, convinced the king that a demoness was living under the Tibetan Plateau. They said that the demoness’ heart was a lake at the center of Lhasa, the capital. They also created a map of the plateau, and found the places in which the demoness’ limbs lay. On each limb, a monastery was put to pin it down. Her “heart” was drained and filled, and on top of it was built the greatest building of all, the Jokhang. This, the legend tells, is how Buddhism was spread through Tibet. Since then, it has been the most popular religion in the area. However, there have historically been small populations of Muslims and Hindus as

The main crops grown are buckwheat, oats, potatoes, rapeseeds, cotton, wheat, barley, and many fruits and vegetables. For hundreds of years, this was the primary way of living, with many other people not having a choice. When the Chinese invaded, they brought with them secondary and tertiary industries, such as mining, hospitality, and construction materials. However, many of these jobs have gone to the ethnic Han and Hui who have flooded into the area for work. This newly developing economy has also revitalized the Tibetan Handicraft industry, as well as Tibetan traditional medicine. A state carpet making factory has been created, selling their products to peoples in Asia, Europe, and the Americas. The secondary industries, however, are the ones with the most negative impact. The Tibetan Plateau is a fragile ecological system, containing many plants and animals who are unique to it. Mining in the plateau has caused ecological damage and pollution, which has not gone unnoticed by the international community. The Chinese are also rumored to have several nuclear power plants on the Plateau, but there is not enough substantial evidence to prove