60th Anniversary Timeline
1950
1949/1950 Chinese invasion
40,000 Chinese troops invaded Tibet; an independent nation the size of Western Europe.
1951
23 May 1951 17-point agreement
China consolidated its military occupation of Tibet forcing the Tibetan government to sign the ’17 Point Agreement’.
1959
10 March 1959 Tibetan national uprising
Tens of thousands of Tibetans took to the streets of Lhasa, Tibet’s capital, rising up against China’s illegal invasion and occupation of their homeland.
12 March 1959 Tibetan Women’s Uprising
15,000 unarmed Tibetan women came together and rose up against the forced occupation of Tibet by the communist Chinese government.
30 March 1959
The Dalai Lama and his escape party crossed the border into India.
1959 to 1965 The UN General Assembly
Three resolutions raising grave concern at the suppression of fundamental human rights in Tibet were passed by the UN.
1960
1960 – 1962 Famine and destruction
China’s ‘Great Leap Forward’ led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Tibetans.
1966
1966 – 1976 The Cultural Revolution
Chairman Mao’s communism campaign led to the destruction of 6,000 Tibetan Buddhist monasteries and cultural sites.
1987
21 September 1987 Five Point Peace Plan
The Dalai Lama presented his ‘Five Point Peace Plan’ as a solution to the situation; China flatly rejected his proposals.
September and October 1987
In response to China’s rejection of the Dalai Lama’s ‘Peace Plan’, large protests broke out in Lhasa.
1988
March 1988
Protests took place in Lhasa; Tibetan sources say up to 30 Tibetans were killed.
September 1988
Nine monks from Drepung Monastery staged a protest in the centre of Lhasa Barkhor
10 December 1988
A well-planned protest erupted in Lhasa. Chinese police opened fire on protesters, including foreigners, and Dutch national Christa Meindersma who was shot in the shoulder.
PHOTO – Tibet Watch
1989
1989 Tibetan Uprising
Widespread protests broke out in Lhasa with tens of thousands of Tibetans taking to the streets. Chinese used brutal force to quell the protests, expelling all foreigners and declaring martial law.
10 December 1989
The Dalai Lama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
1995
1995
Six year old Gedhun Choekyi Nyima was recognised as the reincarnation of the 10th Panchen Lama. He was kidnapped by Chinese authorities becoming the world’s youngest political prisoner. He remains missing today.
1996
1996
Religious repression across Tibet intensified and China launched a brutal patriotic re-education campaign.
2001
2001
China was awarded the 2008 Summer Olympics
2007
October 2007
The Dalai Lama received the US Congressional Gold Medal. As Tibetans celebrated the award, China marshalled troops in a show of force
2008
March – June 2008
Tibetan Uprising – Protests broke out in Lhasa and rippled across Tibet. Hundreds of Tibetans were killed and over 2,000 arrested.
August 2008
China hosted the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing. Pro-Tibetan protests took place around the globe including in Beijing.
2009
2009 – 2018
In February 2009 a young monk named Tapey set fire to himself in Ngaba, eastern Tibet.
Over the next 9 years, more than 150 Tibetans in Tibet self-immolated, protesting China’s rule in Tibet, the majority dying as a result.
2019
New forms of protest
Large protests continue sporadically across Tibet but Tibetans have sought new ways to defend their identity and basic rights; environmental protection, student protests, cultural resistance with music, poems and writings celebrating Tibet’s culture and nationhood.
