Tibet Uprising Timeline

At least 11 recorded non-violent protests across Tibet, including –

Drepung Monastery where at least 300 monks started a peaceful march towards Lhasa city centre. Chinese authorities halted their progress with a large contingent of armed police.

Sera Monastery, around 20 monks and lay-people joined a peaceful pro-Tibet march to the busy Lhasa city centre raising Tibetan national flags, shouting pro-independence slogans and distributing leaflets. Police quickly arrived and severely beat the protesters and took them into detention.

Kardze County, hundreds of Tibetan independence leaflets were posted around the town.

Ditsa Monastery, monks from Ditsa Monastery in eastern Tibet walked out of an official Chinese authority meeting displaying a large portrait of the Dalai Lama and shouting pro-independence slogans.

Hundreds of monks and nuns continued to protest. Monks from Ganden Monastery staged a sit-in protest, which was met with security personnel who fired tear gas to try to disperse the protesters. At Sera Monastery at least 600 monks marched from the monastery in protest against China’s rule, while hundreds more staged a non-violent demonstration in the monastery; Chinese police used force to stop protesters; an eye-witness reported that the police were “kicking and beating” the monks. Read the eye-witness report at BBC – Eyewitness: Monk ‘kicked to floor’ 

20,000 Tibetans took to the streets of Lhasa in a swell of freedom protests, demonstrating against symbols of State power – police cars, governments buildings, Chinese flags – and Chinese-owned businesses. Between 60 – 80 Tibetans were reportedly killed by Chinese security forces and Chinese media reported that 13 Chinese civilians died. At least four Tibetans subsequently received death sentences for arson. This violence against Chinese citizens was a rare exception to the overwhelmingly peaceful protests of the Uprisings.

Audio:
“An eyewitness in the Tibetan capital of Lhasa explains what happened as the fiercest anti-government protests in almost 20 years erupted into violence”

Tibet eyewitness, The Guardian

Fresh protests continued to rise across Tibet. At Kirti Monastery, in eastern Tibet, a prayer service erupted into a spontaneous protest with Tibetan monks raising the banned Tibetan national flag, joined by lay Tibetans, shouting slogans calling for “Victory to Tibet”. Hundreds were injured in the crackdown; 30 Tibetans are believed to have died after armed troops shot indiscriminately into the peaceful demonstrators. Hundreds more took part in a peace march and demonstration in Rebkong County; the peaceful protesters were confronted by security personnel who surrounded the demonstration. About 500 students from Tibetan Studies Department in the Northwestern University for Minority Nationalities staged a peaceful protest distributing leaflets and calling for an end to the crackdown in Tibet, carrying banners that read “Through Happiness and Sorrow, We Stand United”. A sit-in protest was started in Lithang by one monk who was joined by lay-Tibetans from the area.  Thousands of monks, nomads and lay-Tibetans carried out multiple protests in Kanlho with people carrying “Independence for Tibet” banners, portraits of the Dalai Lama and the banned Tibetan national flag, and shouted “Let the Dalai Lama return!” and “Tibet belongs to Tibetans!” Widespread curfews across Tibet were imposed.

Thousands of Tibetans were out protesting across Tibet, waving Tibetan flags, shouting pro-independence slogans and calling for the “Return the Dalai Lama to Tibet”.  In Bora Township over a thousand Tibetans protested including nomads and farmers who galloped into town on their horses and others rode motorbikes during the protest. Protesters replaced the Chinese flag with the Tibetan National Flag at the township’s Primary and Middle Schools.

Audio:
“What we’ve seen is a huge influx of paramilitary police”

Tania Branigan, The Guardian

Numerous large and small scale protests broke out across Tibet despite the extreme numbers of Chinese armed police and security forces who had descended on the area to curb the uprising. After days of protests in the different Tibetan areas of Gansu Province which saw the deaths of scores of Tibetans, the Chinese government sent thousands of troops on foot, in trucks and helicopters into the area in an attempt to curb the flow of and hunt for protesters. Public notices both in Tibetan and Chinese language were posted in multiple areas warning protesters – or criminals as the notice called them – to surrender by midnight of 25 March.

Protests continued to spread – In Malho, eastern Tibet, hundred of Tibetans from at least four different villages came together in a mass protest carrying images of the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan national flag, and shouting “Freedom for the Tibetan people’ and “Release the Panchen Lama”. At Serlho Monastery monks held a peaceful demonstration and were joined by hundreds of local Tibetans, mainly nomads, demanding the Dalai Lama be allowed to visit Tibet. At A-tsok Monastery monks protested shouting “Free Tibet” and displaying Tibetan flags. Chinese military continued to surround monasteries and crackdown hard on any protests.  Monks and nuns were forced to undergo “patriotic re-education.”

Around 200 Tibetans staged a peaceful demonstration in Drango, Kardze, chanting “Long live the Dalai Lama” and “Freedom for Tibet”. The protesters were met by a large number of armed police and security who fired live ammunition indiscriminately into the protesting crowd; at least one monk, 18 year-old Kunga, died. In Golog more than 50 protesters staged a non-violent protest; all protesters were arrested.

Two weeks of consistent protests saw Chinese security forces round-up and detain protesters in different parts of Tibet; in the Golok area hundreds of Tibetans were forced to hide in the mountains. In Kardze, eastern Tibet, protesters expressed their frustration by writing “Tibet is an independent country” on Chinese currency and throwing the money in the air.

After days of continued protest and unrest in Ngaba, eastern Tibet, Chinese Armed Police raided Kirti Monastery. They ransacked the monks’ living quarters and took away pictures of the Dalai Lama; around 600 monks were arrested. Around 30 Tibetans who had been arrested a few days earlier were paraded around the street of Ngaba County in a military truck to intimidate local Tibetans into ceasing with protests. At Nera Monastery, Central Tibet, a lone monk pasted posters up calling for the return of the Dalai Lama to Tibet.

20th consecutive day of protests stretched across Tibet – Tibetans in multiple areas continued to rise up; at Wara Monastery, Central Tibet, monks staged a peaceful protest that ended after senior lamas intervened to stop a bloody crackdown. Monks from Shiwa Lhathim Monastery, eastern Tibet, marched towards local government offices shouting pro-independence slogans. Hundreds of students in Tsolho, eastern Tibet held a peaceful protest with banners and pamphlets.

Protests continued across Tibet and Chinese authorities ramped up a crackdown on an enormous scale. Tibetan farmer, Dawa, died after being arrested for taking part in a peaceful protest; he was reportedly tortured by Chinese prison guards. Jamyang Kyi, a well-known Tibetan musician, writer and broadcaster, was taken away by plain clothes state security officers from her office in Siling (Ch: Xining) city. Read News – Guardian; Tibetan singer missing after arrest by Chinese officials

More than 300 monks and hundreds more local Tibetans in Kardze staged a peaceful protest to demand the release of detained monks. The demonstrators were confronted by armed security personnel and live ammunition was fired at the crowd, killing at least 14 Tibetans. Further protests in other parts of Kardze included groups of monks protesting with Tibetan flags, shouting slogans such as “His Holiness the Dalai Lama should be welcomed back to Tibet” and “Tibet is an independent country.”

In Sog County very tight restrictions were implemented and locals were refused to leave the county; “patriotic re-education” were reported to be mandatory.

A large group of monks at Thang-kya Monastery, Chamdo, held a protest shouting slogans calling for freedom of speech and religion and demanding an independent Tibet. Many of the monks were detained. Chinese police used the detentions to intimidate other Tibetans, threatening that if more people protested they would also be punished.

A crowd of about 1,000, monks and lay-Tibetans, marched from Mintso Monastery saying prayers for those killed in protests. Several hundred armed police stopped the march and opened fire on the crowd; at least 15 were seriously injured. Before phone contact was cut, a witness reported, “Please tell the world what we are doing here and that the Chinese are waging a violent crackdown”

At Lingque Temple, Drango County at least 400 monks, nomads, local residents and students held a peaceful prayer ceremony. As the crowd grew police became anxious and ordered the ceremony to a halt, but the participants refused to leave and the stand-off lasted for several hours. At one point, the 62 police opened fire to disperse the protesters, who were demanding the return of the Dalai Lama; about ten people were wounded.

Chinese security forces prevented a group of monks from Nyatso Monastery, Tawo County, from carrying out a candlelight vigil cum Buddhist ritual for Tibetans who died in the recent protests. Chinese security forces fired on the monks, killing and injuring at least three of them.

Chinese authorities closed down Taktsang Lhamo Kirti Monastery school after a number of the Tibetan students had taken part in protests. Students were sent back to their respective homes after the closure.

In Lhasa, 40 Tibetans, some who were on pilgrimage, were sent back to their home-towns because they were not permanent residents of Lhasa.