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17-Point Agreement of 1951 by Song Liming

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FACTS ABOUT THE 17-POINT “Agreement’’ Between Tibet and China Dharamsala, 22 May 22 DIIR PUBLICATIONS The signed articles in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the Central Tibetan Administration. This report is compiled and published by the Department of Information and International Relations, Central Tibetan Administration, Gangchen Kyishong, Dharamsala 176 215, H. P., INDIA Email: [email protected] Website: www.tibet.net and ww.tibet.com CONTENTS Part One—Historical Facts 17-point “Agreement”: The full story as revealed by the Tibetans and Chinese who were involved Part Two—Scholars’ Viewpoint Reflections on the 17-point Agreement of 1951 by Song Liming The “17-point Agreement”: Context and Consequences by Claude Arpi The Relevance of the 17-point Agreement Today by Michael van Walt van Praag Tibetan Tragedy Began with a Farce by Cao Changqing Appendix The Text of the 17-point Agreement along with the reproduction of the original Tibetan document as released by the Chinese government His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s Press Statements on the “Agreement” FORWARD 23 May 2001 marks the 50th anniversary of the signing of the 17-point Agreement between Tibet and China. This controversial document, forced upon an unwilling but helpless Tibetan government, compelled Tibet to co-exist with a resurgent communist China. The People’s Republic of China will once again flaunt this dubious legal instrument, the only one China signed with a “minority” people, to continue to legitimise its claim on the vast, resource-rich Tibetan tableland. China will use the anniversary to showcase its achievements in Tibet to justify its continued occupation of the Tibetan Plateau. Important personages will be pulled out of their retirement to laud the development brought to Tibet since the “liberation”. Most importantly, China will use the anniversary to deepen economic development policies designed to further integrate Tibet with China. Tibetans are being told that their salary or pensions would be withheld if they failed to participate in the anniversary festivities. Why is China making such a fuss over an agreement, the terms of which the Chinese authorities had systematically violated and which was repudiated by His Holiness the Dalai Lama? To find out, we present these research articles from independent scholars, including two by Chinese scholars. The articles constitute the most comprehensive and detailed examination of the background of this controversial agreement and the manner in which China imposed it upon a subjugated people. With whatever fanfare China commemorates this infamous agreement, the glaring fact is that the struggle of the Tibetan people to secure a better future for themselves has intensified over these fifty years. The 50th anniversary celebration of the agreement will not whitewash this vital fact or the fact of the atrocities committed on the Tibetan people by the occupying power. Fifty years after the so-called peaceful liberation of Tibet, Tibetans still risk their lives by negotiating the highest mountains in the world to escape to freedom. This clearly illustrates that for the Tibetan people the issue of Tibet is not over and their struggle to live and work in dignity and freedom in their own homeland still continues and the spirit of resistance grows. For these reasons the Chinese authorities themselves—during China’s period of liberalisation in Tibet starting from the early 1980s to 1989—tacitly acknowledged the need to resolve the issue of Tibet through a process of negotiations with His Holiness the Dalai Lama when it accepted four fact-finding missions and two exploratory delegations from the Tibetan side. China needs to restart the stalled talks. As such, this is as good a time as any for the Chinese authorities to re-examine and re- consider the two proposals His Holiness the Dalai Lama announced in Washington, D.C. and Strasbourg if China wants to solve the issue of Tibet, based on the reasonable aspirations of the Tibetan people. Kalon T.C. Tethong Department of Information and International Relations Central Tibetan Administration Dharamshala - 176 215 H.P., India 22 May 2001 “The 17-point Agreement” The full story as revealed by the Tibetans and Chinese who were involved* Compiled by the Department of Information and International Relations of the Central Tibetan Administration This write-up is based primarily on the accounts of Zhang Guohua, Lu’o Yus-hung, Baba Phuntsok Wangyal, Hao Guangfu, Ngabo Ngawang Jigme, Sampho Tenzin Dhondup, Kheme Sonam Wangdu, Lhawutara Thubten Tenthar, and Takla Phuntsok Tashi. Zhang Guohua was a member of the Chinese team in Beijing. Lu’o Yus-hung was an assistant of the Chinese team. Baba Phuntsok Wangyal was a translator for the Chinese team. Hao Guangfu was a telegraph operator of Zhang Jinwu, China’s first representative in Tibet. Ngabo Ngawang Jigme, Sampho Tenzin Dhondup, Kheme Sonam Wangdu and Lhawutara Thubten Tenthar were members of the Tibetan negotiating team in Beijing. Ngabo later became a vice-chairman of the Chinese NPC, whereas Lhawutara became a member of the Chinese Political Consultative Committee. Takla Phuntsok Tashi was a translator of the Tibetan team. Introduction After the occupation of eastern Tibet’s provincial capital, Chamdo, the People’s Republic of China (PRC), on 23 May 1951, forced Tibet to sign the 17-point “Agreement on Measures for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet”. The alternative, the occupying forces said, was immediate military operation in the remaining parts of Tibet. Commentaries in Chinese official publications maintain that the “agreement” reflected the Chinese government’s recognition of Tibet’s unique and distinct historical, political, and cultural status in relation to the PRC at that time. The PRC did not feel the need for such an “agreement” with any other area liberated by it.1 In the recent years, political analysts have referred to this “agreement” as a blueprint of the PRC’s current “one country, two systems” formula.2 Whatever the case may be, Tibetans opposed this “agreement” as nothing less than a death warrant of their centuries-old history of independence. They were particularly indignant with the circumstances under which their delegates had been forced to sign it. In fact, Tibetan Prime Minister Lukhangwa clearly told Chinese Representative Zhang Jingwu in 1952 that the Tibetan “people did not accept the agreement”.3 Nevertheless, the Dalai Lama decided to work with the invading forces “in order to save my people and country from total destruction”. For eight years, he tried to abide by the terms of this document. China, on the other hand, showed no inclination to honour its own part of the “Agreement”; its People’s Liberation Army (PLA) immediately set out to inflict unbelievable atrocities upon the Tibetan people in order to hasten the occupation of Tibet and destruction of its distinct identity. By 1959, the Dalai Lama realised that it was impossible to work with the Chinese authorities any longer. In March of that year he fled Tibet and, on his arrival in India, repudiated the “17-point Agreement” as having been “thrust upon Tibetan Government and people by the threat of arms”. Invasion of Tibet and Fall of Chamdo On 1 October 1949, the People’s Republic of China was founded. Soon after, Radio Beijing began to announce that “the People’s Liberation Army must liberate all Chinese territories, including Tibet, Xinjiang, Hainan and Taiwan.” In response, the Tibetan Foreign Office wrote to Mao Zedong on 2 November 1949 to say that “Tibet has from the earliest times up to now been an independent country whose political administration had never been taken over by any foreign country; and Tibet also defended her own territories from foreign invasions.”4 The Foreign Office letter asked for direct negotiations for the return of Tibetan territories annexed by China’s earlier governments. Copies of this letter were sent to the Government of India, Great Britain and United States. But these governments advised Tibet to enter into direct negotiations with China as any other course of action might provoke military retaliation. In the meanwhile, the PLA marched into eastern Tibet and circulated a ten-point document, asking Tibetans to co-operate with China in “liberating” Tibet from foreign imperialists. This struck as a curious statement to the Tibetan government who knew that there were fewer than ten foreigners in the country. It responded by making a series of radio announcements stating that there were no foreign imperialists on Tibetan soil, that Tibet had never been part of China, and that if China invaded Tibet just as big insects eat small ones, Tibet would fight back even if it were reduced to the female population.5 At the same time, the Tibetan government decided to send a delegation, consisting of two senior officials—Tsepon W.D. Shakabpa and Tsechag Thubten Gyalpo—and five assistants to negotiate with the PRC in a third country, possibly the USSR, Singapore or Hong Kong. China suggested Hong Kong as the venue, to which the Tibetan government agreed and directed its delegation to discuss the Foreign Office letter to Chairman Mao Zedong and the threatening Chinese radio announcements about an imminent “liberation of Tibet”. The government also instructed the delegation to secure the Chinese assurance that the territorial integrity of Tibet would not be violated, and to drive home the point that Tibet would not tolerate Chinese interference.6 On 7 March 1950, the delegates reached Kalimpong en route to Delhi. On reaching Delhi, they ran into an unforeseen problem: the British would not issue them the visas to travel to Hong Kong, probably because they did not want to antagonise China as the visa would have to be stamped on the passport issued by the Tibetan government.
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