Serf Day

In 2009 the Chinese government declared March 28th “Serf Liberation Day” in Tibet to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1959 ‘liberation’ of Tibetan ‘feudal society’. The question of Tibet’s social history is highly politicised by China and therefore Beijing’s claims have to be treated with caution. The Chinese claims pertain to a region that, before 1951, was not under Chinese control. The PRC does not allow open discussion of whether Tibet was ‘feudal’ or ‘oppressive’. Chinese and Tibetan officials in Tibet and China face serious repercussions if they do not concur with the state’s position on issues such as social conditions in Tibet prior to its ‘liberation’ and in this climate the authorities’ claims have little credibility.*

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The Spanish legal cases and their significance

Spanish lawyers and Tibet supporters have led the world in preparing a historic legal analysis of the consequences of China’s invasion of Tibet and oppression of its people. The Spanish National Court, Audiencia Nacional received two lawsuits prepared by Spanish lawyers with Comité de Apoyo al Tibetand held evidence admissible against members of the Politburo standing committee of the CCP. This is the first judicial complaint ever filed against Chinese leaders for crimes against Tibetans. The International Campaign for Tibet gave evidence in both cases.

In the following article, uploaded with the kind permission of the author, Karen Collier gives an insight into the ground-breaking legal cases.

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2008-2009 Protest Logs

ICT logged 235 protests throughout Tibet during the period from March 10, 2008 when the protests started in Lhasa, through late October 2009.

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Tiananmen and Tibet

Progress required by Tiananmen Sanctions law not met Situation in Tibet worse than in 1989

Following the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989, the U.S. Congress passed legislation that imposed sanctions on the Chinese government in response to its human rights crackdown. The legislation, commonly referred to as the “Tiananmen Sanctions” (P.L. 101-246) required Chinese authorities to meet a variety of conditions, including human rights improvements in Tibet.

This paper analyzes the current human rights situation in Tibet in relation to the requirements in the sanctions law. Findings indicate that the situation has not improved, and Tibetans are worse off today than in 1989.

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2008-2009 Protest Logs

ICT logged 235 protests throughout Tibet during the period from March 10, 2008 when the protests started in Lhasa, through late October 2009.

View the logs »

PHOTOS: Self-Immolations by Tibetans

Available portraits of the Tibetans who have self-immolated.

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PHOTOS: Protests, crackdowns and self-immolations

Images from Tibetan protests, police crackdowns and self-immolations in 2012.

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PHOTOS: Storm in the Grasslands

Images accompanying the ICT report, ‘Storm in the Grasslands: Self-immolations in Tibet and Chinese policy‘, published December 10, 2012.

Images are available for downloading and can be credited to ICT.

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