A Chronology of Tibet Since 1950

Since China occupied Tibet more than six decades ago and forced the Dalai Lama into exile, Tibetans have been struggling for greater autonomy for the region , including through an exile government which faces key elections on March 20..

*Oct. 7, 1950 China's PLA enters eastern Tibet and defeats the small Tibetan Army. Wanting to avoid intervention by foreign powers, the PLA halts its advance 200 km to the east of Lhasa and demands Tibet’s “peaceful liberation.”

*May 23, 1951Tibetan delegates sign the Seventeen Point Agreement for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet, affirming Chinese sovereignty over Tibet. The signing of the agreement is considered invalid by the Tibetan exile community because they believe the Tibetan delegates were forced to sign and were not allowed to suggest alterations to the document.

.*June 1956Armed resistance to Chinese rule begins in Amdo and eastern Kham.

*March 10, 1959 Fearing that an invitation to attend a theatrical performance is actually a plan by China to abduct the Dalai Lama, an estimated 300,000 Tibetans surround the Dalai Lama’s palace to prevent him from leaving or being taken away. This marks the beginning of the Lhasa Uprising.

*March 17, 1959After receiving explicit instructions by the Nechung Oracle to leave Tibet, the Dalai Lama escaped to India disguised as a common soldier.March 19, 1959Open conflict begins. The PLA shells the Norbulingka and Lhasa’s major monasteries. Thousands die during the conflict. Combat lasts about two days, with Tibetan forces badly outnumbered and poorly armed.

*1960 The Dalai Lama leaves for Dharamsala, India, where he sets up the Tibetan government in exile, now called the Central Tibetan Administration.

*1963 Foreign visitors are banned from Tibet.

*Sept. 9, 1965Tibet is made an autonomous region of China, called the Tibet Autonomous Region.

*1966The Cultural Revolution reaches Tibet and results in the destruction of a large number of monasteries and cultural artifacts.

*1971
Foreign visitors are again allowed to enter Tibet.
*The end of the Cultural Revolution leads to some easing of repression, though large-scale relocation of Han Chinese into Tibet continues

*1988China imposes martial law after riots break out.

*Dec. 10, 1989The Dalai Lama receives the Nobel Peace Prize

.*May 26, 1991 Clashes take place in Lhasa between demonstrators and the police three days after the 40th anniversary of the PLA’s invasion of Tibet.

*1995 The Dalai Lama names a six-year-old boy, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, as the reincarnation of the Panchen Lama, the second most important figure in Tibetan Buddhism. The Chinese authorities place the boy under house arrest and designate another six-year-old boy, Gyancain Norbu, as their officially sanctioned Panchen Lama.

*2000 The Dalai Lama calls for the exile government's Kalon Tripa (prime minister) to be elected directly by the Tibetan people. Samdhong Rinpoche is the first elected Kalon Tripa.

*2005 Samdhong Rinpoche is re-elected as Kalon Tripa(prime minister).

*July 2006 A new railway linking Lhasa and the Chinese city of Golmud is opened. Chinese authorities hail it as a feat of engineering, but critics say it will significantly increase Han Chinese traffic into Tibet and accelerate the undermining of traditional Tibetan culture.

*March 2008Anti-China protests occur in Lhasa and in Tibetan areas of Sichuan, Qinghai, and Gansu provinces. Riots and unrest escalate into the worst violence Tibet has seen in 20 years, five months before Beijing hosts the Olympic Games.

*March 24–Aug. 8, 2008The Olympic Torch Relay is met with protests demanding freedom for Tibet.

*March 14, 2011The Dalai Lama tells Tibet’s exile parliament he wants to retire from political leadership and hand over power to a new prime minister.

*March 20, 2011Final Elections are held for a new Kalon Tripa(prime minister) from among  three candidates selected in October preliminary elections.

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Late 1970's

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