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China Opposes EP Resolution on Issue of Tibet
The Chinese government Saturday expressed its great indignation and firm opposition to the resolution adopted by the European Parliament (EP) concerning the issue of World Bank's loans for the Western China Poverty Reduction Project and the so-called "future of Tibet".
The Foreign Affairs Committee of the National People's Congress issued a statement Saturday in response to the EP resolution. The full text of the statement reads as follows:
Statement by NPC Foreign Affairs Committee on EP Resolution on Western China Poverty Reduction Project and Future of Tibet
July 14, 2000
Several days ago, the European Parliament (EP) adopted a resolution concerning the issues of World Bank's loan for the Western China Poverty Reduction Project and the so-called "future of Tibet", in which it deliberately called the Chinese territory Tibet a "country", slandering that China "occupied" Tibet.It also wantonly distorted and attacked China's policy of ethnic regional autonomy practiced in Tibet. Toward EP's overbearing and brutal interference in China's internal affairs we hereby express our great indignation and firm opposition.
It is known to all that Tibet was officially incorporated into China's territory as early as more than seven hundred years ago, and China's successive central governments have been exercising sovereignty over Tibet ever since. Tibet area has never been an independent country. The titles of the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Erdeni were granted by the Chinese central government respectively in mid-17th and early 18th century, thus officially establishing their political and religious status in Tibet and setting forth a fixed system by which their ordainment and succession must be approved by the central government. The 14th Dalai Lama now in- exile succeeded to be ordained after the approval by the then Chairman of the National Government of China in 1940. Therefore, Tibet has been part of China all through the ages. No government of any country in the world has ever recognized Tibet as an independent country. However, in disregard of this irrefutable objective fact universally recognized by the international community, the EP resolution blatantly called the Chinese territory Tibet a "country" and vilified that China "invaded" and "occupied" Tibet. By doing so, the EP is obviously trying to render support to a handful of separatists led by Dalai Lama so as to gain its aim to split China.
The resolution unscrupulously distorted both history and reality by describing the 1959 Tibetan serf owners' rebellion as an " uprising". What, then, is the true story?
In 1949, the Chinese People's Liberation War scored a decisive victory and the People's Republic of China took birth. Like China' s provinces of Hunan, Yunnan, Xinjiang and Xikang where peaceful liberation was achieved from under the rule of the former KMT government, Tibet also gained its liberation in peace.Before peaceful liberation, Tibet practiced a feudal serfdom under a theocracy characterized by the dictatorship of upper-class monks and nobles with Dalai being the chieftain of the feudal regime. The darkness and brutality of the feudal serfdom in Tibet out-measured that of medieval Europe. At that time, 95 percent of the Tibetans were either serfs or slaves who were deprived of all human rights and lived a harsh life comparable to that of animals. After peaceful liberation of Tibet, the broad masses of serfs and slaves badly wanted to get rid of the shackles of serfdom. However, some people of the Tibetan ruling clique were opposed to any reform and attempted to maintain the serfdom system forever so as to sustain their sanguinary rule. They deliberately intensified their separatist activities. In March 1959, a minority of serf owners, in collaboration with foreign anti-China forces, launched a full-scale armed rebellion, openly upholding the separatist banner of "Tibet independence". They assaulted the People's Liberation Army (PLA), looted everywhere, and persecuted the Tibetan people. With the support and assistance of the broad masses of the Tibetan monks and lay people, the PLA swiftly put down the separatist armed rebellion. Dalai Lama sneaked off with the rebels and embarked upon the road in confrontation with the Central People's Government and the broad masses of Tibetan compatriots. Over the 40 years since then, Dalai Lama in his exile has never stopped his activities trying to separate the motherland. History brooks no distortion and facts are after all just facts.
The EP resolution undisguisedly stood facts on the head and arbitrarily attacked the democratic reform and the ethnic regional autonomy in Tibet. Denying the enormous achievements and progress made in all aspects in Tibet, it accused groundlessly that China carried out a so-called "large-scale transfer of Chinese settlers to Tibet", making Tibetans a "minority" there.However, facts speak louder than eloquence and rumors will collapse of themselves.
Since the implementation of democratic reform and the abrogation of the dark feudal serfdom in 1959, especially since the policy of ethnic regional autonomy was put into practice in 1956, colossal changes have taken place in Tibet. The serfs and slaves once bent under the rule of the Dalai Lama now have become masters of their own destiny. With the support of the Central Government and other regions of the country, Tibet has accomplished rapid economic development and continuous improvement in people's living standards. Great progress has been made in every aspect including ethnic culture, education and public health. The freedom of religious belief and all kinds of fundamental human rights and freedom have enjoyed full guarantee. During the two hundred years before 1959, the population in Tibet had long been hovering around one million, and now it has reached 2.44 million, of which 95 percent are Tibetans. The average life span of Tibetans has risen from 36 years in 1959 to 65 years at present. In a brief span of 40 years, Tibet has completed such tremendous social and economic evolution that would require mankind to succeed in centuries. This has made Tibet one of a few places in the world where the fastest development and the best improvement in all aspects of social undertakings and human rights situation are seen. Some EP members, obsessed with antagonism and prejudice against China, turn a deaf ear to these solid facts. Reluctant to learn the true facts about Tibet, they indulge themselves in parroting those lies told by Dalai, asserting that "China has shown no readiness" to take part in a dialogue with Dalai. This is a sheer nonsense designed to fool the public opinion.
The fact is that since 1979, the concerned department of the Chinese Central Government has consecutively received 11 groups of Dalai's personal representatives in various efforts to open negotiations. In the latter half of 1989, Dalai took a wrong stock of the situation in China and declared not to have any contacts with "an unstable Central Government". In 1992, contacts between the Central Government and Dalai resumed upon his request. In the second half of 1993, however, Dalai once again called off contacts with the Central Government. Such on-and-off and self- contradictory act of Dalai fully revealed his insincerity. Meanwhile, he spread lies worldwide, saying that the Central Government declined to negotiate with him in a vain effort to cheat the international community. This shows that Dalai is an out- and-out liar who is to blame for the deadlock. How can it be that the Central Government has shown "no readiness" to take part in a dialogue?
On the issue of holding negotiations with Dalai, China's policy is consistent and explicit. That is to say that Dalai must truly renounce his claim of "Tibet independence" and stop his separatist activities; he must state it clear to the public that Tibet is an inalienable part of China and Taiwan is one of China's provinces and that the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legitimate government representing all China. Basing on this policy, the door is always open to contacts between the Central Government and Dalai. Since it is an internal affair of China, neither any foreign country nor the EP has any right to interfere in it.
The EP's accusation against China in the World Bank's Western China Poverty Reduction Project is also utterly unjustifiable. China's Poverty Reduction Project in Qinghai Province is engineered virtually to help people of all nationalities living in the projected area to get rid of poverty, improve their production and living conditions, and promote economic and social development there. The immigration program covered by the project is to be carried out in full accordance with the wishes and choices of the local people, and there is no question at all of so-called assimilating Tibetans. In fact, people of all nationalities in the projected area hope to see a quick execution of the project. Before having basic understanding of the project, some members of the EP start to willfully levy their comments and criticisms in a bid to endorse the Tibetan separatist efforts and try to take the opportunity to play up "Tibet independence".This is a willful encroachment upon China's sovereignty and it gravely hurts the feeling of the various Chinese nationalities including the Tibetans.
We must point out that in recent years, the EP, masterminded by a handful of its members, has time and again introduced or passed resolutions on such Chinese internal affairs as the issues on Tibet and Taiwan and repeatedly made distortions about the facts to lavish attacks on China. Although we have made many stern presentations, the EP has stubbornly gone its own way instead of showing any restraints. Such acts of the EP not only greatly hurt the feeling of the Chinese people but also will produce grave negative effect on the healthy advancement of the Sino-European relations. We hold that better understanding and consensus can only be achieved through dialogues on an equal footing aimed at clearing off misunderstandings. It is an act of hegemonic politics to rashly pass some resolutions in unjustifiable accusation against others without learning the true fact of the issues concerned, which represents a deliberate confrontation. We are firmly opposed to it. Therefore, we advise that the EP be able to proceed from the overall consideration of the Sino-European relations so that it can abide by the cardinal principles governing international relations and show due respect to China's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The EP should adopt an objective and cautious attitude toward all issues that are within the sphere of China's internal affairs so that it will not waste its support for the separatist activities of the Dalai group.
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