Foreword I II III
III. The Historical Inevitability of Tibet's Modernization
Fifty years is a short period in the long process of
human history. However, in the past 50 years Tibet, an ancient and mysterious
land, has undergone tremendous changes far beyond comparison with those in any
other era. Tibet has bidden farewell to the poor, backward, isolated and
stagnant feudal serf society, and is forging ahead toward a modern people's
democratic society featuring constant progress, civilization and opening-up, and
its modernization drive has won world-renowned achievements. First, the
situation in which a small number of feudal serf-owners monopolized Tibet's
political power and material and cultural resources has been thoroughly changed,
and all the people in Tibet have become masters administering Tibetan society,
and the creators and beneficiaries of the society's material and cultural
wealth. As a result, the people's status and quality have greatly improved.
Second, the isolated, stagnant and declining old Tibetan society has been
thoroughly smashed; economic development has advanced by leaps and bounds;
people's material and cultural life has greatly improved; the modernization
drive has developed in an unprecedented way; and an overall-progress situation
has appeared in the constant reform and opening-up. Third, Tibet has thoroughly
abolished ethnic oppression and discrimination and cleaned up the filth and mire
left over from the old Tibetan society; Tibet's ethnic characteristics and the
fine aspects of its traditional culture have won full respect and protection
under the regional ethnic autonomy system; with the progress of the
modernization drive, they have been imbued with the current contents that
reflect the people's new life and the new requirements of social progress, and
have thus been carried forward in a process of scientific inheritance.
The development in the past 50 years has demonstrated the historical
inevitability of Tibet's march toward modernization, and revealed the objective
law of Tibet's modernization.
-- Tibet's march toward modernization conforms
to the world historical trend and the law of development of human society, and
embodies the internal demands of Tibet's social development and the fundamental
interests and wishes of the Tibetan people.
ealizing modernization has been a common issue
facing all countries and regions in the world in modern times, as well as a
natural historical course when human society is changing from an underdeveloped
state to a developed one, from ignorance and backwardness to civilization and
progress, from relatively independent development in a closed society to
high-speed development in an all-round way in opening-up, cooperation and
competition. At the very beginning, modernization appeared following the rise
and expansion of the capitalist countries in the West. For a considerable length
of time, the big powers in the West monopolized the fruits of modernization and
used them in the invasion and colonial rule in the Third World countries. With
the rise of the decolonization movement in the 20th century, getting rid of
poverty and backwardness and realizing modernization became the road that the
Third World countries had to take to realize their complete independence and the
invigoration of their nations. Historical development has proved that the
modernization tide is enormous and powerful, that those who go with it will
prosper while those who go against it will perish. Tibet's productive forces,
mode of production and social and political systems in the modern era were in
the extremely backward state of the Middle Ages, and came near the verge of
collapse after Tibet was subject to imperialist invasion and control. Ending
imperialist invasion and control, reforming the backward social and political
systems and mode of production and realizing modernization have historically
become the only way out and the most urgent question for social progress in
Tibet. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Tibet,
through the peaceful liberation, Democratic Reform, socialist construction, and
reform and opening-up, has broken away from the clutches of imperialism, entered
the modern society of people's democracy from the feudal serf society that
lagged far behind the times, realized high-speed economic development and
all-round social development, and headed toward modernization step by step. All
these comply with the world tide of modernization and the law of development of
human society, and embody the demand for social progress in Tibet and the
fundamental aspiration of the Tibetan people.
-- Tibet's modernization is an inseparable part
of China's modernization drive, and the inevitable demand from the people of all
ethnic groups in China to realize common prosperity and the Chinese nation to
realize great rejuvenation.
In the centuries-long course of historical
development, our 56 ethnic groups, including the Tibetan ethnic group, have
jointly developed China's territory, and formed the big family of the Chinese
nation, in which all the ethnic groups share weal and woe, and are inseparable
from each other. As an integral part of Chinese territory, Tibet has always gone
through thick and thin together with the motherland for common development.
Tibet's progress and development are closely related to those of the motherland,
and the motherland's destiny directly affects Tibet's future. In modern times,
China was reduced to a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society; Chinese territory,
including Tibet, was subject to invasion and devastation by the big powers of
the West; and China was confronted with the fate of being carved up and
dismembered because of its weak national strength and the corruption and
incompetence of feudal autocracy. Along with the victory of the national
democratic revolution in China and the founding of the People's Republic of
China, Tibet realized peaceful liberation, drove away the imperialist forces,
took the course of modernization, threw off the heavy shackles of feudal serfdom
through the Democratic Reform, and smoothed the road to modernization. As Tibet
is a relatively backward area, its development has always been the concern of
the Central Government and the people of all ethnic groups in China. In the past
50 years, the state has paid special attention to the social and economic
development of Tibet. It has given a powerful impetus to Tibet's modernization
by granting it special preferential policies in terms of finance, tax revenue,
banking and other aspects, offering energetic support in capital, technology and
human resources, investing an accumulative total of close to 50 billion yuan,
sending a large amount of materials and dispatching a large number of cadres and
technical personnel to help Tibet. We may well say that Tibet's progress and
development in the past 50 years has been achieved under the correct leadership
of the three generations of leading collectives of the central authorities, with
Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping and Jiang
Zemin at the core in different periods. This has been inseparable from the
unification and development of the motherland and the selfless support of the
whole nation; it is also a vivid embodiment of the new ethnic relations of
equality, unity, mutual help and common development among all ethnic groups in
China.
History has proved that Tibet's modernization cannot be separated from that of
the motherland, and the motherland's modernization cannot be realized without
that of Tibet. Without Tibet's modernization, the motherland's modernization
would be incomplete and incomprehensive. Without the independence and prosperity
of the motherland, Tibetan society would not have new life and development. Only
when Tibet's modernization drive is merged with the motherland's modernization
and wins the support and help of the people throughout the country, can Tibet
tightly grasp the historical opportunities, realize speedy development, and
achieve constant progress and prosperity. The vigorous development of the
motherland's modernization is powerful backing for Tibet's modernization. The
correct leadership and sturdy support of the Central Government and the selfless
support of the people of all ethnic groups in China are the powerful guarantee
and necessary conditions for the speedy and healthy development of Tibet's
modernization drive.
-- The modernization drive of Tibet is the
common cause of the people of all the ethnic groups there. The focus must be put
on man, so as to promote the all-round social progress and sustainable
development.
The course of Tibet's development over the past 50
years has been a process of continuous human emancipation and advance, as well
as the all-round progress of society and the harmonious development of
modernization and the environment. The people of all ethnic groups in Tibet have
always been the mainstay and basic motive power behind the region's
modernization drive, and also the beneficiaries of the results of its
development. Tibet's peaceful liberation and the Democratic Reform emancipated
the people of all ethnic groups in Tibet from imperialist invasion and the
inhuman bonds of the feudal serfdom, making them masters of the nation and the
Tibetan society. They showed enormous enthusiasm and exerted all their strength,
and became the principal force propelling Tibet's modernization. With the sense
of responsibility as the masters of their society, they took an active part in
the great cause of building a new Tibet and a new life. They struggled in
concert, advanced with a pioneering spirit, laid the first stone for the
construction with arduous efforts, and upheld the principle that economic
construction and social progress should be undertaken simultaneously, and the
economy and environment developed harmoniously. In this way, they gave a mighty
thrust to the modernization process of Tibet. The achievements attained in the
50 years of Tibet's modernization drive have fully demonstrated the success of
the struggle of the people of all ethnic groups in Tibet and embodied the
enormous strength of the Tibetan people. Experience has shown that the concerted
struggle of the people of all ethnic groups in Tibet is the dynamo propelling
the region's modernization drive. Only by maximizing the zeal, initiative and
creativity of the people in Tibet and channeling the concern of the Central
Government and the support of other parts of the country into Tibet's own
advantages for development can miracles be created in Tibet's modernization
drive. Moreover, only by proceeding from the fundamental interests and needs of
the Tibetan people and adhering to the sustainable development strategy can
Tibet's modernization drive develop quickly and soundly.
-- As Tibet's modernization drive is unfolding
in the unique area of Tibet, it must proceed from Tibet's actual conditions and
take the road with Tibet's local characteristics.
Located on the Qinghai-Tibet
Plateau, Tibet is completely different from other regions in geographic
environment, natural conditions, historical development, ethnic composition,
religious beliefs, cultural traditions, lifestyle and customs. The region's
modernization drive must proceed from the actual conditions of Tibet and take
into account Tibet's history and reality. Its primary aim should be to spur the
development of Tibet's productive forces and social progress, as well as the
development and welfare of the people of Tibet. The adverse natural conditions,
backward social and economic basis and the complicated background of Tibet's
historical development in modern times dictate that Tibet must take
modernization as the key link and realize rapid development with special support
and help from the Central Government and the rest of the country. In addition,
to realize the sustainable, all-round and harmonious development of society and
the economy, Tibet must correctly handle the relations between reform,
development and stability, utilize natural resources rationally and protect the
ecological environment.
For historical reasons, most of the Tibetans in the region are religious
believers and religious influences have permeated Tibetan culture, art, social
customs and daily life. How to correctly handle the ethnic and religious
problems is a long-standing issue of great importance in Tibet's modernization
drive. The 50-year development of Tibet shows that accelerating modernization is
where the basic interests of the people in Tibet lie, and also the key to the
realization of ethnic equality and common development. It is an important
guarantee for the sound development of Tibet's modernization drive to uphold the
system of regional ethnic autonomy, ensure in practice that the people of all
ethnic groups in Tibet, especially the Tibetan people, exercise the right of
self-government in administering local affairs according to law, and completely
respect their culture and traditions, customs and habits, spoken and written
language, and religious beliefs. Only by observing the following principles can
a modernization road with Tibetan local and ethnic characteristics be opened up:
Focusing on economic construction; upholding the policies of reform and
opening-up; combining the protection of the freedom of religious belief with
separation of religion from politics; actively guiding religion to gear to the
needs of modernization and social progress; and maintaining and promoting
Tibet's ethnic characteristics while energetically developing modern industries,
science, education and culture, and propelling the modernization of Tibet's
traditional industries and culture.
-- The modernization drive of Tibet has been
forging ahead consistently during the protracted struggle against the Dalai Lama
clique and international hostile forces.
As the question of Tibet's modernization emerged
against a complicated historical background, it was inevitable that the
modernization in Tibet was connected with international struggles. Over a long
period of time, between the Dalai Lama clique and international hostile forces
on the one hand and the Chinese Government and people on the other, there have
been struggles on the "Tibet issue," with the former trying to split
Tibet from the rest of China and halt its modernization, and the latter trying
to maintain the unity of the country and promote Tibet's modernization. In
modern times, a handful of the political and religious rulers in Tibet, in order
to safeguard the vested interests of the serf-owner class and the crumbling
feudal serfdom, tried by hook or by crook to hinder the modernization of Tibetan
society, and even went so far as to collaborate with the imperialist aggressor
forces to unleash the "Tibet independence" campaign, in an attempt to
split the country and prevent the peaceful liberation of Tibet. After Tibet's
peaceful liberation, the Dalai Lama clique, regardless of the patient
forbearance of the Central Government and the strong demand of the Tibetan
people, spared no efforts to try to check the Democratic Reform and
modernization drive, and, with the support of international hostile forces,
stirred up an armed rebellion for the purpose of splitting the motherland. When
the rebellion had failed and the Dalai Lama clique fled abroad, it even did not
scruple to collude with the international anti-China forces to constantly whip
up world opinion, wantonly conduct activities aimed at splitting China, slander
Tibet's achievements in economic construction and social progress, and by every
means hinder and sabotage the modernization of Tibetan society.
The Dalai Lama clique and international hostile forces slandered the peaceful
liberation of Tibet and the expulsion of the imperialist forces from Tibet as
"China's occupation of Tibet"; denigrated the Central Government's
efforts to propel Tibet's modernization as the "elimination of Tibet's
ethnic characteristics"; misrepresented the rapid growth of Tibet's economy
as "destruction of Tibet's environment"; vilified the concern and
support of the Central Government and the whole nation for the modernization of
Tibet as "plundering Tibet's resources," "intensifying control
over Tibet" and "Han-Chinese assimilation of Tibet"; calumniated
the abolition of theocracy and the secular privileges of the clergy and
monasteries as "extinguishing religion"; distorted the promotion of
traditional Tibetan culture in the new era and the unprecedented development of
modern science, education and culture in Tibet as "extirpation of Tibetan
culture," and so on and so forth. In a word, whatever was beneficial to
Tibet's modernization and social progress and the happiness of the Tibetan
people, they willfully misrepresented and left no stone unturned to oppose. This
fully reveals the reactionary nature of the Dalai Lama clique, which represents
the backward relations of production of feudal serfdom, the retrogressive
religious culture of the theocratic system, and the interests of the dying
privileged few of the feudal serf-owner class. Besides, it fully exposes the
sinister mentality of some hostile foreign forces in their vain attempt to
utilize the "Tibet issue" to sabotage the stability of China, split
China's territory, and prevent China from developing and prospering.
Facts speak louder than words, and people have a sense of natural justice. It is
universally acknowledged that Tibet is a part of China's territory, and the
progress made by the Tibetan community is there for all to see. China has
conformed to the trend of the times and followed the wishes of the people in its
efforts to promote the modernization of Tibet and combat the Dalai Lama clique's
separatist activities. It is only right and proper to do so. The history of 50
years since the peaceful liberation of Tibet shows that the trend of the times
cannot be checked, and the tide of history is irreversible. Tibet's
modernization and social progress are part of the general trend and popular
feeling. Any lie will certainly be revealed by the objective facts of Tibet's
development; any perverse acts to turn the clock back, prevent Tibet's
modernization drive and separate Tibet from China are doomed to ignominious
failure.
Human society has ushered in a new century, and peace and development are the
two major themes in the world today. China has embarked upon the new development
stage of building, in a comprehensive way, a society in which people enjoy a
fairly comfortable life, and of accelerating the reform and opening-up and
modernization -- a stage in which the strategy of large-scale development of the
western region, as a part of the third-step development strategy of China's
modernization drive, is being carried out in an all-round way. With a view to
national development and the actual conditions in Tibet, the Fourth Forum on
Work in Tibet convened by the Central Government set the strategic objectives
for promoting Tibet's modernization in the new century, from simply speeding it
up to ensuring a leap forward. The forum also determined to further intensify
support for Tibet's development. In this regard, during the Tenth Five-Year Plan
period (2001-2005) the Central Government and various parts of the country are
to invest 32.2 billion yuan to assist Tibet in constructing 187 projects, and
the Central Government is to subsidize Tibet to the tune of 37.9 billion yuan.
In addition, other special preferential policies and measures are to be
formulated. All this has created new and favorable conditions and rare
opportunities for Tibet's modernization drive. It can be confidently asserted
that, on the solid foundation laid over the last 50 years and with energetic
support and help from the Central Government and people all over the country,
Tibet will ultimately realize vigorous development in the process of its
modernization drive through arduous efforts, and witness a still more brilliant
and splendid future.
Notes 1. Melvyn C. Goldstein, A History of Modern
Tibet (1913-1951): The Demise of the Lamaist State, University of California
Press, Berkeley, Los Angeles, London, 1989-1991, pp. 37 and 2.2. Dongka Lobsang
Chilai, On the System of Theocracy in Tibet, Ethnic Minorities Publishing House,
1985. Translated by Chen Qingying, pp.72-73.3. Ngapoi Ngawang Jigme, A Great
Turn in the Development of Tibetan History, published in the first issue of the
China Tibetology quarterly, 1991, Beijing.
BACK