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Tibet
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At the end of 2000, the total population in Tibet was 2.62 million. With diversity in terms of distribution, most people live in rural areas, and fewer in cities and towns. The population of the Tibetan nationality accounts for over 90% of the population, but that of the Han nationality and other ethnic groups is very small. Affected by nature, geographic conditions and climate, 80% of the population in Tibet is distributed mainly over the valley along the middle reaches of the Brahmaputra River valley and the deep valleys along three rivers (Lantsang River, Lujang River and Yangtse River) which are located in the eastern part of Tibet. There are few people in the northern part of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau because of its harsh climate. The southeastern part of Tibet is covered by primeval forests; there population density is low, transportation is inadequate and other conditions unfavorable.
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Although important in its own right, the Tibet issue is not a direct bilateral concern between the two countries, though an independent Tibet will undoubtedly bolster the security of India's northern frontiers by establishing a buffer. But plainly Beijing is not about to let go a prize it has held in its grasp - loosely or with brute force - for more than two and a half centuries. Big powers armed with nuclear weapons are not apt to act with such meekness. After all, Britain fought Argentina in the Falklands/Malvinas half a world away just to protect its sheep pastures. And Tibet is no grazing yard, given its strategic geographical location in High Asia which is astir with intense international economic and political rivalry on account of its impressive gas finds.
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The educational composition of Tibet's population has changed dramatically and the education level has improved since 1949. According to the 1990 and 2000 censuses, the education structure of Tibet's population had been changing, with an increase in the number of people with higher education and a decrease in the number of illiterates and semi-illiterates. The illiterate population was 0.98 million in 1990 but 0.85 in 2000. The illiterate rate was 44.43% in 1990 but 32.50% in 2000, down 11.93%. But compared with other regions, the education level in Tibet was still very low, although it is improving slowly. There was a striking difference in education levels between the sexes, as well as between urban and rural areas in Tibet.
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The presence on Indian soil of Tibetan institutional entities has always worried Beijing even though in 1980 it did replace its earlier policy of repression in Tibet with a "policy of leniency" aimed co-option. For all that, communist China's 50-year occupation of Shangri-La lacks legitimacy in the eyes of the world, and concerns about human rights - civilisational, not just political - are often raised. If a mutually satisfactory accommodation between China and legitimate representatives of Tibetan interests ever becomes possible, or alternatively if Tibetan independence beckons, no matter how remote it may seem now, an Indian interest in such denouements is clearly foreseeable.
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The government of Tibet in Exile ... says that, fundamentally, the issue is that of the right to self-determination of the Tibetan people. The Dalai Lama has stated his willingness to negotiate with China for genuine autonomy. According to the government in exile and Tibetan independence groups, most Tibetans still call for full Tibetan independence. The Dalai Lama sees the millions of government-imported Han immigrants and preferential socioeconomic policies, as presenting an urgent threat to the Tibetan nation by stealing economic resources and smothering Tibetan culture. Tibetan exile groups say that despite recent attempts to restore the appearance of original Tibetan culture to attract tourism, the traditional Tibetan way of life is now irrevocably changed. Tashi Wangdi, the Representative of the Dalai Lama, stated in an interview that China's Western China Development program "is providing facilities for the resettlement of Han Chinese in Tibet.
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Tibetan culture originated from Tibet. Human activities traced back to the later ages of the Paleolithic. The king of Tibet, Songzangarbu, unified Tibet in the 7th century. A.D and established Tibet dynasty, which twice weaved matrimonial relations with Tang Dynasty in the 7th and 8th centuries. In the 13th century, Tibet became an administrative region of Yuan Dynasty; a Gedanpozang government was established during the rule of the fifth Dalai Lama, and it was confirmed by the Qing Dynasty government; a standing minister to Tibet was authorized. After the 1911 Revolution, administrative agencies were set up in Tibet by the Government of the People's Republic of China.
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Tibet