Experts in genetics, archeology, history and linguistics have come to the conclusion through studying many genetic marks such as blood type and protein that the Han and the Tibetan race shared the same ancestors; archaeologists say the pre-historic boom in Tibet was strongly associated with Chinese culture; and historians who have studied Tibetan and Chinese historical records have found that the Tibet Plateau and the hinterland of China maintained long economic, cultural and political ties throughout history.

The 7th-12th Centuries

Early in the 7th century, the powerful Tang Dynasty was founded in the Central Plains, ending the disintegration and chaotic situation that had prevailed in the region for more than 300 years. In the meantime, the Spurgyal tribe rose in the Yarlung area in today's Sannan. The tribe conquered others in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and formed the Tubo Kingdom in the 7th century.

Tubo kings married two Tang Dynasty princesses, and political, economic and cultural relations between the two nations became increasingly friendly and extensive. Tibet's ties with other ethnic groups in China were unprecedentedly close. The Tang-Tubo Peace Monument was erected in front of the Jokhang Monastery in Lhasa following the end of the eighth peace meeting. In the ensuing 300-400 years, the Tibetan race maintained close ties with the Northern Song, Southern Song, Western Xia, Liao and Jin regimes.

Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368)

In 1271, the Mongolian Kublai Khan took Yuan as the name of their dynasty. U-Tsang (present-day central and western parts of Tibet) and Do-khams (including eastern and northeastern parts of Tibet) thus became a part of the Yuan, and Tibet was finally included as a directly governed administrative unit.

When the Yuan unified China, the rulers adopted a series of measures for rule over Tibet. They included the following:

  *The Zongzhi Yuan was set up to manage Tibetan affairs. In 1288, it was renamed Xuanzheng Yuan. The Prime Minister usually took the post of executive president of the Xuanzheng Yuan concurrently, while a monk recommended by the Imperial Tutor held the post of vice-president.

  *Conducting population census, setting up post stations, collecting taxes, stationing troops in Tibet, and promulgating Yuan laws and calendaring in Tibet.

  * Tibetan monks and lay people were given high official titles for management over Tibetan affairs. Establishment of administrative organs in Dbus-Tsang and Do-khams and appointment of officials, and giving punishment or rewards to them were subject to the Central Government.

Tibet was divided into different administrative areas. The Yuan dynasty installed three Pacification Commissioners in the Tibetan-inhabited areas and they worked under Xuanzheng Yuan. The present-day Tibet Autonomous Region was put under two of the three Pacification Commissioners, with present-day Lhasa, Shannan, Xigaze and Ngari put under the Dbus Tsang Pacification commissioner, and present-day Qamdo area and eastern Naqu under Do-khams Pacification Commissioner. During the Yuan Dynasty, the imperial court conducted census, demanded corvee labor, collected taxes, and set up post stations in Tibet. In the meanwhile, it sent troops to defend the border areas there. The Dbus Tsang Pacification Commissioner's Office was found in Sasgya (present-day Sagya of Tibet). It commanded 13 10,000-household offices and several 1,000-house-hold offices, and collected taxes there. Such an administrative division became the base of administrative changes in later generations.

  Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)

Soon after the Ming Dynasty replaced the Yuan Dynasty in 1368, the Central Government sent officials to the Tibetan-inhabited areas, calling for various tribal leaders to swear allegiance to the new ruler. Old official seals were reclaimed and replaced by new ones in a peaceful transition. The Ming continued sovereignty over Tibet.

The Ming abolished the official system the Yuan had adopted. But, the Ming rulers introduced a new system of granting official titles to Tibetan monks. All the representative figures in Tibet received official titles from the Ming court; granted official seals of authority, they managed affairs of their own areas. It was made clear then that the inheritance of their official titles was possible only with the approval of the emperor.

The central authorities of the Ming followed the administrative and military systems of the Yuan Dynasty. It set up the Udbus Tsang and Do-khams Commander's Offices and the three Pacification Commissioner's Offices set up during the previous dynasty of Yuan. Under them were different organs such as Commissioner's Office, Pacification Offices, 10000-Household Offices and 1000-Houschold Offices. Monk and lay leaders of various administrative and military organs were appointed by the Central Government. Their promotion or dismissal from office had to have the approval of the Central Government.

Qing Dynasty (1644-1911)

The Qing Dynasty established the capital in Beijing in 1644, and united China. It exercised the sovereignty over Tibet according to the practice in history. The Qing rulers decreed that those in Tibet granted official titles by the Ming court might retain their official position so long as they turned over their official seals and applied for new ones from the Qing court. In 1652, the 5th Dalai Lama was summoned to Beijing for an audience with Emperor Shunzhi; he received his official title from the Qing court the following year. The honorific titles of the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Erdeni were finally officially determined and the following generations of the Dalai Lama all had to seek Central government certificates of appointment and seal of authority for their rule in Tibet.

Based on the experience gained by the Yuan and Ming dynasties in rule over Tibet, the Qing court did the following: Stationing High Commissioners in Tibet; readjusting the temporal and religious administration system in Tibet; granting honorific titles to the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Erdeni; introducing the system of drawing lot from the golden urn to determine the soul boy of the grand Living Buddhas; establishing the principles such as foreign affairs and border defense of Tibet being the prerogative of the Central Government; defining the borders of Tibet with Qinghai, Sichuan and Yunnan; defining the area under the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Erdeni respectively and their respective power; and determining the area directly under the rule of the High Commissioners.

Republic of China (1912-1949)

The Revolution of 1911 brought down the Qing Dynasty and led to the founding of the Republic of China in 1912. The Provisional Constitution of the Republic of China, enacted under the auspices of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, Interim President, stipulated that Tibet was one of the 22 provinces of the Republic of China. Stipulations concerning Tibet in the Constitution of the Republic of China promulgated later all stressed that Tibet is an inseparable part of Chinese territory.

In July 1912, the Nationalist government established the Council for the Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs (renamed the Council of Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs in May 1914). Officials were appointed to work directly under the Prime Minister and take over the functions of the High commissioners in Tibet. When the Nanjing government was founded, the commission for Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs was renamed the Commission for Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs in 1929. In April 1940, the Commission set up its Lhasa Office which functioned as a Central Government organ in Tibet.

Historical records show the Dalai Lama, the local government of Tibet and Panchen Erdeni sent representatives to attend various National Assembly meetings, national government organizations or various national congresses; and many of them were elected to work in these national government organizations, making it possible for them to have a say in government affairs.

People's Republic of China (Founded in 1949) Peaceful Liberation and democratic Reform

When the People's Republic of China was founded on October 1, 1949, the 10th Panchen Erdeni, one of the two major Living Buddhas in Tibet, announced his support for the Central Government and his wish to see early liberation of Tibet.

On May 23, 1951, the Agreement Between the Central Government and the Local Government of Tibet on Measures for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet was signed in Beijing. As the agreement contains 17 articles, it is often referred to as the 17-Article Agreement. The 14th Dalai Lama and the 10th Panchen Erdeni both cabled the Central Government, expressing their support for the agreement and their determination to safeguard the unity of the sovereignty of the motherland. Tibet won peaceful liberation in accordance with the agreement.

The 14th Dalai Lama and the 10th Panchen Erdeni attended the first National People's Congress of the PRC. And the 14th Dalai Lama was elected a vice-chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, and the 10th Panchen Erdeni a member of the NPC Standing Committee. On April 22, 1956, the Preparatory Committee for the Founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region was set up in Lhasa, with the 14th Dalai Lama serving its director and the 10th Panchen Erdeni its first deputy director.

Reform is a principle that was contained in the 17-Article Agreement. But the ruling class in Tibet still clung to feudal serfdom, which had been abolished for some 100 years in Europe, as something indispensable for Tibet. They fought tenaciously with the Central Government and the progressive forces in Tibet over whether the 17-Article Agreement should be implemented. On March 10, 1959, the reactionary slave owners declared publicly "the independence of Tibet" and staged an armed rebellion. On March 28, the Central Government announced abolition of the local Gashag government of Tibet, and the Preparatory Committee for the Founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region took over governance in the region. The 10th Panchen Erdeni was its acting chief.

The Preparatory Committee for the Founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region passed on in June and September 1959 the Resolution on Democratic Reform in the Whole Area of Tibet and the Resolution on Abolition of Feudal Serf-Ownership of Land and Introduction of Farmer Land Ownership, deciding to fully arouse the masses to action and carry out the Democratic Reform throughout the region. The reform was completed at the end of 1961, and various counties, districts and townships set up their people's power organs. In March 1962, 92 percent of the townships conducted elections on the basis of establishing Peasants Association. From July to August 1965, election at the county-level was completed. The First Session of the First People's Congress of the Tibet Autonomous Region was held from September 1-9, 1965 in Lhasa, and the Tibet Autonomous Region was proclaimed as having been founded.

Preparation Made for the Establishment of the TAR

The 17-Article Agreement stipulates the people o Tibet enjoy the right to national regional autonomy under the unified leadership of the Central People's Government. In 1951, Tibet won the peaceful liberation; in 1956, the Preparatory Committee of the Founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region was founded; in 1959, the Preparatory Committee acted on order to wield the power of the local government of Tibet; and in 1965, the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) was founded.

In November 1954, the Preparatory Group for the Founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region was founded. On April 22, 1956, the Preparatory Committee for the Founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region was inaugurated in Lhasa. It was composed of 51 members representing the local government of Tibet, the Panchen Kampus Assembly, the People's Liberation Committee of the Qamdo Area and the Central Government. The 14th Dalai Lama was its chairman and the 10th Panchen Erdeni its first vice-chairman.

The Central Government upholds the principle of peaceful reform by mobilizing the masses and conducting consultation with those in the ruling position. Officials in the old government were given official positions. However, a small number of reactionaries on the ruling class stood in opposition to the democratic reform and finally staged an armed rebellion on March 10, 1959. When the armed rebellion was suppressed, the 14th Dalai Lama fled overseas. The Preparatory Committee for the Founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region exercised the power due to the local government of Tibet and the 10th Panchen Erdeni was appointed its acting chairman, with the position of chairman still retained for the 14th Dalai Lama though he had fled overseas.

From 1959 to 1960, the Democratic Reform was conducted in Tibet and people's governments were organized at various levels. On September 1, 1965, the First Session of the First People's Congress of the Tibet Autonomous Region was held, and the Tibet Autonomous Region was formed officially. The People's congress system, the national regional autonomy system, the political consultation system, and the democratic supervision system were introduced.

(Source: China's Tibet Facts  & Figures 2008)