Taipei: Hundreds of Tibetan and Taiwanese protesters marched on the streets of Taipei on Sunday to mark the 60th anniversary of the 1959 Tibet uprising against Chinese occupation.
A 'Seventeen Point Agreement' was signed between Tibet and China in 1951.
The agreement was supposed to preserve Tibetan culture and religion, but Tibetans felt increasingly oppressed, a situation which led to an uprising on March 10, 1959.
Wuer Kaixi, a prominent human rights activist in Taiwan said "we all know that parties signing any agreement should trust each other, so that the agreement is followed. And today, I am at this 60th anniversary of the Tibetan Uprising Day, I would like to take this chance to remind the people of Taiwan that the Chinese government is totally not trustable."
Tashi Tsering, chairperson of the Human Rights Network for Tibet and Taiwan added that "the Seventeen Point Agreement was beautifully written. It made us believe that Tibet's culture and religion could be preserved. But once it was signed, it entirely destroyed our culture, religion, and the Panchan Lama was in prison since then. Therefore, we should not trust the Communist Party of China whatever it says."
China says Tibet has been part of its territory for centuries, although many Tibetans say they were essentially independent for most of that time. Communist troops took control of the region in 1950 after a brief military struggle.
Conditions in the region are difficult to independently ascertain because foreign travelers must get special permission to enter the region. Access is rarely given to foreign journalists, and the region is closed to foreigners entirely during sensitive anniversaries.
Also read- Tibetans in India mark uprising's 60th anniversary
(With inputs from APTN)
