Resolutions of Indian Political Parties on Tibet
(i) Resolution of the National Committee of the Socialist Party on Invasion of Tibet, Nagpur, 22 November, 1950 THE National Executive of the Socialist Party defines the invasion of Tibet by China as an act against Asia and the world, the Tibetan people and India. As the independence of Tibet from foreign control has not at all been in doubt and as Tibet belongs neither in name nor in reality to the Atlantic or the Soviet camp, the invasion is all the more reprehensible. To attempt to justify the invasion of 8 lakh square miles of territory on basis of sovereign rights which are in doubtful and untenable as they are imperialist, is an irony of which no modern government should have been thought capable. The people of Tibet alone may decide in a free vote or plebiscite their form of government or of alliances with the outside world and the Indian Government should press upon the Chinese government to achieve a settlement with Tibet along these terms. The Socialist Party must however warn all Asian people against the danger so demonstrably exhibited by Tibet, where status quo and reactionary element has clashed with an expanding communism intent on slaughters and rule and have been worsened in the battle. Without in any way attempting to interfere with the religious freedom, the Socialist Party urges the people of Tibet to adopt a policy of socialism at home and the Third camp abroad. Such a policy will give contentment and strength to the people of Tibet and will make all encroachments by either the Atlantic or the Soviet camp impossible. India and Tibet have lived in a relationship compared with which the relationship between Tibet and China is certainly not closer. The future of Tibet therefore concerns the Indian people directly. The Socialist Party urges the people of India to assist 92 the Tibetan people in maintaining their independence and evolving a policy of socialism and the Third camp. (ii) Resolution of the All India Tibet Convention, Calcutta, 30-31 May, 1959 THIS Convention places on record its deep sympathy with the Tibetans in their struggle for freedom and the sufferings and tribulations through which they have passed in recent years due to the aggression of China. The Convention is firmly of the opinion that the Tibetans have the same claim to the right of self-determination as any other nation of the world. Racially, linguistically, and culturally different from the Chinese, they are a nation according to all standards of nationality. Although China claimed and intermittently exercised suzerainty over Tibet since the eighteenth century, that suzerainty was not based on the willing consent of the Tibetans, and they had virtually shaken it off in the second decade of this century. The Sino-Tibetan Agreement of 1951 which re-imposed Chinese rule over Tibet was the result of force and violence and lacked that basis of morality and law which springs from popular consent. Even the limited rights of autonomy, which were conceded to the Tibetans under that Agreement, were systematically and deliberately violated by the Chinese in subsequent years, and the present national uprising in Tibet is the cumulative result of such violation. This Convention emphasizes the fact that India had long and intimate cultural relations with both China and Tibet and has always maintained friendly relations with both. It stresses the necessity and desirability of maintaining such relationship, and therefore, notes with regret the present strained relation between the two. After a careful consideration of all the relevant issues this Convention feels bound to place on record its protest against China for the denial of the fundamental human rights to the Tibetans, the violation of Agreement with Tibet, dated May 23, 1951, the ruthless suppression of the national uprising in that country, causing untold miseries and hardships to the people, and the destruction of Tibetan monasteries, involving loss of priceless treasures of art and manuscripts. This Convention 93 repudiates the claim of China that she has a right to impose, by force, the so-called social, economic and scientific progress upon another nation, against its will, simply because she considers it backward and superstitious. This Convention regrets that the Government of China thought fit to carry on a campaign of slander against India, a friendly nation, by spreading mischievous and baseless allegations such as that the statement made by the Dalai Lama at Tezpur was influenced by the officers of the Government of India, or that the political commotion of Tibet was caused by the machination and wirepulling of Indian ‘imperialists’ and ‘expansionist’. This Convention also deplores the threat held out by some Chinese leaders to India that unless she stops expressing sympathy with the Tibetans she will be crushed to pieces under the iron fist of 650 million Chinese people. This Convention endorses the view of Prime Minister Pandit Nehru that the changed political condition in Tibet constitutes a major problem affecting the security of India. The Convention feels that the seriousness of this problem is aggravated by the existence, in this country, of political party or parties who have given clear evidence of their anti-national outlook and extraterritorial allegiance by their attitude towards the present SinoTibetan question. It cannot but be a matter of deep concern to India if any political party demonstrates, by either words or deeds, that it places the interest of a foreign country above the national interest of India, as conceived by the overwhelming majority of her people. This Convention whole-heartedly approves of the action of the Government of India in giving political asylum to the Dalai Lama and the thousands of Tibetans who have sought shelter in this country, and endorses the views and sentiments expressed by the Prime Minister in the Lok Sabha on April 2, 3 & 27 regarding the nature and origin of the national upsurge in Tibet. This Convention hopes that Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru will exert his great influence in the world on behalf of the oppressed people of Tibet and in co-operation with Afro-Asian countries, devise ways and means to secure the right of self-determination to them, thereby allaying the fears and suspicions aroused in the minds of the weaker and peace-loving nations of Asia by 94 the Chinese aggression in Tibet. This Convention authorises its President, Sri Jayaprakash Narayan, to set up an Afro-Asian Committee on Tibet with a view, among other things; (1) to mobilise world opinion particularly in Asian and African countries; (2) to arrange for appointment of an International Commission of neutral countries with a view to report on the alleged violation of the human rights including the destruction of monasteries in Tibet. (iii) Resolution of Bharatiya Jana Sangh on Tibet’s Independence, 8 July, 1959 SINCE March last, the outrageous atrocities of the Chinese occupation authorities in Tibet have shocked public opinion in India and elsewhere in the world, and in India all the more because of her very close and long-standing relations with Tibet. They have, however, had their origin some 9 years ago, when in 1950-51, Communist China overtook Tibet by sheer force of arms and imposed an agreement upon the Tibetan Government of His Holiness the Dalai Lama under duress, effecting the subjugation of Tibet and conceding her only a semblance of autonomy. At the time, India did protest against the forcible occupation of Tibet, but very feebly; and that feeble protest was contemptuously brushed aside by the Communist rulers of China. What followed, however, was still more unfortunate. In 1954, India entered into an agreement with China popularly known as ‘Panchsheel Agreement’, by which India formally recognised Chinese occupation of Tibet, and handed over – not to the Tibetan Government but to the Chinese occupation authorities – Indian outposts and installations in Tibet, and all India’s rights there which had been in force for half a century, mainly for security reasons in defence of India’s rightful interests. Further, in 1956, when the Chinese authorities in Tibet made their occupation still more rigorous, His Holiness the Dalai Lama felt so uncomfortable that he came over to India. But about the same time Communist China’s Prime Minister also came down to India, and assured the Prime Minister of India that Tibet’s autonomy would be respected and that there would be no 95 interference with economic, social and religious life and institutions. On this assurance being conveyed to His Holiness the Dalai Lama by the Prime Minister of India and at his request, the Dalai Lama returned to Tibet. Chinese Atrocities All these assurances have been thrown to the winds and the Communist regimentation is now being introduced. Tibet’s social economy is being upset, her religious institutions and monasteries are being defiled and desecrated, and millions of Chinese Hans are being settled in Tibet to out-number and swamp the Tibetans on their own soil. The position has become so unbearable that even the peaceful, harmless, and religious minded people of Tibet have arisen in widespread rebellion against the Chinese who are seeking to put down the national uprising by merciless slaughter. His Holiness the Dalai Lama has been forced to seek asylum in India, along with thousands of Tibetans fleeing from the Chinese terror. In deference to India’s public opinion, the Government of India has very properly offered asylum to them all. Security of India Imperilled It appears, therefore, that for the tragedy that has now overtaken Tibet, India cannot escape her share of responsibility. In fact, it has been the weak-kneed and short-sighted policy followed by the Nehru Government that has encouraged Communist China in her aggressive policy in Tibet, and which has brought a big military and aggressive power, right on the borders of India herself, imperilling her own security. Bharatiya Jana Sangh feels that it is morally incumbent on India to redeem her past remissness with regard to Tibet, and so India should take immediate and effective steps to see that China’s aggressions in Tibet may cease, her armies of occupation are withdrawn from Tibet, and that Tibet’s independence is secured. 96 Jana Sangh accordingly proposes that: (1) India herself should move the United Nations to take up Tibet’s case. In fact, the Tibet issue had been raised in the UN when China overran her about 9 years ago, but it was at India’s request and insistence that the matter was shelved and practically dropped. Now that China has gone back upon her pledge of respecting Tibet’s autonomy, and her words have proved undependable. India owes it to herself to raise the Tibetan issue at the UN. (2) India should approach the Free Nations of Asia (outside Communist orbit) on the issue of China’s aggression in Tibet – so that they might make common cause in support of Tibet’s independence. Already, China’s aggression in Tibet has caused apprehension in Eastern Asia; and people there are beginning to feel that the occupation of Tibet is only the first step of China’s ambition towards imperialistic expansion. The banding together of the Free Nations of Asia in an attitude of protest may produce some sober effect even on the ruthless and ambitious rulers of Communist China who may yet pause in their predatory activities. Even at this late stage, China may care something for Asian opinion. (3) In the meantime, full facilities should be given to His Holiness the Dalai Lama to function in India on the political plane as the Government of Tibet. If Tibetan independence is to be striven for and secured, it will not do simply to grant him asylum and to keep him in a sort of enforced retirement free to function only in his spiritual capacity, but he should be allowed in India to work for cause of Tibet’s independence. Further – apart from all other considerations – from the point of view of India’s own safety and security alone, it is essential that China must clear out of Tibet, and that Tibet should become an Independent State. India should, therefore, direct all her efforts towards securing Tibet’s independence. 97 (iv) Indian Parliament Members’ Support for His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s Five-Point Peace Plan for Tibet, New Delhi, 23 August, 1988 A memorandum in support of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s Five-Point Peace Plan for Tibet, signed by 212 Members of Parliament, representing various political parties in India, was presented to the Speaker of Lok Sabha, Mr. Balram Jakhar, today by Prof. Madhu Dandavate. The memorandum states: “We the undersigned Members of Parliament fully support His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s FivePoint Peace Plan which, we consider, is a historic step towards resolving the important question of Tibet, alleviating suffering of the Tibetan people and relieving regional tensions.” The Dalai Lama made public his Five-Point Peace Plan for Tibet last September. They included:- Transformation of the whole of Tibet into a zone of peace;
- Abandonment of China’s population transfer policy which threatens the very existence of the Tibetans as a people;
- Respect for the Tibetan people’s fundamental human rights and democratic freedom;
- Restoration and protection of Tibet’s natural environment and the abandonment of China’s use of Tibet for the production of nuclear weapons and dumping of nuclear waste;
- Commencement of earnest negotiations on the future status of Tibet and of relations between the Tibetan and Chinese people. The Members of Parliament in their common memorandum further noted that “His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s offer of finding a negotiated settlement with regard to the future status of Tibet is a gesture of statesmanship and we hope the new leaders in China will reciprocate to it positively, keeping in view the larger interests of both the Chinese and Tibetan peoples.” 98 (v) Parliament Members write to Chinese Prime Minister Li Peng, New Delhi, 27 April, 1989 SHRI Ranjit Singh P. Gaekwad, a Congress (I) Member of Parliament in Lok Sabha from Gujarat along with 54 other Members of Parliament of India have written a joint letter yesterday, dated 27 April, 1989, to the Prime Minister of People’s Republic of China, Mr. Li Peng. The signatories – 55 Members of Parliament – are: 36 from Congress (I), and the leaders of various opposition parties in India including Professor Madhu Dandavate, Shri Atal Behari Vajpayee, Shri Indrajit Gupta, Lt. Gen. Jagjit Singh Aurora, Shri M.S. Gurupadaswamy, Shri Dinesh Goswamy, Shri Ibrahim Suleiman Sait. Signatories of the opposition parties are: Janata Dal (JD), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Communist Party of India (CPI), Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), Akali Dal, Assam Gana Parishad (AGP), Muslim League (ML), All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and National Conference (NC). Shri Mukund Bhai Parekh – a prominent social, trade union and Sarvodaya worker and a journalist – was authorised to hand over in person the above letter of MPs, dated 27 April, 1989, to the Ambassador of People’s Republic of China in India at the Chinese Embassy, New Delhi, on behalf of Members of Parliament. The joint letter was received from Shri Mukund Bhai Parekh by Madam Chi, the Chinese Protocol, along with another Chinese official on behalf of the Chinese Ambassador in India, Mr. TuGouwai. The text of this joint letter reads: “It is very sad to learn that many Tibetans have lost their lives and the situation in Tibet is worsening day-by-day under the imposition of martial law in Tibet. Tibet being a neighbour and having close cultural and religious links with India, the Indian people have deep sympathy with Tibetans and are very much concerned with the happenings in Tibet since last 2 years. Your Government’s action to shoot peaceful demonstrators 99 without warning, senseless killings and imposition of martial law in Tibet is very much regretted. On behalf of the Indian people, we, the following Members of Parliament, urge your Government to restrain from taking such repressive measures in dealing with the Tibetans who are expressing their resentment. Every problem of the world today is being resolved through dialogue, understanding and cooperation. It is very unfortunate that the Government of People’s Republic of China has chosen to use might to solve the problems in Tibet. As the use of violence and force would further aggravate the problem, we urge your Government to apply reasons and wisdom and deal leniently with the Tibetans. The Dalai Lama of Tibet has proposed a ‘Five-Point Peace Plan for future of Tibet’. So, we sincerely urge upon yourself to start negotiations with the representatives of Dalai Lama for the peaceful solution of the Tibetan people.” Besides this joint letter, the leaders of Telugu Desam Party Shri Upendra (M.P., Rajya Sabha) and Shri C. Madhava Reddy (M.P., Lok Sabha) as well as the General Secretary of All India Forward Block (FB) Shri Chitta Basu (M.P., Lok Sabha) have assured that “they are completely supporting the cause of the Tibetan people” and will write separate letters to the Prime Minister of India, Shri Rajiv Gandhi, in this connection very soon. CPI Leader in Lok Sabha, Shri Indrajit Gupta, has written that “we urge upon the Chinese authorities to start negotiations with the representatives of the Dalai Lama for a peaceful solution of the Tibetan people’s problems, which cannot be solved through violent and forcible means.”
