India's special role on Tibet issue; know why New Delhi needs to actively counter China's historical narrative

India needs to actively counter the Chinese historical narrative, which is an integral part of China’s strategy on Tibet which is misleading the world. Not contesting this has made it significantly harder to challenge other narratives such as the one on the South China Sea. It would be of critical importance for India to bust the narrative and try to project the real narrative on Tibet. Tibet was never part of China. There is no legal basis on the occupation by the People's Republic of China (PRC) and it is solely on a ‘self-serving basis’. Tibet is an occupied country and the PRC doesn’t possess sovereignty over it.

"It is important for India to understand that not only Tibet but the entire Himalayan region is of utmost importance for Indian geopolitical interests and India should start working to secure its interests. The Indian Government has an obligation under international law to resolve the Sino-Tibetan conflict. Apart from promoting peace in the region, Delhi would have to send a message that the conflict has not been resolved and the world needs To pay attention to it," said Dr Michael Van Walt a professor of international law and international relations during his briefing on the book 'Tibet Brief’ 20/20’.

India has no longer made statements on China that it recognizes Tibet as a sovereign state. Late last year, the US Department of State referred to Tibet as an ‘occupied territory’, which was a significant move. India and the whole world should not succumb to China’s pressure. This would strengthen India’s position and help to resolve the conflict on the border, added Dr Michael Van.

He further argued, “Let me make this clear - India has a special role to play when it comes to the Tibet issue. Other countries look towards India for guidance on their Tibet policy. India does have a significant effect on the world’s Tibet policies. The only way to stop bullying is by ending the compliance with the bully’s demands. This has started and we can see that the world is increasingly countering the Chinese aggression. The need now is to bring similar powers together in an alliance to counter China. When we started writing this book, such a climate didn't exist. But governments have increasingly started to stand up against China.

The Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) has not made the concession that Tibet is an integral part of China. His Holiness Dalai Lama and the CTA have offered the Chinese government to negotiate over the conflict that would result in accepting a robust autonomy within PRC. I don’t think that we can assume that the Tibetan side has made a concession and started to believe that Tibet is a part of China. The middle way approach means that conflict needs to be resolved with non-violence to bring China to the negotiation table.

"Personally, seeing the way China is behaving in Tibet, East Turkestan, Hong Kong, Inner Mongolia, etc., I find it difficult to see how China would respect even a favourable and robust autonomy even if they agree to come to an agreement. I feel it difficult to believe that this would actually work.” He concluded by arguing - “as Pandit Nehru had said - it is for the Tibetans themselves to decide their destiny. And the best way to do this is allowing them to exercise their right to self - determination.”

Sharing the story of his struggle for Tibetan independence and thoughts about the liberation movement,  Tibetan activist and writer Tenzin Tsundue said, “They are our enemy and are destroying our country. We are not going to give up and would recreate the freedom movement in Tibet. The author is so right to say that what China does is manipulate the narrative to justify its occupation. Hundreds of immolations have happened in Tibet and numerous uprisings have taken place. 

"The author’s advice that the Tibetans or the Tibetan government in exile must not buckle under Chinese pressure and completely leave appealing China and playing up to China’s politics is exactly on the point. It would certainly be undermining the trust of Tibetans. I am a Tibetan born and educated in India, waiting for the independence of Tibet. I feel pain when India is not speaking up for Tibet. I want India to protect its borders from China. One of the problems in fulfilling the commitment to the Tibetan independence movement is the ignorance amongst Indians on the Tibet issue. A lot of people in India have been believing in the slogan of ‘Hindi-Chini Bhai-Bhai’. No Indian textbooks talk about Tibet. They do talk about Burma, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and other countries. But nothing about Tibet. Hence, without the knowledge of Tibet, how would people stand up for its independence?" said Tenzin Tsundue.

Tibetan politician in exile and activist Gyari Dolma, “We have gradually fallen into a trap. I don't speak on the behalf of the CTA and just as a Tibetan. We are sometimes too cautious to speak on certain topics which are essential because we don't want to offend somebody and believe that this act would push the other side to come and sit on the negotiation table. Both the countries - Tibet and India, must come out of self-censorship, especially on the historical aspect of Tibet. We need to correct the narrative that Tibet today is an illegally occupied nation by the PRC. When I emphasize on this fact that it's time for the Government of India to really come out and recognize Tibet as an occupied nation and for the reason of 1914 Shimla agreement and the usage of such words, I really request everybody to refer to the India-Tibet border as Indo-Tibet border and not as Sino-Indian border. We need to correct all the narratives. If India recognizes Tibet as an independent nation, as it would not necessarily mean contradicting the One China policy.”

Former RAW chief CD Sahay underlined that the main issue is – ‘Was a wrong done? If a wrong was done, can it get time-barred by international law?’ The issue then comes when and how do people agree to this formulation that Tibet remains an illegally occupied territory? How much support is there within Tibet for this proposition? Even at different platforms available, there are lots of efforts being made continuously over the years by the PRC government to discourage people and countries from talking about this. We would need to think on and ensure how we propose to keep this debate going and make people speak, write, and act in the later stage.

Former Ambassador Anil Trigunayat said, I personally believe that China has never respected the ‘One India’ policy. And I think that there is no question that India should be reciprocating the same. China is continuing to expand itself and exercising its raw power. Dialogue is not going to take us very far and India needs to review its One China policy.

Former Special Secretary with the Government of India Krishan Verma added, “There is a reason for us that we need to reassess our position on Tibet. One, what is the feeling within Tibet? Second, what does the CTA actually believe in? Are they looking at general autonomy or want to go beyond that? I believe that it has diluted the demands and rightly so, that you need to offer a concession to bring them to the table. The US has taken a lead in the way through the Tibet Policy Support Act in 2002 and in 2020. India should begin to think of similar ideas. We should also start to think about ecology and the environment, most importantly water. This is something that would come to haunt us. We need to think about aligning with countries that think on similar lines about China."

Professor at Delhi University Dr Abanti Bhattacharya said, The several uprisings in Tibet highlight three things. First, China’s authority over Tibet is flawed. Second, China’s nation-building plan has failed. Third, Tibet is an occupied territory and clearly disputed. China has been representing the issue as a bilateral issue between China and India and not as a trilateral issue between India, Tibet, and China.”

Joyeeta Basu, editor of The Sunday Guardian further added, China is a state with no moral compass which violates all the agreements and treaties. If this is what managing the differences have brought us, why are we not taking steps to reverse it? She reinstates the need to stop normalizing the problem and legitimizing the occupation. India was first to do that before and now India should be the first to revoke it too.

Balochistan liberation activist Bilal Baloch also joined the event and argued that this is the time when India must change its policy of ‘non-interference’ towards the other countries. He stressed, “Dragon is a dragon; it will definitely bite you. The US and European countries are optimistic about India and they are watching India as a superpower in Asia and I am sad to say that India is not realizing it. Being a deep state, China is interfering in the internal issues of India. Even Pakistan is spreading religious extremism in India. China and Pakistan are one country in principle. India needs to reform its policies not only on Tibet but on Balochistan as well. Now China is in Gwadar, if it further comes within Gwadar, it would be more troubling for India. Dragon is making everyone suffer - Balochs, Mongolians, Tibetans, Uighurs, etc. So, the world needs to come together to tackle it.”

CEO of Usanas Foundation Abhinav Pandya, and also the organizer of this book discussion said the Western world has to realize that China’s wild expansionism doesn’t end in Tibet. Unless the world and the West doesn’t question the illegal Chinese occupation of Shaksgam valley which rightfully belongs to India, it's activities in Gilgit-Balochistan.