Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
THE FALL OF CHAMDO
In spring 1950, Chamdo in eastern Tibet was in real trouble. Although pockets of resist-
ance remained at Derge and Markham, the communist Chinese had taken control of
most of Kham without a fight. Chinese armies were quickly tightening the noose around
Tibet, moving in from Xīnjiāng and Xikang (now Sìchuān) provinces in a pincer movement
masterminded by, among others, Deng Xiaoping.
The first skirmish between Chinese and Tibetan troops took place in May 1950 when
the People's Liberation Army (PLA) attacked Dengo on the Dri-chu (Yangzi River). Then
on 7 October 1950 the PLA moved in earnest, as 40,000 troops crossed the Dri-chu and
attacked Chamdo from three directions: Jyekundo to the north, Derge to the east and
Markham to the south.
As panic swept through Chamdo, the city responded to the military threat in character-
istic Tibetan fashion - with a frenzy of prayer and religious ritual. When the local Tibetan
leader radioed the Tibetan government in Lhasa to warn of the Chinese invasion, he was
coolly told that the government members couldn't be disturbed because they were 'on a
picnic'. To this the Chamdo radio operator is said to have replied 'skyag pa'i gling kha!,or
'shit the picnic!'. It was to be the last ever communication between the Chamdo and
Lhasa branches of the Tibetan government.
The city was evacuated but the PLA was one step ahead. Chinese leaders knew that
speed was of the essence (the Chinese described the military operation as 'like a tiger
trying to catch a fly') and had already cut the Tibetans off by taking Riwoche. The
Tibetans surrendered without a shot on 19 October. The Tibetan troops were disarmed,
given lectures on the benefits of socialism, and then given money and sent home. The
British radio operator Robert Ford, who was based in Chamdo, was less lucky. He was ar-
rested, subjected to thought reform and held in jail for five years. It was the beginning of
the end of an independent Tibet.
Uprising & Bloodshed
The Tibetan New Year of 1959, like all the New Year celebrations before it, attracted huge
crowds to Lhasa, doubling the city's population. In addition to the standard festival activit-
ies, the Chinese had added a highlight of their own - a performance by a Chinese dance
group at the Lhasa military base. The invitation to the Dalai Lama came in the form of a
thinly veiled command. The Dalai Lama, wishing to avoid offence, accepted.
