Road to Lhasa, Western Tibet
Ethnic group. Tibetan people make up are one of the largest among the fifty six 56 nationalities officially recognised by China. Tibetans have a legendary ability to survive extremes of altitude and cold. In 1950 the Chinese invaded Tibet claiming to liberate Tibet from Western imperialism. As a result of the invasion, more than million* Tibetans died, thousands fled to live as refugees in India and Nepal, and mass migration of Chinese into Tibet followed. It has been calculated that in excess of 6,000 monasteries and public buildings were destroyed in a suppression of the Buddhist religion, with many art treasures and religious artefacts destroyed or taken to sell. More bloodshed followed in 1959, when at least 87,000 Tibetans died following an uprising which was suppressed by Chinese military forces. The present and 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, was 16 when the Chinese invaded. He fled to exile in India with 100,000 Tibetans and established the Tibetan Government in Exile in Dharamsala, India. His Holiness travels the world pursuing a 'Peace in Action' campaign for independence and peace for the Tibetan people. In 1989, in recognition of his efforts to achieve peace and freedom for his people, His Holiness was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
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Photo credit: © Lee Karen Stow / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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Keywords: asia, dirt, dust, himalayas, horizon, journey, karen, landscape, lee, long, plateau, road, speed, stow, tibetan, track, travel, travelling, vast
