The rallying cry "Free Tibet" can even be observed in the caps worn by
the down-and-outs begging for nickles and dimes in the streets of
Vancouver downtown. I wonder how many of them are able to show where
Tibet is on map. But let us see how possible (or probable) it is for
a 'Free Tibet' to materialize.
There are 58 ethnic groups in China and the Tibetans are not even the
largest one. The attempt to restore a 'Free Tibet' in accordance with
the Dalai Lama's formula, which encompasses about 1/4 of China's
current territory, would mean having to walk over the dead bodies of
the other 57 ethnic groups.
"The Dalai Lama's stated aim is for Beijing to grant some kind of
limited autonomy to Tibet......... has been that the new autonomous
region would include so-called "greater" Tibet, that is, all the
traditionally ethnic-Tibetan areas now parts of the provinces of
Sichuan, Yunnan, Gansu and Qinghai. In total, that would compromise
around a quarter of China's current territory. No government in
Beijing could ever contemplate such a giveaway, which would almost
certainly unleash a nationalist backlash of frightening proportions."
http://en.chinaelections.org/newsinfo.asp?newsid=17363
Territorial claims have to be practical to make any sense.
Vietnam and Mongolia proper were once parts of China for a millennia.
Korea used to rule northern China for a quite a while. Other examples
are...
