Democratic Reform in 1959
After the peaceful liberation of Tibet in 1951, Tibet continued to follow the feudal serfdom. Since the conditions were not yet ready for excising such reform, Chairman Mao, in a report on ‘Questions Concerning Correct Handling of Contradictions Among the People’, fully stated the policy on Tibet of “sustaining for six years without change”. The policy was, in fact, another concession to Tibet and its purpose was to await full public awareness of the targets of peaceful reform.
However, a high-level reactionary group in Tibet was against the reforms from the start. They went so far as to openly tear up the 17-Article Agreement and announced the “independence of Tibet” on March 10, 1959. They organized Tibetan forces to surround the Tibetan Military Area and the organs of the Central Government in Tibet and launched a full attack early on March 20th. In order to maintain the unity of China, the Central Government issued an order to put down the rebellion in Tibet, announcing that the Preparatory Committee for the Founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region was to act as the local government. Tibet entered a new stage of suppressing rebellion and carrying out reform.
The foundation of preparatory committee of Tibet Autonomous Region, photo taken on April 22, 1956.
The Preparatory Committee for the Founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region passed in July 1959 the ‘Resolution on Democratic Reform’, deciding to completely put down the rebellion, fully arouse the masses to action and carry out Democratic Reform throughout the region. The first step of Democratic Reform was against rebellion, against the ula corvee labor system and against slavery in reduction of rents and reduction of interest (known in brief as the “3A2R” movement). The serfs and slaves, in the process of struggling against the rebellion, exposed and criticized the crimes of the rebels for their burning, killing and pillaging, for the harm they had done to the people, for their activities in undermining unity, and for their opposition to the Central Government. They denounced through their own experiences their untold suffering that the serf owners imposed on them to squeeze and destroy them ruthlessly with the ula corvee labor and slavery system. The serfs and slaves awakened in the 3A movement had their own leaders. Through selection they organized their own leadership institute, the Farmers’ Association, forming their own power center. Several months later, the Farmers’ Associations were founded widely in the areas where Democratic Reform was excised and they guided the work in the reduction of rents and interest.
Under the policy, the land of the estate-holders involved in the rebellion was “to be reaped by those who had planted it”; the land leased by the estate-holders (and their agents) who had not participated in the rebellion was “to be reduced in rent by 20 percent”; all the debts borne by the serfs to the three estate holders before 1958 were abolished and the debts owing to the estate-holders who didn’t participate in the 1959 rebellion were reduced in interest to a rate of one percent a month. The achievement resulting from “reducing rent by 20 percent” and abolishing the old debts was considerable. According to statistics from 1959 to 1960, when the Democratic Reform was nearly completed, the usury and debts abolished in the region as a whole were about equal to 400 million kilograms of grain, which fundamentally removed the heavy chains from the serfs.
As the struggle against rebellion won an essential victory and the “3A2R” movement developed further, destroying completely the land occupation system of the three estate holders and eliminating the base of the feudal serf system had become an urgent demand for the serfs to win complete liberation. The third plenary session of the Preparatory Committee of Autonomous Regions was held in late September 1959 and passed a ‘Resolution on Abolition of Feudal Serf-Ownership of Land and Introduction of Farmer Land Ownership’. The Resolution decided to satisfy the just demands of the million serfs by abolishing the feudal serf-ownership of land and introducing farmers’ land ownership. It particularly stressed the land reform policy in farming areas and emphasized that the livestock breeding ownership in pastoral areas would remain unchanged while carrying out the “3A2B” policy (to struggle against rebellion, against ula corvee labor system and against slavery while being beneficial to hired herdsmen and beneficial to herd owners).
Most of the work for land reform in farming areas was carried out in the winter of 1959 and the spring of 1960. The first step was to confiscate the land and other means of production of serf owners and their agents involved in the rebellion; For serf owners and their agents who did not participate in the rebellion, their excessive land, livestock (limited to the countryside), houses and farm tools were to be handed over. By the end of 1960, when land reform of the whole region was nearly accomplished, the land distributed to serfs and slaves accounted to more than 2.8 million ke (about 186,000 hectares) in total, 3.5 ke (about 0.23 hectare) per capita.
According to the policy, the excessive land, livestock, farm tools and houses of the serf owners and their agents, who had not involved in the rebellion, were bought out. The farmland bought out accounted for over 900,000 ke (about 60,000 hectares) in total, livestock 82,000 head, farm tools 20,000 sets, and 64,200 houses. These were evaluated at market prices to be paid by the government within 8-13 years. In September 1961, over 2,000 households obtained their buy-out certificates and the first-stage payment was made. Progressive personages who had not been involved in the rebellion were given suitable jobs and some became leaders in the Preparatory Committee of Autonomous Regions.
The primary work of Democratic Reform was basically accomplished by the end of 1961.
The Democratic Reform completely overturned the reactionary, backward feudal serf system and enabled the million serfs to be freed from the rigid control and oppression of serf owners and obtain their rights as human beings, which changed the conditions of human rights of the people in Tibet and paved a way for social development in the region.
Establishment of the Tibet Autonomous Region in 1965
Tibet exercises national regional autonomy according to the PRC Constitution. The State protects the political rights of all Tibetan ethnic groups in equal administration of State and local affairs, especially the autonomous rights of the Tibetan people in self-administration of local affairs and ethnic affairs. These rights reach every corner in political, economic, cultural and social development. According to the actual historical situation of Tibet and in consideration of the factors concerning the political, economic, religious, cultural and other features, a special, flexible policy differing from those in areas of other nationalities in China was adopted when implementing national regional autonomy.
On March 9, 1955, Premier Zhou Enlai presided over the 7th enlarged session of the State Council, which passed the ‘Decision on Establishment of the Preparatory Committee for the Founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region’. The decision points out that “the Preparatory Committee for the Founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region is a governmental organ in charge of the preparatory work for founding the Tibet Autonomous Region and it is controlled by the State Council. Its primary mission is to prepare for the establishment of regional autonomy in Tibet according to the stipulations of the PRC Constitution and the agreement for the peaceful liberation of Tibet in 1951, as well as the actual conditions of Tibet.” The State Council also decided to appoint the Dalai Lama as Chairman of the Committee, the Panchen Erdeni as the first Vice Chairman and Zhang Guohua as second Vice Chairman.
The ceremonial founding conference for the Preparatory Committee for the Founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region took place in the newly built Lhasa Hall on April 22, 1956. The establishment of the Preparatory Committee of Autonomous Regions enabled Tibet to take an important step forward in practice of national regional autonomy, which was a cornerstone for Tibet on its way to development.
While national regional autonomy developed smoothly in Tibet, some diehard high-level personages who still favored the serf system instigated armed rebellion on March 10, 1959. When the rebellion was put down and the Democratic Reform was implemented, local people’s power was founded at different levels. From the actual conditions of Tibet, the Preparatory Committee of Autonomous Regions passed in July 1959 the ‘Organization of Peasants Associations in Various Counties, Districts and Townships in Tibet’, stipulating that the peasant associations at district and township levels may act as primary political power. By April 1965, seven prefectures and one city, as well as 72 counties, had established people’s governments, in addition to people’s governments in 20 districts and 300 townships. In March 1962, the Preparatory Committee issued ‘Instructions on Carrying Out Election of Grassroots Cadres in Whole Region (Draft)’. By July and August in 1965, the elections in townships and counties of the whole autonomous region were nearly finished. There were a total of 1,359 townships and towns involved in basic-level elections, while another 567 townships and towns held people’s congresses acting on behalf of the People’s Congress. The two together constituted 92 percent of the total townships and towns in the Tibet Autonomous Region. The people’s political power at basic level was thus founded with absolute predominance of serfs and slaves. There were in the region 54 counties that held a first session of the people’s congress, through which county magistrates and vice county magistrates were elected and the people’s commissions of counties were established. At the same time, 301 deputies were elected to the People’s Congress of the Autonomous Region.
Based on this, and after the approval of the Central Government, the First Session of the People’s Congress of the Tibet Autonomous Region was held in Lhasa on September 1-9, 1965. The Tibet Autonomous Region was officially founded and Ngapoi Ngawang Jigmei became its first Chairman.
