On this day in 1959, the Dalai Lama fled Tibet, China🇨🇳
A reminder of what the Dalai Lama’s rule over Tibet meant for its people, which is not discussed in mainstream media:
-80-95% of the population were serfs, some monasteries owned thousands of serfs
-Disobedient serfs endured torture including having their eyes being gouged out
-The 14th Dalai Lama’s family owned 27 manors and 6000 serfs
-95% of the population were illiterate
-Tibet had a life expectancy of just 35 years
-No modern roads, railways, or electricity infrastructure
Contrast this to modern Tibet after liberation by the People’s Liberation Army:
-Extreme poverty eliminated by 2020
-Literacy rate: 95%+
-Life expectancy: 72-74 years
-Universal primary education, with expansion of universities
-Railway infrastructure to the rest of China, with airports, highways and electrification