| In May 1951 Tibet signed a treaty with China’s Communist government that gave the Dalai Lama power over Tibetan domestic affairs but ceded control of foreign and military affairs to the Chinese government. In 1956 a committee was established to prepare a constitution for Tibet as an autonomous region of China; the Dalai Lama was named chairman and the Panchen Lama first vice chairman of the committee. Here, the Dalai Lama (far right) and the Panchen Lama (far left) meet with Chinese leader Mao Zedong in 1956. Three years later, the Dalai Lama fled Tibet and began a life in exile, championing Tibetan independence from abroad. |
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