Teaching with the News

Taiwan, Tibet, and China

China on the World Stage: Weighing the U.S. Response addresses these issues. A new edition was recently published.

Events in Taiwan, Tibet, and China are in the news. In and around Tibet, protests against the Chinese government have been met with a crackdown from Chinese security forces. The violence in Tibet has escalated to levels not seen in twenty years. The Chinese government blames the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s spiritual leader in exile, for inciting the violence. Chinese leaders say the Dalai Lama seeks complete independence for Tibet and wants to discredit China ahead of the Summer Olympics in Beijing. Supporters of the Tibetan protestors say that the Dalai Lama seeks only more autonomy from China and has not encouraged the protests. Since 1951 the Chinese government has claimed that Tibet is part of China.

In Taiwan, a new president was elected on March 22nd in a tighter race than had originally been predicted. The president-elect, Ma Ying-jeou, is a member of the Kuomintang or Nationalist Party (KMT), which supports a closer relationship with China than the current party in power, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). Taiwan and China have been at odds for decades regarding Taiwan’s status with China. Some Taiwanese seek complete independence from China, while China asserts that there is “one China” and that Taiwan has been a part of China for centuries and should continue to be so.

Before the Tibetan uprising, President-elect Ma had been expected to win by a large margin. The situation in Tibet made many Taiwanese feel they should take a firmer stance against China than Ma advocated, so support for Ma wavered, though not enough to prevent his election. In the last days of the election campaign both the KMT and DPP sought to support Tibet’s calls for autonomy but not to provoke the Chinese government. “What has happened in Tibet in the past three decades, and what is going on now, is a warning to us,” said a DPP member. “We don’t want to have the same fate as Tibet.” The tightrope Taiwanese politicians are walking is related not just to events in China, Taiwan, and Tibet, but also to U.S. security, since the United States is a key figure in the China-Taiwan relationship.

Resources from the Choices Program

The Choices curriculum unit China on the World Stage: Weighing the U.S. Response provides more background on both of these issues, including an extensive lesson plan on the relationship among China, Taiwan, and the United States. These resources can help your students make sense of the news and explain why American leaders are paying close attention to the conflicts.

Additional Online Resources

Teachers might find it useful to have students explore the following online resources for coverage of current events.

PBS Newshour: Deep-rooted Tensions Surface in Tibet Unrest

BBC Q&A: China and Tibet includes links to current news reports.

Newsweek has an interview with the Dalai Lama.

Council on Foreign Relations provides analysis of election of Ma Ying-jeou, plus links to backgrounders on Taiwan-China relations.

The New York TImes provides general information about Taiwan , including links to other sites and to current news articles

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Review a list of Choices publications: In addition to its online resources, the Choices Program publishes a wide range of curriculum units on historical turning points and current issues. All published units include extensive background readings and accompanying lesson plans. Ordering is available online.