The Chinese want Tibet; they just don't want the Tibetans.

The eyes of the world have now turned towards Tibet. Far-reaching protests broke out on 10 March in Lhasa, exactly 49 years after Tibetans staged an uprising against Chinese rule. They have now spread to other parts of China inhabited by Tibetans. Beijing has sent in troops, and nearly 200 Tibetans have been killed. Some monks are being held incommunicado and tortured.

The Dalai Lama has called for an international inquiry, accusing China of a "rule of terror" and "cultural genocide". The diplomatic condemnation was led by Barack Obama, the U.S. Democratic presidential hopeful, who warned China's leaders that the eyes of the world were upon them in an Olympic year.

China is extinguishing an ancient civilization and destroying a cultural heritage. It's as simple as that.

The Chinese invaded Tibet in 1950, and since then, China has brutally inflicted misery on the Tibetans. As many as 400,000 Tibetans were killed during the national uprising when Tibet tried to expel the Chinese. During the next 20 years, 1.2 million Tibetans, one-fifth of the country's population, died as a result of China's policies. No one really knows how many Tibetans were sent to labor camps. Chinese troops pillaged and destroyed more than 6,000 monasteries and temples.

The Qinghai-Tibet Railway recently opened, linking China with Tibet. The Chinese said it will help the area economically but in reality, the railway will encourage further immigration from China and reduce the proportion of Tibetans. The Chinese government will be able to transport troops more quickly and thereby strenghen its military grip.

There is one Chinese soldier for every 10 Tibetans as opposed to one for every 114 Chinese citizens. The Chinese are still imprisoning thousands of Tibetans for their political or religious activities; torture is carried out regularly; sexual assault is used to punish, humiliate and coerce nuns.

The Chinese now outnumber Tibetans in Tibet by 2 to 1, and the number of Chinese increases. Chinese replaced Tibetan as the official language. Secondary school children are taught all classes in Chinese. Many children are sent away to China for an education that estranges them from their own culture. In 1992 there were 10,000 such children in China.

Despite the violence, despite the fear and the loss of autonomy, the Tibetans refuse to let China devour their country.