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Shadows and Circus: The CIA in Tibet
University of California Extension Center for Media and Independent Learning,
Berkeley, CA 94704
510-642-0460
This video offers a fascinating glimpse into a little known attempt by
the
CIA to aid Tibetan resistance fighters in a battle against the Chinese
between
1956 and 1969. It was an ultimately losing battle, but it offers archival
footage,
interviews with both American CIA agents who helped the Tibetans and the
few
Tibetans left who actually participated in the operations.
Content Questions:
1. When and why did the Chinese invade Tibet?
2. Why did the CIA become involved?
3. According to the Americans, what kind of operation was it, and what
were
its intentions?
4. Describe the methods used by the CIA to train and stock the Tibetans?
5. In what state were the Tibetans trained and why?
6. What happened at Pembar?
7. Why did the US finally withdraw from the operation?
8. Where do the surviving Tibetan fighters now live and what are their
conditions?
Discussion Questions:
1. Why did the American agents like the Tibetans so much?
2. Why was the resistance doomed to failure?
3. Contrast the motivations and expectations of the Tibetan fighters and
the
American agents.
4. Contrast the pictures of the American houses with the scenes from modern
Nepal?
5. Discuss the real motivation of American foreign policy during the Cold
War
and how Tibet was a mere token in that war.
6. How does American self-interest determine its foreign policy?
7. What are some current examples of this American self-interest t?
Website Link: http://www.cia.gov/
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