Date of Award

2015

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Shi, Xia

Keywords

China, Ethnicity, Autonomy, Politics

Area of Concentration

International and Area Studies

Abstract

This thesis examines the importance of what I call the “foreign factor” in the Chinese Government’s issue with its Ethnic Minority Autonomous Regions, mostly of the Tibetans, Uyghurs and Mongols. By the “foreign factor,” I loosely refer to states, groups or individuals residing outside of the PRC’s border whose interactions with the Chinese government and/or minority regions had or has significant impact on the relationship of the two sides, specifically concerning the issue of autonomy. Few scholars have given enough attention to the effects of foreign influences on this issue. This thesis traces these “foreign factors” from the Qing dynasty until the present day in order to show how the influences evolve and build upon each other. It demonstrates, on the one hand, how these influences have shaped, and are continuing to shape the ethnic minorities’ political, religious and social ideologies, the actions they take in their quest for more autonomy, and their capacity to pressure the Chinese government. On the other hand, it examines how these influences have been affecting the Chinese government’s ideology regarding ethnicity and autonomy, their capacity to implement political control over the autonomous regions, and ultimately the actions they take towards combating ethnic unrest.

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