WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
Former Windies cricket legend Viv Richards on Saturday supported the Free Tibet movement and wished the region 'Happy Independence Day'.
Richards tweeted: "'Happy Independence Day, Tibet' Way To Go #FreedomForTibet."
“Happy Independence Day, Tibet" Way To Go #FreedomForTibet
— Sir Vivian Richards (@ivivianrichards) February 13, 2021
Tibet is considered as an autonomous region of China.
Beijing claims a centuries-old sovereignty over the Himalayan region. But the allegiances of many Tibetans lie with the exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, seen by his followers as a living god, but by China as a separatist threat, BBC reported.
China sent in thousands of troops to enforce its claim on the region in 1950. Some areas became the Tibetan Autonomous Region and others were incorporated into neighbouring Chinese provinces, reports the British news channel.
Recently, Lobsang Sangay, the Prime Minister in Exile of Tibet spoke to WION about China's abuses against Tibetans, and the larger role played by India in highlighting these abuses.
Sangay shed light on how India has helped Tibetans, saying that all the institutions that were destroyed in Tibet were rebuilt in India.
"We always accept that India has done the most for Tibetans because the largest number of Tibetans are here, all the monasteries and cultural institutions that were destroyed in Tibet were rebuilt here, and we have revived our civilisation here," he told the news channel.