Protests and uprisings in Tibet since 1950

Protests and uprisings against the government of the People's Republic of China have occurred in Tibet since 1950, and include the 1959 uprising, the 2008 uprising, and the subsequent self-immolation protests.

Over the years the Tibetan government in exile, the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), has shifted the goal of its resistance stance from attempting measured cooperation with autonomy, to demanding full independence, to seeking "genuine autonomy for all Tibetans living in the three traditional provinces of Tibet within the framework of the People's Republic of China".^[1] However, not all exiled Tibetans are content with pursuing the current CTA policy of the Middle Way Approach and many expressed their frustration in 2008, against the Dalai Lama's wishes, by agitating for independence.

With the 14th Dalai Lama announcing his retirement from political life just before the April 2011 elections for Sikyong (Prime Minister) who will henceforth be Tibet's political leader, the nature of resistance may be moving into yet another phase, although the three leading candidates currently favor the Middle Way Approach.^{[citation needed]}