Tibetan Forgotten Heroes: The Story of Tibet's Armed Resistance Against China

In 1949, the People's Liberation Army of China sent troops into Tibet. At first, Chinese soldiers behaved respectfully towards the local people, distributing clothes, blankets, tools, medicine and even money. Soon, however, it became clear that a new era in Tibetan history had begun, namely one of oppression, atrocities and ...resistance. Tibet's Forgotten Heroes is a unique historical document on Tibetan resistance to Chinese oppression. For the very first time since the events, forty-eight stories by Tibetan warriors involved in the struggle for freedom are given unabridged, creating a vivid and emotional spectrum of events in Tibet since 1949. Birgit van de Wijer has been careful to provide an honest transcription of the interviews, acting only as a 'service hatch'. The first-hand interviews as well as the translation into English were conducted by native Tibetans. The book is the result of two years' work with dozens of Tibetans involved.

Birgit van de Wijer was born in Holland in 1960. She has an MA in Archaeology and a BA in Oriental Studies at the Catholic University Leuven (KU Leuven). She also has a degree in Marketing & Advertising at the Ecole de Commerce Solvay in Brussels. Her former works include (self-published, May 2006) and Escape to Freedom: The Dangerous Trek of Tibetan Youth (Paljor Publications). She lectures in Belgium on the subject of her first book Child Exodus from Tibet and carries out educational workshops on Tibet in primary and secondary schools in Belgium.She has made several keynote speeches on the situation in Tibet including a speech for the Tibet Intergroup of the European Parliament (Strasbourg, April 2007) and the Tibet Support Group.