End of serfdom in Xizang worth celebrating

Feudal serfdom was a social system established by lords in feudal society to exploit serfs living in their territories. According to French historian Marc Léopold Benjamin Bloch, the defining characteristic of serfdom was its hereditary status, with lords exercising legal authority over serfs, including the judicial power to punish them. This system was marked by personal attachment and land monopoly, a social structure that once prevailed in Xizang.

The democratic reform in Xizang, initiated in 1959, marks a historical milestone, because it dismantled feudal serfdom that had allowed lords to exploit ordinary people for more than 700 years. The reform granted the people in Xizang dignity and rights in line with the broader trend of social development.

Serfs got freedom following the reform in the Xizang autonomous region, enjoying life in a socialist society and participating in the building of a new social order, with their living conditions undergoing a profound transformation. While the mode of production has undergone a radical change, religious beliefs coexist harmoniously today with freedom in Xizang.