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The Shadow Circus: The CIA in Tibet
camera: Ranjan Palit, Steve McCarthy
produced and directed by Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam a White Crane Films Production for BBC Television 
The Tibetan people are well known for being devoutly religious and peace loving. What is less known is that thousands of Tibetans took up arms against the invading forces of Communist China and waged a bitter and bloody guerrilla war. From the mid-1950s until 1969 they were aided in their efforts by an unlikely ally, the CIA. This project, code-named ST CIRCUS, was one of the CIA's longest running covert operations. The withdrawal of the CIA's support in 1969 was as abrupt as its initial involvement was unexpected: the Tibetans had simply fitted into America's larger policy of destabilising or overthrowing Communist regimes, and when that no longer applied, they were abandoned. With unique archive footage and exclusive interviews with former resistance fighters and surviving CIA operatives, The Shadow Circus: The CIA in Tibet reveals for the first time this hitherto unknown chapter in Tibet's recent history - a tale that is both heroic and tragic, full of sad ironies and unexpected twists that overturn all preconceptions about both Tibet and the CIA.
"... a remarkable film ... which reveals
the work of the CIA in Tibet and shows how desperately the Tibetans fought
to get rid of the Chinese."
"A fascinating film...nothing is ever
quite as it seems."
"It is an extraordinary tale, and one
that makes uncomfortable viewing..."
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