Quote Originally Posted by SteveMetz View Post
Did the UN actually call/condemn Western Sahara and East Timor as "colonialism"? I honestly don't know. My point is that how an issue is portrayed plays a major role in how the world sees it and responds to it. China has succeeded in having Tibet depited as a purely "internal" matter. If that could be shifted, Beijing would face different pressures.
I don't think so, because both Morocco and Indonesia did not view Western Sahara nor Timor-Leste as colonies, but rather as integral parts of the nation - just as Russia views Chechnya and China views Tibet. Britain never viewed Nigeria as an integral part of the United Kingdom, OTOH.

Also as to why no one ever took Tibet to the UN Special Committee on Decolonization - see China's seat on the Security Council.

There is an informative post on tensions within the Tibetan independence movement here. One wonders about the movement's future once its charismatic leader passes on.