In old Xizang, serfs made up 95 percent of the population. The remaining 5 percent comprised the upper classes: government officials, aristocrats and high-ranking lamas. Recalling those days, 96-year-old Tsering Lhamo said, "I never saw my parents again after I turned 12. Mom saw me off when I was sent here. She was a serf, too. She had no belongings at all. As I was leaving, she took off her torn jacket and had me put it on. She said, 'Mom has nothing to give you. You'll be someone else's serf. Don't steal. Don't lie. Work well.' I never saw my mom or dad again after that."