I guess I might provide a bit of background on why the general Chinese population feels that Tibet needs stay with China without full autonomy.

Generally, the people feel as if Tibet has taken benefits from Chinese rule and is now attempting to go off by itself. Granted, Chinese rule these past half century has hardly been perfect (Yeah, yeah, there were tons of killings/deaths, but it wasn't as if the Cultural Revolution, Great Lead Forward, ect... was just limited to Tibet. All Chinese suffered), but pre 1950s Tibet was hardly a paradise. The average lifespan was in the 30s, infant mortality was extremely high, and generally, a backwards place. Now, life expectancy is in the high 60s, and Tibetan life has improved alot. It is arguable whether an autonomous Tibet could achieve such growth had it remained independent, but I doubt many can deny that it has certainly improved.

Now with many protesters wanting "free Tibet" many in China feel as if the Tibetans suddenly forgotten everything China has done. I guess it may be comparable to Texas wanting to leave the Union a decade or two after the Mexican-American war. Now, that wasn't the sentiment, but had the state wanted to, you could guess the uproar that it would've caused.