Two Monks Burn Themselves in Tibet's Capital Lhasa
MAY 27, 2012—Two young Tibetan monks set themselves on fire in Lhasa Sunday in
protest against Chinese rule—the first self-immolations reported in the
capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region, according to sources.
The
monks burned themselves in front of Jokhang Temple in central
Lhasa—reputedly the ultimate pilgrimage destination for Tibetan
pilgrims—and were swiftly bundled away by security forces who arrived in
several vehicles and cleared the area within 15 minutes, the sources
said.
The identities and other personal details of the monks and their condition were not immediately available.
The two were believed to be among a few Tibetan youths who gathered to protest against Chinese rule outside the temple.
"The
security forces arrived immediately and put out the fire and all the
tourists in the area were cordoned off from the site. Within 15 minutes,
the area was cleaned and not a trace of the incident was left at the
site," an eyewitness told RFA.
"The flames were huge and
witnesses are presuming that they [the two] were dead in the fire," one Tibetan
source living in exile said, citing contacts in the region.
"Lhasa city is now filled with police and para-military forces and the situation is very tense,” the source said.
Tensions
Another
source in Lhasa said tensions gripped the tourist area around the
Jokhang Temple and nearby Potala Palace, the former residence of the
Dalai Lama, amid heightened security following the self-immolations.
"All
those who pass through the main ground in front of Potala place are
being searched and there is much tension," the source in Lhasa said.
Unconfirmed reports said Tibetans gathered to protest after the burnings and that there were more arrests.
This
is the second self-immolation incident in the Tibetan Autonomous
Region as Tibetans protest against Beijing's rule and call for the
return of Tibet's exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, exile sources
said.
Prior to the incident, there had been 35 Tibetan self-immolations
reported since March 2009. Thirty-four of them had occurred in
Tibetan-populated Chinese provinces.
Auspicious month
The
self-immolations came as Tibetans flock to Lhasa to mark the auspicious
Buddhist month of Saka Dawa commemorating the birth, enlightenment and
death of Buddha.
The Chinese authorities had issued directives
barring government employees and retirees and students from
participating in the religious activities for the whole month, sources
in Lhasa said.
"Today is the sixth day of the auspicious Tibetan
Buddhist month of Saka Dawa and several hundred Tibetans came out in the
city and prayed and circumambulated the temple and Potala Palace," the
eyewitness to Sunday's self-immolations said.
Self-immolation
protests which intensified over the last year had also sparked
demonstrations in Tibetan-populated Chinese provinces criticizing
Chinese policies, which Tibetans say are discriminatory and have robbed
them of their rights, and calling for greater freedom and for the return
of the Dalai Lama to Tibet.
'Holistic view'
The
Dalai Lama has blamed Beijing's "totalitarian" and "unrealistic"
policies for the wave of self-immolations, saying the time has come for
the Chinese authorities to take a serious approach to resolving the
Tibetan problem.
He called on the Chinese leadership to adopt a
"holistic view" in resolving the Tibetan crisis instead of a
"self-centered" approach backed by power and wealth to suppress the
Tibetans.
Chinese authorities however have labeled the
self-immolators as terrorists, outcasts, criminals, and mentally ill
people, and have blamed the Dalai Lama for encouraging the burnings.
The
self-immolation protests have resulted in a Chinese security clampdown
in the Tibetan-populated provinces of Sichuan, Qinghai and Ganzi, as
well as in the Tibet Autonomous Region.
Aside from detaining
hundreds of monks from monasteries, Chinese authorities have jailed
scores of Tibetan writers, artists, singers, and educators for asserting
Tibetan national identity and civil rights, exile sources said.
Reported by RFA's Tibetan service. Translated by Karma Dorjee. Written in English by Parameswaran Ponnudurai.
View this story online at: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/burn-05272012123432.html
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