RFA BREAKING NEWS: Young Tibetan Monk Self-Immolates to Mark Crackdown Anniversary

Young Tibetan Monk Self-Immolates to Mark Crackdown Anniversary MARCH 16, 2014: A young Tibetan monk from a restive monastery in Sichuan province's Ngaba prefecture set fire to himself on Sunday to mark the sixth anniversary of a deadly crackdown by Chinese authorities on Tibetans in the area, according to exile sources. Lobsang Palden, 20, from the Kirti monastery in the Ngaba (in Chinese, Aba) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, self-immolated on the main road in Ngaba county which was renamed in 2012 by Tibetans as "Heroes Street" after it became a regular venue for burning protests against Chinese rule. Palden shouted protest slogans as he walked while he was on fire before Chinese security forces rushed to the scene and doused the flames and took him away, according to Tibetan exile monks Kanyak Tsering and Lobsang Yeshi, who are based in India's northern hill town Dharamsala. "When [Palden] set himself on fire and walked several steps shouting slogans, several police arrived, put out the flames, forced him into a small vehicle and took him away," Tsering and Yeshi said in a statement. Details such as his condition and where he had been taken to are not immediately available. The monks, citing local contacts, said Palden self-immolated to protest "against the violent crackdown on the Tibetans" on March 16, 2008 in Ngaba when Chinese police opened fire on a crowd of Tibetans, killing at least 10, including one monk. The crackdown had agitated Tibetans in the area and sparked an unending spree of Tibetan burning protests, sources said. 128th burning so far Palden's burning was the 128th since the self-immolation protests began in 2009 challenging Chinese rule in Tibetan areas and calling for the return from exile of Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, who is currently living in exile in Dharamsala. Tibetans have been marking the Ngaba crackdown anniversary by staging self-immolation protests over the last four years. Palden had also left behind a written and voice message calling for unity among Tibetans and sincerity in whatever they strive to achieve, Tsering and Yeshi said. "He also thanked his mother and relatives for their love and affection," they said. All Tibetan-owned restaurants and shops in Ngaba were closed Sunday "to express solidarity with the self immolator," they said. "There is a huge presence of both armed and unarmed police forces in Ngaba town," Tsering and Yeshi said. Palden's burning protest was the third self-immolation this year. Two fatal self-immolations occurred last month — one near the Kirti monastery and the other in Tsekhog (in Chinese, Zeku) county in Qinghai province's Malho (Huangnan) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. Chinese authorities have tightened controls in a bid to check self-immolation protests in Tibetan populated areas, arresting and jailing Tibetans whom they accuse of being linked to the burnings. Some have been jailed for up to 15 years. Reported by Lumbum Tashi and Yangdon Demo for 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/burning-03162014125839.html Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation broadcasting and publishing online news, information, and commentary in nine East Asian languages to listeners who do not have access to full and free news media. RFA ’s broadcasts seek to promote the rights of freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom to “seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” RFA is funded by an annual grant from the Broadcasting Board of Governors. If you no longer wish to receive RFA news releases, send an e-mail to engnews-leave(a)rfanews.org . To add your name to our mailing list, send an e-mail to engnews-join(a)rfanews.org . ##### All media inquiries may be sent to Rohit Mahajan at mahajanr(a)rfa.org .