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@rfanews.org. To add your name to our mailing list,
send an e-mail to engnews-join@rfanews.org .
#####
All media inquiries may be sent to Rohit Mahajan
at mahajanr@rfa.org.