Tibet Post International
December 8, 2016
A photo showing a Tibetan self-immolating in Machu County, north-eastern Tibet, on December 8, 2016. Photo: TPI
Dharamshala — A Tibetan self-immolated in Machu County, north-eastern Tibet, apparently in protest against the Chinese rule in Tibet. It was the first known self-immolation protest in Tibet since March.
“A Tibetan self-immolated on the streets of Machu county of Amdo Province in Tibet, on December 08, 2016 at around 5pm local time,” according to sources. His/her name and other details of the incident are not immediately available.
In a video clip recorded at the street and circulating on social media websites, also shows Chinese police arriving at the scene and taking away the charred body.
The video clip and photos also shows the Tibetan was walking into the street of the County, seen engulfed in huge flames.
A Tibetan woman as an eyewitness, standing nearby is heard chanting prayers; “May the blessing of His Holiness the Dalai Lama be upon you,” “May you not bron to evil destiny” and “No fears during the Intermediate State.”
But TPI still could not confirm whether the self-immolator was dead or alive, but the self-immolator was severely injured in the fire and under the circumstances there is little chance for his/her survival.
On March 23 Sonam Tso, 50, who was a mother of five, set herself on fire to protest the Chinese government’s repressive policies. Her protest also remained unconfirmed until May.
This latest incident brought the total verified number of self-immolations in Tibet to 145 since February, 2009 and and of them 125 were reportedly passed-away while the status of the rest remains unknown or critically injured.
Most of the Tibetan self-immolators have called for freedom of Tibetan people and the return of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Tibet.
Many of the initial self-immolations were carried out by monks, but a growing number of laypeople, including nomads and farmers, have since taken part.
In Tibet today, Tibetans are being arbitrarily arrested, imprisoned and tortured for merely expressing their suffering under Chinese rule and ordinary exercise of the freedom of expression and opinion guaranteed by the Chinese Constitutions and other International Conventions to which China is a state party.
Tibet was invaded by Communist China in 1949. Since that time, over 1.2 million out of 6 million Tibetans have been killed, over 6000 monasteries have been destroyed and acts of murder, rape, arbitrary imprisonment, torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment were inflicted on the Tibetans inside Tibet. Beijing continues to call this a “peaceful liberation”.
