Police fire on Tibetans after self-immolations in Sichuan: rights group
London-based rights group Free Tibet says officers opened fire and used teargas on Tibetan monks protesting outside a Sichuan province police station
Police have fired on Tibetan protesters demonstrating in Sichuan province after a series of deadly self-immolations by people from Tibet campaigning against Beijing’s rule of their Himalayan region, a London-based rights group said on Friday.
A monk was shot in the arm after police used teargas and opened fire during a clash with Tibetans outside a police station in the western province of Sichuan, which borders Tibet, rights group Free Tibet said in a statement.
The group did not say when the violence happened and police in the area could not be reached for comment.
Human rights activists say China tramples on religious freedom and culture in Tibet, which it has ruled strictly since PLA troops “peacefully liberated” the region in 1950.
China rejects such criticism, saying its rule ended serfdom in Tibet and brought development to a backward, poverty-stricken region.
Tibetans in Tibet and in other parts of China have in recent years been protesting by setting themselves on fire after pouring petrol over themselves.
In 2012, more than 80 Tibetans staged such fiery protests, according to rights groups. Most are believed to have died.