China rolls out tanks to suppress Tibet Protests

Friday, 14 March 2008, 10:34 p.m.

A photo taken and posted on a blog by visiting tourists, Steve and Ulrike, who happened to be in Lhasa on March 10, shows several Chinese police deployed in Barkor in Lhasa, Tibet/(Photo Credit: Steve and Ulrike / Phayul.com)

Dharamshala: Chinese armed
police have killed around 100 Tibetans and injured many others for
taking part in peaceful demonstrations, according to unconfirmed
sources. These protests have spread from Lhasa to all over Tibet both
in intensity and scale.

His Holiness The Dalai Lama has issued the following statement
today. “I am deeply concerned over the situation that has been
developing in Tibet following peaceful protests in many parts of Tibet,
including Lhasa, in recent days. These protests are a manifestation of
the deep-rooted resentment of the Tibetan people under the present
governance.

As I have always said, unity and stability under brute force is
at best a temporary solution. It is unrealistic to expect unity and
stability under such a rule and would therefore not be conducive to
finding a peaceful and lasting solution.

I therefore appeal to the Chinese leadership to stop using
force and address the long-simmering resentment of the Tibetan people
through dialogue with the Tibetan people. I also urge my fellow
Tibetans not to resort to violence.”

Below is the statement issued by the Kashag

“Starting from 10th March this year, Tibetans from all over
Tibet started a series of peaceful demonstrations to express their
dissatisfaction with the Chinese policies. The Kashag had earlier hoped
that these demonstrations will stop.

However, partly due to heavy-handed response of the authorities
to these peaceful expressions that the demonstrations continued to
spread all over Tibet and the situation is getting worse.

Therefore, we are deeply concerned and have also urged the
People’s Republic of China for due consideration to take these
incidents with all seriousness and not to take further repressive
actions. The situation urgently demands the attention of the
governments, parliaments and the international community to persuade
the leadership of People’s Republic of China to refrain from further
repressive measures and to restore normalcy through peaceful means.”

Kalon Tripa also made an urgent appeal to the Chinese
authorities stating, “From 10th March this year Tibetans from various
parts of Tibet (in and outside TAR) staged series of peaceful
demonstrations to express their dissatisfaction with the present
situation. Such demonstrations are clear symptoms of discontentment
among the Tibetan people with the current policy towards them.

We are observing this with a great sense of concern and would
like to earnestly urge to the central and local authorities of the
People’s Republic China to take these incidents with all seriousness
and not to take any repressive actions. We further urge them to restore
the normalcy through dialogue and understanding of the Tibetan people’s
aspirations.”

The situation in the Tibetan capital has intensified because
Chinese authorities have rolled out a large number of armoured vehicles
including tanks in the Bharkor square and have started shooting into
the protesting crowds.

Thousands of Tibetans led by Labrang Monastery monks held demonstrations carrying Tibetan national flag on Friday afternoon(Phayul.com)

As protests continue to have a ripple effect across Tibet, the
Chinese police are reported to have sealed off all monasteries and
nunneries in and around Lhasa.

In order to provoke the protesting crowds, Chinese policemen
dressed in monks attire are reported to have lashed out at the
peaceful demonstrators, which incited the crowd into burning police
vehicles.
According to other reports, from 10,000-20,000 Tibetans have joined the
demonstration in the Tibetan capital.

Also in Northeastern Tibet, thousands of Tibetans led by monks
from Labrang Tashikyil monastery staged a peaceful demonstration. The
demonstration, the biggest ever in this part of Tibet, was held in
Sangchu county, Kanlho, Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu province.

(www.tibet.net is the official website of the Central Tibetan Administration of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.)