ASSOCIATED PRESS
BEIJING: A Tibetan Buddhist monk set himself on fire inside a western Chinese monastery recently singled out by authorities as a hub of the grisly self-immolation protests striking the region, a US-backed broadcaster reported today.
Radio Free Asia said Lobsang Thokmey, 28, was the 108th Tibetan to have self-immolated in a string of protests against Chinese rule and religious restrictions starting in
February 2009.Radio Free Asia said Lobsang Thokmey, 28, was the 108th Tibetan to have self-immolated in a string of protests against Chinese rule and religious restrictions starting in
His protest took place on the fifth anniversary of a 2008 government crackdown in the area in which police fired into a crowd, allegedly killing 10 people.
The monk set himself on fire yesterday inside his room in Kirti monastery in Sichuan province’s Aba county, RFA said. Carrying a Tibetan Buddhist prayer flag, he ran toward the monastery entrance before collapsing and was rushed to hospital where he died, the report said.
A man who answered the phone at Kirti said the monastery was open to the public, but hung up when questioned about the self-immolation report. Calls to local government and police offices rang unanswered.
Earlier this month, Wu Zegang, the governor of Aba prefecture, accused monks at Kirti monastery of collaborating with exiled Tibetans, including spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, to organise locals to set themselves on firewithout offering any concrete evidence.
