Tibetan spiritual leader in exile the Dalai Lama condemned a "rule of terror" in his native Tibet yesterday as Chinese forces blanketed the region's capital in security and pro-independence protests spread elsewhere in China.
A fresh protest in Sichuan Province reportedly left at least seven people dead in a dangerous escalation of the uprising by Tibetans against China's rule of the vast Himalayan region.
The violence has left at least 80 people dead, according to Tibet's government-in-exile, although the official death toll in China's state-run media remained at 10.
The unrest is a huge domestic crisis for China as it tries to present a peaceful image ahead of the Beijing Olympics, but it nevertheless vowed on yesterday to wage a "people's war" against the influence of the exiled Dalai Lama.
Speaking from his base in Dharamsala, India, the revered Buddhist spiritual leader launched a scathing criticism of China's 57-year rule of Tibet and called for an international probe into the unrest.
"Whether intentionally or unintentionally, some cultural genocide is taking place," the 1989 Nobel Peace Prize winner told reporters. "They simply rely on using force in order to simulate peace -- a peace brought by force using a rule of terror."
"Please investigate, if possible ... some international organization can try firstly to inquire about the situation in Tibet," said.
In the protest in Sichuan, at least seven people were killed when police shot at hundreds of rioting Tibetans in the town of Ngawa, a resident and two activist groups with contacts there said.
This followed two consecutive days of protest at the Labrang monastery in Gansu Province, which like Sichuan has a large ethnic Tibetan population.
Meanwhile, foreigners in Lhasa reported a massive security presence still in place, as Hong Kong TV footage showed heavily armed security forces patrolling the city.
Despite official Chinese claims of calm in Lhasa, foreigners who flew out of the city reported hearing repeated gunfire on Saturday.
"I heard muffled gunshot fire. There was no question about it," one tourist, Gerald Flint, a former US Marine who runs a medical non-governmental organization, told reporters at Chengdu airport in Sichuan.
Flint said security forces poured into Lhasa on Saturday but there was still "chaos" on the streets.
The worst reported violence occurred on Friday, when Tibetans rampaged through Lhasa, destroying Chinese businesses and torching police cars.
Despite being under intense international pressure to show restraint, Beijing indicated it was in no mood to compromise. It has set a deadline of midnight tonight for those involved in the demonstrations to surrender.
Also see: Athletes aren't the only ones competing
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS