Toll climbs to 89

Phayul[Thursday, November 29, 2012 14:58]

Tibetan self-immolator Tsering Namgyal, 31, who passed away in his fiery protest on November 29, 2012 seen here in an undated photo.  In fresh reports coming out of Tibet, a Tibetan man set himself on fire today in Luchu region of eastern Tibet in an apparent protest against China’s continued occupation of Tibet. Sources have identified the Tibetan as Tsering Namgyal, 31, a father of two, from Zamtsa Lotso Dewa region of Luchu. “Tsering Namgyal set himself on fire near the local Chinese government office in Luchu earlier today for the cause of Tibet,” Sonam, a Tibetan monk living in south India told Phayul, citing sources in the region. “Tsering Namgyal passed in his fiery protest.” Further details on the self-immolation protest are not available at the time of filing this report. The burning body of Tibetan self-immolator Tsering Namgyal Tsering Namgyal is survived by his wife Choekyong Tso, their two children, Dorjee Kyi, 7, and Kalsang Dolma, 3, and his parents. This is the third self-immolation protest in Luchu region in the last ten days. On November 26, Gonpo Tsering, 24, father of three children, all below the age of six, passed away in his fiery protest while raising slogans for Tibet’s freedom, human rights in Tibet, and the return of His Holiness the Dalai Lama from exile. Earlier on November 22, Tamding Kyab, 23, a nomad and former monk, passed away in his self-immolation protest in the same region. Following the self-immolations, Luchu has been placed under heightened restrictions with the deployment of a large number of Chinese security personnel and armed forces. 89 Tibetans inside Tibet have set themselves on fire demanding freedom and the return of His Holiness the Dalai Lama from exile since the wave of fiery protests began in 2009. The recent alarming escalation in the self-immolation protests has now witnessed 27 Tibetans set themselves on fire in the month of November alone. Speaking to CNN, US Ambassador to China, Gary Locke in an interview broadcast on November 27, said the United States is “very concerned about the situation, the heightened tensions in the Tibetan areas, the deplorable self-immolations and of course just the Chinese policies of the Chinese government at all levels.” “Preserving the ethnic, religious, linguistic identity of the Tibetan people is a top priority for the U.S. government just as we are very concerned about all human rights issues and we believe that human rights has to be a fundamental part of U.S. foreign policy and we, very much urge the Chinese government publicly and privately to adhere to the universal principles, universal declaration of human rights, which are also part of the Chinese constitution,” Locke said. In September, Locke had visited two Tibetan monasteries in the Zungchu region of Ngaba in eastern Tibet as part of a broader business trip to the region.