The Chinese police Saturday opened fire on a group of Tibetans who were celebrating the Dalai Lama's birthday in the Tawu region of eastern Tibet. This measure comes amid reports of Chinese leniency in Tibet.
Several Tibetans had gathered to mark the 78th birthday of the Dalai Lama and the police opened fire and lobbed tear gas shells to disperse the crowd. A Tibetan monk named Tashi Sonam was shot in the head and was said to be in a critical condition, according to the Students for Free Tibet (SFT).
"The fact that Tibetans in Tawu were open fired and stopped from celebrating His Holiness's birthday not only highlights the lack of freedom in Tibet but clearly discards the recent report on the change in China's policy allowing Tibetans in Tibet to openly revere His Holiness the Dalai Lama," said Tenzin Jigdal, Program Director of SFT, India.
The incident comes at a time when the Dalai Lama is showing overwhelming positivity towards the new Chinese leadership.
On the eve of his birthday, the Dalai Lama said "I am very optimistic," giving hope to his fellow Tibetans that the Beijing government is ready to address the plight of people inside Tibet.
While expressing his positivism, the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate said, "But we have to wait for a little longer. The new Chinese leadership seems ready now, to accept reality."
Though some Tibetans including the Tibetan Youth Congress are still fighting for Tibetan independence, more than sixty percent of Tibetans including the Dalai Lama have vowed to stay under China if Beijing grants them autonomy.
