Graphic photograph emerges from Tibet of monk Tsewang Norbu engulfed in flames (1)

18 August 2011

Free Tibet Director Stephanie Brigden said:

“It can only be assumed that part of Tsewang Norbu’s motivation behind his desperate act was to draw international attention to the deepening crisis in Tibet, and for this reason Free Tibet has decided to release this deeply shocking photograph of Tsewang’s charred body still in flames. Tsewang set fire to himself in a public place in Tawu town in front of a well-known Tibetan shop. The image has been distributed at great risk.

Given the terrible suffering Tsewang must have endured and the risks taken to distribute the image, Free Tibet is using its global media contacts to circulate the image to help expose the situation inside Tibet. This one shocking image exposes how desperate some Tibetans feel. Governments around the world must stop ignoring the suffering, stop simply paying lip-service to the need for human rights in Tibet and start matching rhetoric with real and actual pressure on China for a solution to the crisis inside Tibet.”

Following Tsewang Norbu’s self immolation and death (2), in Tawu (Ch. Daofu), Kardze (Ch. Gandzi) Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, internet cafes, shops, restaurants and schools have been ordered to close; some telephone lines are blocked in an effort to control news of Tsewang’s protest spreading across Tibet and to the outside world. People’s Armed Police (PAP) are reportedly surrounding Tsewang’s monastery, Nyitso Monastery and large numbers of local people are also there, trying to protect the monastery. There are now armed checkpoints across the town and the PAP, reportedly in groups of 40 – 50, have been billeted across the town and on the roads connecting Tawu to other major towns as a response to this incident. The people of Tawu are afraid.

Ends

Notes to Editor

1) Please be aware the image in this link is graphic and distressing: http://www.freetibet.org/node/2350
2) Free Tibet press release regarding Tsewang Norbu’s self immolation: http://www.freetibet.org/newsmedia/monk-dies-after-setting-himself-fire-protest-tibet

Free Tibet is an international campaigning organisation that stands for the right of Tibetans to determine their own future. We campaign for an end to the Chinese occupation of Tibet and for the fundamental human rights of Tibetans to be respected.

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