New York: A 2,000-person strong
demonstration marched on UN headquarters in New York to mark
the anniversary of Tibet's failed revolt against Chinese rule.
The demonstration denouncing the treatment of Tibetans
began at the Brooklyn Bridge yesterday before heading uptown
to the United Nations headquarters.
Lhamo Tso, wife of the detained Tibetan documentary maker
Dhondup Wangchen, addressed the crowd, as she blamed Chinese rule for a wave of self-immolations by protesters in her
homeland.
Then the march wrapped up with a candlelight vigil at
Union Square.
"We want the freedom of Tibet and the return of Dalai
Lama," said Sonam Gyatso, vice president of the Tibetan
Community of New York and New Jersey.
Tibet's government-in-exile in India earlier blamed
China's "hardline" leaders for a string of Tibetan
self-immolations as it marked the anniversary.
In the past year, more than 20 Tibetans, most of them
monks, have set themselves ablaze to protest Beijing's rule,
sparking international condemnation of what critics call
religious and cultural repression.
Gyatso slammed China over the self-immolations, saying:
"They cannot tolerate Chinese repression."
China blames the Dalai Lama of inciting the
self-immolations in a bid to split Tibet from the rest of the
nation.
PTI
First Published: Sunday, March 11, 2012, 12:08