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Tibetans rubbish China's 'propaganda' on suicide attacks
New Delhi (AFP) April 1, 2008 Tibetan authorities in India on Tuesday dismissed Chinese allegations that Tibetans were planning suicide attacks ahead of the Olympics and asked Beijing for evidence. The India-based Tibetan government-in-exile labelled the claims propaganda and reiterated the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama was not opposed to Beijing hosting the Olympics Games in August. "Instead of making baseless accusations, they, the Chinese government, need to give evidence in support of what they say," Thubten Samphel, spokesman of the Tibetan government-in-exile, told AFP. "These kinds of comments are propaganda because as Buddhists we believe suicide is the worst form of crime," he said by telephone from the northern hill town of Dharamshala, where the Tibetan administration is headquartered. The reaction came after Beijing said Tibetans would organise suicide squads in a push for independence in their homeland, which last month saw the deadliest anti-China unrest in 20 years. In Beijing, Chinese public security ministry spokesman Wu Heping said his government feared "violent attacks." "To our knowledge, the next plan of the Tibetan independence forces is to organise suicide squads to launch violent attacks," Wu said. "They fear neither bloodshed nor sacrifice," he added. Tibetan spokesman Samphel denied any such plans. "Our struggle is non-violent and suicide attacks are unheard of in Buddhism. We believe the human form the most precious form on earth and such unsubstantiated claims do no service either to the Chinese or the Tibetan people," he said. China's latest assertions were among the most dramatic by Beijing in its offensive against the Dalai Lama, whom it accuses of masterminding the unrest that broke out last month in Tibet against Chinese rule of the Himalayan region. The Dalai Lama, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989, has repeatedly denied orchestrating the unrest, spoke out against the protests when they turned violent and denied he wants independence for his homeland. Wu said the anti-China riots that began in Tibet's capital, Lhasa, and spread through Tibetan-populated regions in nearby provinces were organised by a group called the "Tibetan People's Uprising Movement." He said the movement was organised by the exiled Tibetan government of the Dalai Lama and was seeking to use the period up to the August Olympics to pressure China's government. The protests began in Lhasa on March 10 and escalated into rioting there four days later. China says Tibetan rioters killed 18 civilians and two police officers. Exiled Tibetan leaders have put the death toll from the Chinese crackdown at 135-140 people, with another 1,000 injured and many detained. Related Links China News from SinoDaily.com
China says Tibet still closed for foreign reporters
Beijing (AFP) April 1, 2008China said Tuesday that Tibet remained closed for foreign journalists, nearly three weeks after deadly riots broke out in the Himalayan region. |
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