Lhasa (AsiaNews) - About two thousand Chinese policemen used clubs and tear gas to disperse a demonstration by Tibetan monks, who had gathered at a police station to ask for the release of fellow monks arrested the day before in Lhasa. The report comes from Radio Free Asia, citing local sources.
About six hundred monks demonstrated the entire afternoon, shouting "Free our people" and "We want a free Tibet". When they reached the police headquarters, they asked for the liberation of dozens of monks, who were detained during the demonstration held last March 10 in memory of the anti-Chinese rebellion in 1959. In response, police in riot gear came out and forcibly dispersed the monks: it is not clear whether any other arrests were made.
In the meantime, in New Delhi a group of Tibetan women demonstrated in front of the Chinese embassy to protest "against the invasion of Tibet" and to commemorate the thousands of women who died during the uprising in 1959. The police stopped them while they were trying to enter the perimeter of the embassy.
Dr. Tsering, president of the Tibetan Women's Association, tells AsiaNews: "We wanted to show that we remember the sacrifice of those who fought for our cause. We want to commemorate the massacre of innocent women, at the hands of Chinese soldiers, at this very moment when China is about to host the Olympics. I unite myself with those who are marching to return home: Tibet is the victim of an aggression that the world must not ignore". (NC)