Beijing (AsiaNews) - More than a thousand Tibetan activists, arrested by the Chinese police during protests last March, have vanished without a trace. The charge is from Amnesty International, which is asking Beijing to "shine some light" on the situation during the passage of the Olympic torch through Lhasa, scheduled for next June 21.
In a report published yesterday, the group speaks of testimonies of torture and privation in the Tibetan prisons against the March demonstrators. Dozens of people died during the confrontations, which began on the 10th, but it is still impossible to know the exact figure: China speaks of 19 Chinese civilians killed by demonstrators, while the Tibetan government-in-exile maintains that it has proof of at least 100 killings carried out by the police.
Sam Zarifi, president of the Asia section of Amnesty, charges: "News is coming from Tibet of arbitrary detentions and abuse against the detainees. With the arrival of the torch in the region, it is to be hoped that light may be shed on the whole situation. This is a request to the Chinese government: provide information about the detainees, and explain why they are in prison".
The report states, in fact, that "Many hundreds, possibly thousands of Tibetans languish in prisons or detention centres without the government publicly acknowledging their whereabouts or formally charging them with a criminal offence". In conclusion, Amnesty asks Beijing to "provide that information and if people are detained, explain why they're being detained. Either charge them and put them on fair trial or release them immediately".