Apr 16, 2008

Tibet: Arrests Have Already Begun


Sample ImageIndian authorities have arrested members of the Tibetan Youth Congress as they made a peaceful protest in New Delhi against China’s actions in Tibet.

Below is an article published by Independent Online:

Police in the Indian capital detained more than a dozen pro-Tibet demonstrators on Tuesday in an area that will be sealed off for the Olympic torch relay later this week [Week 16, 2008].

The protesters, shouting "We Want Justice, Stop Killing in Tibet" had gathered on the Raj Path, the avenue linking India's presidential palace and a monument to slain soldiers known as India Gate.

They were stopped by police who herded them into vans after they laid down in the street, an AFP reporter at the scene said.

The protest was organised by the Tibetan Youth Congress, which is campaigning for a boycott of the Beijing Olympics in August [2008].

Security is tight in the area, with the Raj Path set to be totally sealed off on Thursday [17 April 2008], when the Olympic torch relay comes to India.

India is expected to deploy thousands of police to block Tibetan refugees - who number at least 100 000 in India - from disrupting the event.

India is also home to the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan spiritual leader who fled after a failed 1959 uprising against Chinese rule.

The Dalai Lama's government-in-exile, which is based in the Indian hill station of Dharamshala, has urged protesters to be "non-violent and peaceful."