China deems Tibet stable, but warns of coming protests

[KhmerSpirits]

The Associated Press
Published: April 6, 2008

BEIJING: The Communist Party boss of Tibet said the region was stable following anti-government riots last month, but warned of possible plots to sabotage the Olympic torch relay, state media reported Sunday.

"The social order in Lhasa and other parts of Tibet" has returned to "normal," Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency, quoted Zhang Qingli as saying. But the party boss added that "grave challenges remain ahead, as the Dalai clique is plotting for new sabotage activities," referring to the Dalai Lama and his supporters.

The authorities had "to spare no efforts in preparing for the torch relay to ward off any possible mishap," Zhang said, providing no other details.

Tensions have been simmering in the Tibetan capital and nearby provinces after protests exploded into violence last month. The Chinese authorities say 22 people died in Lhasa on March 14, but the Tibetan government-in-exile says that up to 140 were killed in the riots and the government's ensuing crackdown on Tibetan areas in the west.

In the latest reported violence, the Free Tibet Campaign and the International Campaign for Tibet said that eight people were killed Thursday when police officers or paramilitary police officers opened fire on a protest in Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan Province.
State media reported that one government official was seriously injured in what it described as a riot.

In a strongly worded statement issued Sunday in Dharamsala, India, where the Tibetan government-in-exile operates, the Dalai Lama said the recent demonstrations in Tibet were "outbursts of long pent-up physical and mental anguish" that proved most Tibetans wanted freedom from Chinese rule.

He said the protests had "shattered the propaganda that except for a few reactionaries, the majority of Tibetans enjoy a prosperous and contented life."

He reiterated his support for the Beijing Olympics, however, and said Tibetans should not disrupt them. "It will be futile and not helpful to anyone if we do something that will create hatred in the minds of the Chinese people," he said.

In London on Sunday, protesters tried to disrupt the Olympic torch relay. Three people were arrested after demonstrators tried to board a relay bus at the start of the 31-mile, or 50-kilometer, procession from Wembley Stadium.

Later, in west London, another protester tried to grab the torch. Another demonstrator tried to snuff out the flame with what appeared to be a fire extinguisher.