Tibetan nun reportedly set herself on fire in protest against China

Feb 12, 2012, 12:34 GMT

New Delhi - A Tibetan Buddhist nun allegedly set herself on fire in a protest against the government in eastern China, the Tibetan government-in-exile based in India said in a statement on Sunday.

According to reports from Tibet, the incident involving the 18-year-old nun from the Mamae Dechen Choekhorling nunnery in the town of Ngaba took place at a nearby crossing on Saturday, the statement said.

The Buddhist spiritual leader the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government-in-exile are based in the northern Indian hill town of Dharamsala. The government-in-exile is not recognized by any nation.

'Tenzin Choedron set herself alight at a crossing near the nunnery on 11 February, raising slogans against the Chinese government. Chinese security forces and police immediately took her away, and they later sealed off the nunnery,' the statement said.

'As of now, her whereabouts and condition remain unknown.'

Over 20 self immolations by Tibetans have been reported from various Tibetan regions of China since February 2009.

The government-in-exile claimed this was the second immolation at the nunnery. A 20-year-old nun Tenzin Wangmo died after self immolation in October 2011. The Mamae Dechen Choekhorling nunnery has around 350 nuns and is the largest nunnery in Ngaba, the statement said.

The Tibetan Parliament-in-exile has recently written an open letter to Chinese President Hu Jintao asking him to end his government's 'repressive policies' saying it was leading Tibetans to resort to 'extreme measures such as self immolation.'

The parliament-in-exile said had requested Hu to allow fact-finding delegations to Tibet and resume dialogue with the Tibetans to find a lasting solution to the Tibet issue.

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