Tibetans continued to face discrimination and restrictions on basic freedom: Amnesty International Report 2014/15

DHARAMSALA, Feb 27: In the year 2014, Tibetans continued to face discrimination and restrictions on their rights to freedoms of religious belief, expression, association and assembly amid continued self-immolations, Amnesty International said in its annual report 2014/15 documenting the state of human rights in 160 countries.

The London-based global human rights watch dog in its annual report said several Tibetan monastic leaders, writers, protesters and activists were detained and the Chinese authorities targeted some relatives and friends of those who self-immolated for allegedly “inciting” or “abetting” such acts.

“In some counties, family members of self-immolators, or those who have attended the Dalai Lama’s teachings, were sympathetic towards the “Dalai Clique” or had “connections overseas”, were barred from senior positions or from standing as candidates in village elections,” the report said.

The report noted that seven Tibetans set themselves on fire in Tibetan populated areas in 2014 in protest against repressive policies by the authorities out of which at least two died as a result.

The number of known self-immolations since March 2011 rose to 131, the report said.

The report also mentioned that at least four Tibetans died from gunshot wounds and one person committed suicide in detention after Chinese police and security forces opened fire at Tibetan protesters in eastern Tibet last year.

“In August, Tibetan demonstrators were reportedly shot by police and security forces in Kardze (in Chinese: Ganzi), Sichuan Province, where a crowd had gathered to protest against the detention of a village leader. At least four demonstrators died from their wounds and one protester committed suicide in detention,” the report said.

While noting that 2014 has been a devastating year for those seeking to stand up for human rights and for those caught up in the suffering of war zones in the foreword to the 416-page annual report, Amnesty International also welcomed the proposal, now backed by around 40 governments, for the UN Security Council to adopt a code of conduct agreeing to voluntarily refrain from using the veto in a way which would block Security Council action in situations of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.