Tension in Tibet

If Chinese leaders truly believe the Dalai Lama was behind the Lhasa riots, “then they should go to Oslo and see to it that I am stripped of my Nobel Peace Prize,” the spiritual leader tells Der Spiegel. The Tibetan leader is tired of China’s accusations, and he says they should come forward with evidence if they have it. More »

At least 300 Tibetan protesters, many of them monks and nuns, stormed the Chinese embassy in the Nepalese capital of Kathmandu today. The demonstrators threw debris into the embassy compound and tried to break down the gates. "We want our freedom. Stop China!" they chanted. Some 200 protesters have been detained, although they are expected to be released tonight. More »

Representatives for the Dalai Lama head to China today for talks on restoring peace between the two sides, the BBC reports. The visit marks the first contact between the exiled leader and Chinese officials since pro-Tibet protests turned violent in March. The envoys will discuss the Dalai Lama’s “deep concerns about the Chinese authorities' handling of the situation” and work toward peace, his office said. More »

A Chinese court sentenced 30 people yesterday, including six monks, for taking part in the March protest riots in Tibet, the New York Times reports. The sentences ranged from three years to life in prison. Human Rights Watch watch said the trials were secret and defendants weren’t allowed representation, calling them “political punishment masquerading as a legal process.” More »

Nepal deported an American climber yesterday, the Times of India reports, after police at a Mount Everest base camp found a pro-Tibetan banner in his backpack. Nepal, staunchly pro-China, has enacted restrictions—and authorized security forces to use guns—to prevent protests when the Olympic torch ascends the world's tallest mountain in May. More »

Beijing officials will meet in the next few days with a representative of the Dalai Lama, reports AFP, quoting Chinese media. The meeting would be the first encounter between the Tibetan leadership and members of the Chinese government since last month's unrest in Tibet. China has come under intense foreign pressure to open talks with the Dalai Lama, particularly in the wake of protests in the run up to the Beijing Olympics. More »

A group of cyberattackers called off a planned virtual onslaught of CNN's main webpage yesterday as excess publicity caused confusion, ComputerWorld reports. A group called Revenge of the Flame wrote that "Our original plan for 19 April has been canceled because too many people are aware of it and the situation is chaotic," but threatened a renewed offensive sometime soon. More »

China is accelerating construction of a number of museums ahead of August's Olympics, but one is sure to cause serious consternation: the first museum in Beijing devoted to Tibet. Antiquities and historical documents will be used to underline the claim that Tibet is an integral part of China, the New York Times reports—with the Dalai Lama edited out post-1959.  More »

After four days of lectures in Seattle on love and compassion, the Dalai Lama turned to the tempestuous topic of the fate of Tibet within China. The Dalai Lama called on Beijing to open the region to foreign journalists, continued to press for his "middle way" of Tibetan autonomy, and reiterated his threat to resign as Tibet's political leader if his people continued to use violence. More »

The last-minute drama brewing in the runup to this summer's Olympic Games is of a more global and more personal nature than the infrastructure issues of Olympics past—and Chinese leaders are bristling under the scrutiny, the Chicago Tribune reports. But pride in the country's hosting gig remains strong, even among the impoverished workers who could never afford a ticket. More »

The foreign dignitaries opting to skip the Beijing Olympics' opening ceremony are engaging in a "cop-out," said President Bush's national security adviser today. What's more, claimed Stephen Hadley, they're missing an opportunity to meaningfully pressure China via behind-the-scenes diplomacy—as the US is doing. Bush has said he doesn't "view the Olympics as a political event," the AP reports. More »

Chinese state-sponsored media today blasted US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her stance supporting Tibet.  Belligerent  editorials from the official Xinhua news agency ripped Pelosi as "the most disgusting person" and a "protector of mobsters, arsonists and murderers." Pelosi has urged President Bush to boycott the opening ceremony of the upcoming Olympic games to protest China's human rights abuses. More »

The Dalai Lama arrived in Seattle today to begin a five-day series of speeches and workshops on peace and compassion, the Seattle Times reports. He told a group of Tibetan supporters at the airport that he was saddened by yesterday's protests in San Francisco surrounding the Olympic torch, and reiterated his support for August's Beijing Games. More »

The protests following the Olympic torch around the globe are a “crisis,” but the International Olympic Committee has faced worse, its chief said today. The Games, he said, would “rebound," the BBC reports. Meanwhile, the Dalai Lama said China “deserved” to host, CNN reports. "We are not anti-Chinese," the Tibetan spiritual leader said. But he also supports the protesters' right to be heard: "Nobody has the right to tell them to shut up." More »

The Olympic torch winds its way through San Francisco today and authorities are bracing for big trouble from protesters who have already hit the streets, AP reports. The torch was buffeted by protests in London and Paris, where the relay was cut short, and the worst may be yet to come as Left Coast pro-Tibet activists harry the flame. Officers will accompany the torch every second of its six-mile route through the city—which is likely to be changed at the last minute. More »

Today China denounced the protests that have disrupted Olympic torch relays in London and Paris over the past 2 days, Reuters reports. "The despicable activities tarnish the lofty Olympic spirit," a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said. She also denied media reports that "the Olympic torch was forced to be extinguished during its relay in Paris." More »

With the Olympic torch due to reach San Francisco tomorrow, protesters climbed the Golden Gate Bridge today to unfurl banners reading “One World, One Dream" and "Free Tibet 08.” The climbers, members of Students for a Free Tibet, were arrested after they rappelled down the bridge’s south tower, leaving the sign aloft, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. More »

Paris police today extinguished the Olympic flame five times after massive pro-Tibet protests turned the torch relay into chaos. The torch was doused for the first time near the start of the route at the Eiffel Tower and taken on board the bus that accompanies the runners, the AP reports. Officials re-lit it farther along the route, only to douse it again four more times before finally cutting short the relay. More »

Fed up with protests from Tibetan monks, Beijing said today it will step up a campaign of "patriotic education," the AP reports. Beijing will try to force monks to denounce the Dalai Lama and declare their loyalty to China, adding to worries that the current tension over human rights will only worsen as the Summer Olympics approach. More »

Chinese police killed eight protesters and wounded dozens more overnight in Sichuan province when they opened fire on a demonstration led by Tibetan monks, the Times of London reports. The altercation started when police searched a Tibetan monastery, confiscating phones and images of the Dalai Lama. After arresting two, the police demanded all in the monastery denounce the Tibetan spiritual leader. More »