Lhasa was under curfew, but protests against Chinese rule continued in the Tibetan capital on Saturday, a day after at least 25 people were killed in the most serious outbreak of violence in nearly two decades in the Buddhist region.
The “siege” of Lhasa’s three major monasteries — Jokhang, Sera and Drepung — by Chinese security forces continued for a second day as Tibetan authorities directed rioters to surrender by midnight on Monday or face punishment.
“Criminals who do not surrender by the deadline will be sternly punished according to the law,” a notice put out by the Tibetan government said on Saturday. Authorities said the “sabotage” in Lhasa was “organised, premeditated and masterminded” by the Dalai Lama.
The statements seemed to point to an imminent crackdown and tighter controls over monasteries, which have become the fount of seething resentment over Chinese rule in the erstwhile Buddhist kingdom.
Friday’s bloody crackdown on demonstrators set off a wave of protests by human rights activists in cities around the world, raising demands for a boycott of the Olympics later this year.
Tibetan sources told that Lhasa resembled a “ghost town” on Saturday after communication links, including telephone and internet connections, with the outside world were cut off.
Danish tourist Bente Walle said many people were tying white prayer scarves on doors. “The Tibetans put them on their doors to tell everybody: Here is a Tibetan.”
The “siege” of Lhasa’s three major monasteries — Jokhang, Sera and Drepung — by Chinese security forces continued for a second day as Tibetan authorities directed rioters to surrender by midnight on Monday or face punishment.
“Criminals who do not surrender by the deadline will be sternly punished according to the law,” a notice put out by the Tibetan government said on Saturday. Authorities said the “sabotage” in Lhasa was “organised, premeditated and masterminded” by the Dalai Lama.
The statements seemed to point to an imminent crackdown and tighter controls over monasteries, which have become the fount of seething resentment over Chinese rule in the erstwhile Buddhist kingdom.
Friday’s bloody crackdown on demonstrators set off a wave of protests by human rights activists in cities around the world, raising demands for a boycott of the Olympics later this year.
Tibetan sources told that Lhasa resembled a “ghost town” on Saturday after communication links, including telephone and internet connections, with the outside world were cut off.
Danish tourist Bente Walle said many people were tying white prayer scarves on doors. “The Tibetans put them on their doors to tell everybody: Here is a Tibetan.”
