Tibet News (5.27.09)

by Danny Fisher

“Protesters throw stones on military trucks in Lhasa, Tibet, on March 14, 2008.” Image via Reuters.
Here’s the latest Tibet-related news:

  • Time Magazine brings us the news about a new report from a group of independent Chinese scholars that has “for the first time challenged China’s official explanation that the deadly riots that broke out across Tibet in March, 2008, were inspired by ‘overseas forces’ — namely the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government-in-exile.” The article continues:

      The report, which was recently published on a Chinese website, blames the riots not on outsiders but on Beijing’s policy toward Tibet, claiming the central government has backed incompetent local officials, created an economy that provides few options for young people, and deprived Tibetans of access to equal justice under the law.

  • Meanwhile, Voice of America reports that “at least six Tibetan women suffered gunshot wounds when Chinese security forces opened fire on a group of protesters in western Sichuan province bordering Tibet.”
  • Lastly, the Associated Press reports that “the Dalai Lama is likely to be honored by the mayor of Paris during a June visit, a Tibetan representative said Tuesday — a meeting that could once again strain relations between France and China.”