Shocking Photos: Tibetan Exile Sets Himself on Fire in Protest
- Posted on March 26, 2012 at 4:10pm by
Jonathon M. Seidl
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NEW DELHI (AP) — A Tibetan exile lit himself on fire and ran shouting through a demonstration in the Indian capital Monday, just before a visit by China’s president and following dozens of self-immolations done in China in protest of its rule over Tibet.
Indian police swept through the New Delhi protest a few hours later, detaining scores of Tibetans.
The man apparently had doused himself with something highly flammable and was engulfed in flames when he ran past the podium where speakers were criticizing China and President Hu Jintao’s visit.
(Photo: AP)
Fellow activists beat out the flames with Tibetan flags and poured water onto him. He was on fire perhaps less than two minutes, but some of his clothing had disintegrated and his skin was mottled with black, burned patches by the time he was driven to a hospital.
About 30 such protests have occurred over the past year in ethnic Tibetan areas of China, and a Tibetan self-immolated last year in India, where many exiles reside. Beijing has blamed the Dalai Lama for inciting them and called the protesters’ actions a form of terrorism.
Tibetans inside China and exiles say China’s crackdown on Tibetan regions is so oppressive, those who choose such a horrific form of protest feel they have no other way to express their beliefs.
Activists said the exile who self-immolated Monday is Jamphel Yeshi, 27, who escaped from Tibet in 2006 and has been living in New Delhi for two years.
A Tibetan exile man, identified as Jampa Yeshi, is burned as he lays on the ground after after self-immolating during a demonstration in New Delhi, India, Monday, March 26, 2012. (Photo: AP)
He was burned on 98 percent of his body and his condition is critical, according to the Association of Tibetan Journalists.
Protesters initially prevented police from taking him to the hospital, but officers eventually forcibly took him away.
While activists had been whispering Monday morning that something dramatic was expected at the protest, organizers insisted they were not behind the self-immolation.
“We have no idea how this happened, but we appreciate the courage,” said Tenzing Norsang, an official with the Tibetan Youth Congress.
Hu is expected to arrive in India on Wednesday for a five-nation economic summit. Norsang called on the summit participants to discuss Tibet.
“If you care about peace you should raise the issue of Tibet,” he said. “Hu Jintao is responsible for what is happening there.”
At the protest site, a large poster of Hu – with a bloody palm print over his face – said: “Hu Jin Tao is unwelcome” at the summit.
More than 600 demonstrators marched across New Delhi to a plaza near the Indian Parliament. Some carried posters saying “Tibet is burning” or “Tibet is not part of China.”
“This is what China faces unless they give freedom to Tibet,” said Tenzin Dorjee, a young onlooker.
China says Tibet has always been part of its territory. Tibetans say the Himalayan region was virtually independent for centuries.
Many of the protesters who have self-immolated in China are Buddhist monks or nuns, often in their teens or early 20s. They have done so while calling for the return to Tibet of the Dalai Lama and to protest Chinese rule over their homeland. Security forces have taken many away, and it’s unknown how many survived.
The origin of this form of protest is unclear. Some activists see inspiration from the Arab Spring protests, set off by a Tunisian fruit seller’s self-immolation. Others see historical examples among Buddhist monks: those who protests Vietnam’s crackdowns in the 1960s and Chinese in the last imperial dynasty.
The economic summit Hu will be attending this week involves the leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, who form a grouping known as BRICS.
Police in New Delhi were already bracing for protests by the tens of thousands of Tibetan exiles who live in India. Security around the summit location has been tightened, and roads leading to the hotel will be closed to the public a day ahead of the meeting.
Rajan Bhagat, a spokesman for the Delhi police, did not know how long the protesting Tibetans would be held, or how many had been taken into custody.
Tibetan protesters normally are held for anywhere from a few hours to one day – often to stop them from further embarrassing Indian authorities during Chinese visits – though detainees legally can be held for up to one week.
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Comments (83)
shockandawe232
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 8:31pmhttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Mohamed_Atta.jpg I dont see a difference do you?
Report Post »voiceofreason305
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 9:03pmYes. Yes i do see a difference between a man willing to give his life for his voice to be heard, and a man who will kill others who hear but do not agree. I see similairities, however, in the screen name “shockandaweblahblahblah” and the picture of Ata. Would Christ have dropped bombs on people, or even engage in a fist fight for that matter. You Christians have got it twisted!
Report Post »Twisted Mind
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 9:17pmWow, looks like that would hurt.
Report Post »voiceofreason305
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 9:32pm@Twisted Mind …kinda like being hung from a cross
Report Post »MammalOne
Posted on March 27, 2012 at 3:19amMore like being burned at the stake.
Report Post »deeberj
Posted on March 27, 2012 at 10:55amVoiceofreason – “you Christians”. Sorry, not all Christian’s think exactly allike. I do not view this Tibetan man self-immolating as anything like a muslim extremist blowing up himself and others.
I am sad for the Tibetan people that communist China invaded their country and destroyed their way of life.
Report Post »Lone Wolf
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 8:15pmWhat a dumbazz.
Report Post »scuba13
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 11:23pmRichard Pryor was right, people really do get out of your way when you run down the street on fire.
Report Post »Brizz
Posted on March 27, 2012 at 11:26amI think Rage Against the Machine must be working on a new album.
Report Post »macpappy
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 8:09pmI would like to say: Well son, what did that get you?”
Report Post »Onowicit
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 9:58pm@macpappy
Report Post »It got him a story on the Blaze.
GhostOfLiberty
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 10:56pmHeh heh heh. Blaze. Ha Haaaaaaaaaa!
Report Post »Vardaman
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 7:39pmThey’re not white Christians, who cares?
Report Post »Onowicit
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 9:28pmA picture is truly worth a thousand words. This mans voice would have never been heard because of a COMMUNIST regime. His death is the voices of millions. You have to give him the respect of not using an explosive to kill innocent people to convert them to his way of thinking. The freedom here is that no one took his life he gave it for others, in his way. People who say he should take the life of his enemy with him do not understand the suffering that the STATE would inflict on those he loves. He did this in attempt to employ empathy, to show the world what is worse, death by fire or tyranny.
Report Post »Onowicit
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 9:35pm@Vardaman
Report Post »I’m a white Christian and I care.
Vardaman
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 9:40pmHow can you care before you know whether or not he’s gay?
Report Post »Onowicit
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 9:46pm@Vardaman
Report Post »REALLY! thats what YOU care about, whether or not this man is gay.
flatdaddio
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:58pmwhat a dope…can’t wait for the OWS crowd to start this..
Report Post »db321
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 7:27pmI was thinking to same thing! It’s easy to Occupy when Soros is paying you – the difference between OWS and Tibet protestors – Tibet Protestors are trying to remove what OWS’s are trying to create – Communism.
Report Post »Onowicit
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 10:24pm@db321
Report Post »right on! DB321 OWC has no clue. Be careful what you wish for.
disenlightened
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 10:54pm@FLATDADDIO
Report Post »hahahaha
Msgt Ret
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:57pmI wonder if some immolation in DC isn’t called for…and I did not say SELF.
Oh, Sorry, politicians have no idea what sacrafice is……….
Report Post »possom
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:51pmScreaming Alpha!
Report Post »Constructionist
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:32pmLuckily, gas prices are too high in America for such protests
Report Post »Gumbercules
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:57pmI can afford the gas . . . just not the match.
Report Post »Zuse
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:27pmAnd to think that some Americans wont even get out to vote for their freedom.
Report Post »Bum thrower
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:57pmWhat uses 5 gallons of gas and donesn’t go anywhere?
flash Back to Viet Nam………….a Buddist Monk!1
Report Post »BOMUSTGO
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:16pmYou might make some people mad with that comment….Too bad!
Report Post »mountainmover101
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:53pmI hate it when that happens.
Report Post »Tri-ox
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:48pmSmells like barbecued crazy-chicken.
Report Post »BOMUSTGO
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:41pmI thought he was the mascot for “The Blaze?”
Report Post »PATTY HENRY
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:52pmEVEN TO TYPE THAT, even to think that is funny shows how horribly pathetic and lost you are.
I am so sorry for this human being, this creation of GOD, who feels like his only choice is to painfully burn himself up. WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH ALL OF US? Pray for this man. Pray for all people and listen up….if you think we are ‘safe’ from being taken over by clods who think this is okay…you are wrong. WE have a huge fight on our hands to keep our freedom and there is no room for sicko humor or anyone who would back those who would enslave us. I’m so sorry for this being.
Report Post »BOMUSTGO
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:09pmThey did this during Viet Nam and a man did the same thing during the “Three Mile Island” incident.It is just an ignorant way to make a point.
Report Post »P C BE DAMNED
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:11pmI am also so tired of these attitudes toward serious subject matter and those that think “its Bushs fault” is even humorous. So Lame. I have got to where if I detect such I move quickly to the next comment until I find something profitable such as intelligent discourse. There is a time for silliness. It is just not now. FOOL
Report Post »nzkiwi
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:15pm@ Patty
Thank you. Those jokes were starting to get under my skin.
To the jokesters; want to see free speech? Take another look.
This man is telling you that his country was stolen.
Report Post »nzkiwi
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:48pmGo ahead. Scroll back up and take another look.
Report Post »shermenator
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:28pmstupid!
Report Post »ShawnB
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:52pmWhat is stupid is the ignorance of many people about Tibet and how they are forced into tyranny and want to be free..
Report Post »nzkiwi
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:11pmThe Chinese stole his country. STOLE it, and they tell the world this stupd lie.
One man cannot defeat the chinese army, but by this act he has drawn your attention to the crime.
Watch “Seven Years in Tibet” if you get the chance. A factual film about the people who were there at the time. Warning: it will make you angry.
When the Chinese premier visited our country there was a small demonstration decrying the theft in which even one of our politicians participated. Not much attention was paid until the chinese bodyguards started shoving and manhandling the protesters. Then everybody sat up and started to study the subject.
“All that is required for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing.”
Report Post »libertytreecaretaker
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:23pmForced into tyranny? You will never win with this tactic and tyranny. He poored the gas on the wrong person. you have to set the tyrannt a blaze because violence is the only thing they understand.
Report Post »MAMMY_NUNN
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 7:01pmConviction “Give Me Liberty Or Give Me Death”
Report Post »–Patrick Henry
Itsjusttim
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:08pmWow that fires hot, and pointless. You know what’s hotter than fire? Having no money, no food, no job, no car, no TV, no foot-ball, no nothing – just the abyss to stare into to try to find God. The abyss that’s coming.
Report Post »Baikonur
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:16pmIs it this Elias that inspires you?
http://www.catholic.org/encyclopedia/view.php?id=4225v
Report Post »Itsjusttim
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:18pmThe difference between the living and the dead is the difference between someone who feels content living as if it was the year 1000, and someone who doesn’t feel content with it. If you wouldn’t go back to the year 1000 in a heart beat if you had the choice, then you ain’t living baby.
Report Post »Baikonur
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:27pmThis Elias?
‘Elias of Jerusalem
Died 518; one of the two Catholic bishops (with Flavian of Antioch) who resisted the attempt of the Emperor Anastasius I (491-518) to abolish the Council of Chalcedon (451). (Monophysities, etc)
or this one:
Elias (also called Elijah).
Report Post »The loftiest and most wonderful prophet of the Old Testament. What we know of his public life is sketched in a few popular narratives enshrined, for the most part, in the First (Third) Book of Kings.
Itsjusttim
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:28pmNo, the thing that inspires me is knowing that someday when your captivity ends, then I will see you in the wilderness.
Report Post »Itsjusttim
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:31pmWell aren’t we near the end of an age of Kings right now?
Report Post »Baikonur
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:33pmRe/previous comment about willingness to return a 1,000 years–on the one hand, time is relative, and everything is happening at the same time in perpetuity. Experience as we feel it, is falling into one or another stream of reality. We will experience every possible moment eventually, because evry possible moment deserves actualization.
On the other hand, to literally fall back a thousand years would not change anything as far as charlatans and forceful simpletons are concerned.
Report Post »Baikonur
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:36pm@Itsjusttim
Report Post »Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:31pm
‘Well aren’t we near the end of an age of Kings right now?’
***********
End? Do you view time as lineal and finite?
Itsjusttim
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:37pmActually I mean it would be nice to fall back to the type of people there was back then, and the wide open unexplored lands.
Report Post »Itsjusttim
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:42pmTime as finite? No. I mean we are near the end of a time of Kings when nearly all men view themselves as a king of sorts (arrogance), short supply of humility, and everyone feels cheated from something they deserve. This is the end of an age of locust kings.
Report Post »Baikonur
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:44pm@Itsjusttim
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:37pm
‘Actually I mean it would be nice to fall back to the type of people there was back then’
**********
You must be a very young person to think that people’s personalities change through the millenia :).
There is a wonderful author (I think he was Catholic priest or monk), Teilhard de Chardin, who wrote about spiritual evolution of the human soul through the ages. He would probably disagree that human personalities haven’t improved in the last thousand years.
Report Post »Itsjusttim
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:47pmBaikonur,
Report Post »I‘m saying people didn’t mind dying as much back then as they do now, because they were more spiritual.
P C BE DAMNED
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 6:15pmitsjustTIm
What the he11 are you talking about. Really I don’t want to know. Its just you always seem to write like you are on some kind of drug. Foolishness
Report Post »OniKaze
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 4:50pmI don’t see the point in these events…
1. People that are doing this, are for the most part being ignored by all of the politicians around the world.
2. Injuring yourself NEVER furthers your own cause. It only weakens it, as it takes you out of the game.
You want some attention, light some Chinese officials on fire.. THAT will get some attention. I know that most Tibetans are Buddhists so they frown on hurting others, however the “being peaceful” thing isn’t working for them… MAYBE its time to try some good old fashion violence.
If your enemy starts killing themselves, its a good start (from your perspective)
If your enemy starts killing you, then its time to take notice…
Just sayin….
Report Post »godhatesacoward
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:12pmMy thoughts exactly.
Report Post »nzkiwi
Posted on March 27, 2012 at 2:26amChrist didn’t run off quietly. He allowed himself to be hung on the cross.
Look how that turned out.
Report Post »Mr.Fitnah
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 4:48pmNow that is man made global warming.
Report Post »TIME_2_END_THE_PAUL_CAMPAIGN_IN_12
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 4:48pmWhile stationed in Panama with the Army in the mid to late ‘70’s, had a Mess Sergeant who had a field mess cooking unit (M-59/M-2′S, not sure) catch fire and explode dousing him with the fuel from head to toe. We had just come in from an area where we were cutting LZ’s and were setting up our bivouac area preparing for a hot evening meal.
All of a sudden we heard screams and saw a flaming figure running through the jungle and by the time we got to him, put out the remaining flames… he was barely alive. Not to be funny, but this guy was hauling arse and we had a hard time catching up with him (he finally collapsed). He died an hour later. He was actually medivac‘d out right where we were cutting LZ’s for training purposes.
We’re not sure why he took off running, but I’m sure it was pure panic. Could not imagine someone doing this to themselves on purpose like in this report. Can’t imagine it at all… based on what I saw and heard that day.
Report Post »riseandshine
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:11pmThat would be one long hour.
Report Post »riseandshine
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:24pm…for the guy who was burned, I mean…I can’t imagine a worse pain.
Report Post »TIME_2_END_THE_PAUL_CAMPAIGN_IN_12
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 5:33pmRISE. We always had a medic with us on our training excercises. I don’t remember if the medic gave him anything for pain, but I hope his time spent while being medivac’d was that he was loaded with morphine or something similar before he passed.
SFC DeLeon was his name… just remembered. Was a great Mess Sergeant/Soldier.
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 4:43pmCaling Al Sharpton…Al…this is how you protest…
Report Post »Cemetery
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 4:42pmWow, that is some crazy ****.
Report Post »v15
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 4:38pmSomeone tell this guy that tryouts for the next Rage Against the Machine album cover art aren’t until the first week of April. I’m sure Zach de la Rocha will be impressed; however, it clearly states on the entry form that “Tibetans must be on fire for no less than 3 minutes.” Two minutes was impressive but it’s time for him to turn pro – use more gasoline next time, champ!!
Report Post »TH30PH1LUS
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 4:38pmObama loves this stuff!
Report Post »Shasta
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 4:31pmThis is just awful. This man will be in terrible pain for years, if not forever. It could only be worse if Obama compares him to Rosa Parks, like he did with the guy in Tunisia.
Report Post »deeberj
Posted on March 27, 2012 at 11:19amThe man wanted to die. That was the point. That is why the protestors prevented medical help from getting to him.
Report Post »lukerw
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 4:18pmThey just do not understand the Concept. Invite your Enemy over… give him a Hug… then Light the Fire!
Report Post »Exrepublisheep
Posted on March 26, 2012 at 4:16pmI wonder if putting the fire out is the most charitable thing to do. The man will suffer for a long time.
Report Post »