Tibetan Monk Sets Himself Ablaze in Qinghai in 150th Self-Immolation

A young Tibetan monk set himself on fire and died on Friday in northwestern China’s Qinghai province in an apparent challenge to Chinese rule in Tibetan areas, a Tibetan living in the area said.

The protest brought to 150 the number of self-immolations by Tibetans living in China since the wave of fiery protests began in 2009.

Jamyang Losal, aged about 22, set himself ablaze at around 5:00 a.m. on May 19 near the People’s Hospital in Kangtsa (in Chinese, Gangcha) county in Qinghai’s Tsojang (Haibei) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, a local source told RFA’s Tibetan Service.

“He did not survive his protest,” RFA’s source said, speaking on condition of anonymity

“Losal’s body was taken away by the police, and when his family members went to the police station to claim his remains, the police refused to comply with their request,” he said.

“Losal was a monk belonging to Gyerteng monastery in Kangtsa’s Nangra town,” RFA’s source said, adding that about 20 monks now study at the monastery, which is located about 30 kilometers (18 miles) south of the Kangtsa county seat.

Losal was a native of Dong Gya village in Kangtsa county’s Nangra township, the source said.

Source: rfa.org

Reported by Sangye Gyatso for RFA’s Tibetan Service. Translated by Karma Dorjee. Written in English by Richard Finney.