By IANS
Dharamsala (Himachal Pradesh) : Emboldened by the growing support from the global community, Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama Friday urged for more global pressure on China to put an end to the crackdown in Tibet.
“I appeal to the global community’s continued support in calling for an immediate end to the current crackdown, the release of all those arrested and detained, and medical treatment to the injured,” the Dalai Lama said here in a statement Friday.
“We are particularly concerned about the lack of adequate medical facilities as there are reports of many injured Tibetans being afraid to go to Chinese-run hospitals and clinics,” he said.
“I would also request the international community to encourage sending an independent international body, to investigate the unrest and its underlying causes along with the media and medical teams.”
“The Chinese should exercise restraint in dealing with peaceful protesters. I also appeal to China again for a meaningful dialogue to resolve the issue,” he said.
“I believe the protests are a manifestation of the deep-rooted resentment of not only Tibetans’ Autonomous Region(TAR) but also of the traditional Tibetan areas now merged into Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan and Yunan provinces which have large number of Tibetans,” he added.
The Dalai Lama feared the Chinese authorities have deployed large contingents of troops in these traditional Tibetan regions.
“The Chinese have not only started to crack down heavily on the Tibetans allegedly involved in the unrest, but also sealed off the areas where protests have taken place,” he said.
The Tibetan protests began March 10 in Lhasa and neighbouring areas and Tibetan exiles claim 140 people have been left dead. The Chinese government says only 22 have been killed.