Former monk Norbu Damdul dies after self-immolation

Norbu Damdul, who self-immolated on 15 October 2011, passed away on 5 January 2012 in a hospital in Barkham, Ngaba Tibetan Autonomous Region.

A former Kirti monk, Norbu Damdul (aged around 19) was taken away by the Chinese officials after he set himself on fire in Ngaba. Since then, for nearly three months, his whereabouts and information about his medical condition remained unknown.

As eyewitnesses had said earlier, Damdul was severely burned but did not die at the scene. After the death of Norbu Damdul in a Barkham hospital, the Chinese authorities refused to hand over the possession of the body to the family, to perform last religious rituals. The Chinese authorities cremated the body and only the ash was given to Damdul’s family.