One Tibetan shot dead in Drango protest in Kardze

One Tibetan layman, identified as Yonten, has died of gunshot after security officials clamped down on a protest in Drango County (Ch: Luhuo County) in Kandze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, according to information received by TCHRD today.

The body of Yonten, a resident of Drango County, is being kept at Drango Monastery.

At least three monks from Drango Monastery are seriously injured, although it is not clear whether these injuries were caused by gunshots.

The protest occurred on the morning of 23 January 2012 when the Public Security Bureau (PSB) officials arrested many Tibetans in and around Drango on the suspicion that they pasted leaflets and posters that warned of more Tibetan self-immolations if the Chinese government did not listen to Tibetan concerns.

The said leaflets had appeared a few days earlier in and around Drango town.

Concerned and angered by the arbitrary arrest of Tibetans, other Tibetans in the Drango area rose up in protest this morning. The protesters, many of who were farmers and nomads, carried Tibetans flags and shouted slogans for Tibetan freedom, a source told TCHRD. The PSB and People’s Armed Police (PAP) then intervened by using guns to rein in the protesters, according to our source.

Another source reports that at least two Tibetans died in the shooting. However, TCHRD is still trying to confirm the accuracy of this information.