self immolation by tibetans in china

According to S Gopal Puri of Times of India Feb 14, 2012 since Tapey's immolation in 2009, till now 22 Tibetans had immolated themselves. The young Tibetans are immolating themselves in protest against China’s occupation of Tibet. In 2008,there was rioting against ethnic Han Chinese across Tibet. The Chinese Government while suppressing the movements by the minority communities with iron hand has carried on propaganda of its so called pro minority policies. One of the planks of its propaganda is the reinterpretation of its history. For example,the National minority Policy Document released by the State Council of the PRC in June 2000(see www.xinhuanet.com/zhengfu/index.htm ) traced the history of the first united multi ethnic centralized Chinese State to 221 BC , which was founded by the Qin dynasty. It claimed China as a united multi ethnic country was created by the Qin Dynasty and consolidated and developed by the Han dynasty. For under the Qin Empire today,s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and Yunnan Province were Prefectures and counties under the Qin Empire. The Han Dynasty set up a Western Command Headquarter in the Western region and added 17 Prefectures governing peoples of all the ethnic groups there. In this way, claims the document, a state with a vast territory embracing the ancestors of various people living in Xingjiang emerged. The Document adds in their communications the people of the Chinese nation were called the Han by other ethnic groups. The central governments following the Hans developed and consolidated the united multi ethnic entity. This document especially mentions the Yuan and the Qing Dynasties and their officials in Tibet.The Yuan Dynasty is said to have established the Pacification Commissioner’s Commandery in charge of military and administrative affaires in Tibet, “ whereby Tibet has become thenceforth an inalienable part of Chinese territory….” The Qing Dynasty 1644- 1911 appointed residential officials in Tibet and established the historical convention of conferring honorific titles on the two Living Buddhas Dalai and Panchan Lamas by the Central Government. Not only this in the 19th and 20th century, it was claimed that ethnic communities joined hands with Hans resist foreign aggression. In the 19th century people of all ethnic group in Xinjiang together with the Qing troops wiped out the forces of Yaoob Beg’s forces,and defeated British and Russian forces. In the 19th and 20th century the Tibetan troops and people resisted the British invaders. They dealt a heavy blow to British troops at the Mount Lungthur and Gyangze. In the light of this contribution of the minorities should not the Chinese state and its rulers do some soul searching and find out the real and genuine grievances of the minorities. Instead of distrusting them and oppressing their movements and thus compelling them to self immolate should not the authorities talk to their leaders and find out an amicable solution.