Hundreds of Tibetans Gather in Rare Protest

China Aid Association
2007.03.21
Sept. 13, 2006: Chinese paramilitary police guard a replica of Tibet’s Potala Palace on Tiananmen Square in Beijing.
Photo: AFP/Peter Parks
KATHMANDU—Chinese police detained at least one person when several hundred Tibetans in Lhasa took part in an outlawed incense-burning there in a rare open display of opposition to Chinese rule.
“About 500 Tibetans planned to participate in a huge incense-burning ritual at Kuru bridge in Lhasa in response to the offering rituals for His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s long life,” one source told RFA’s Tibetan service.
“Every Wednesday, we go for Sangsol [a ritual to invoke protective deities]. This morning, Wednesday, March 14, was very different. There were long lines and huge crowds everywhere in the places of worship,” she said.
“Normally Tibetans aren’t allowed to gather in huge congregations for prayers