Address grievances in Tibet, parliament-in-exile tells China

The Tibetan parliament-in-exile Friday blamed the Chinese government for the tragic situation prevailing in Tibet and asked it to address the grievances of Tibetans.

"The Chinese government has been consistently discriminating against the Tibetan people in all walks of life, forcing them to protest. Tibetan self-immolators are particularly oppressed by the Chinese authorities," the Tibetan parliament said in a statement here.

It said the Chinese authorities falsely claim that Tibetan self-immolations were the result of peer pressure, mental illness and family feuds. "Such allegations are baseless and cannot be farther from the truth," it added.

Expressing solidarity with Kunchok, who set himself on fire Sep 16 to protest against the Chinese government in Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, the parliament-in-exile appealed to the international community to press the Chinese government to end its repressive policies.

The Dalai Lama has lived in India since fleeing his homeland in 1959. The Tibetan administration-in-exile is based in this northern Indian hill town.