4 Tibetans 'set selves alight' in China

At least four Tibetans set themselves on fire in China in an unprecedented string of protests on the eve of a pivotal Communist Party congress, according to the Tibetan government in exile. "According to our sources, we have been able to confirm four (protests)," Dicki Chhoyang, information secretary for the government, told AFP, adding that they occurred on Wednesday. Speaking from the Indian town of Dharamshala where the exile government is based, she added that they were still waiting for information on a possible fifth case, which was reported by Radio Free Asia. Three of the confirmed burnings took place in Tibetan-inhabited areas of Aba County in Sichuan province, a focus of previous protests, while the fourth was in Huangnan prefecture in Qinghai province. "The self-immolations in Tibet are an appeal to the international community, to the Chinese government and to the Chinese people as human beings to hear their cry for help," added Chhoyang. The Chinese Communist Party gathered Thursday for the start of their 18th congress during which they will name new leaders in a once-in-a-decade transition in top positions. Radio Free Asia reported that the fifth burning occurred in the Tibetan Autonomous Region, and that two of the five had died, including a young mother called Tamdrin Tso. The government in exile was unable to confirm any deaths. More than 60 ethnic Tibetans, many of them monks and nuns, have set themselves on fire in China since February 2009 to protest against Beijing's rule in Tibet.