Self immolation toll reaches 76 in Tibet

The Central Tibetan Administration reiterated its serious concern over the escalating crisis in Tibet, as more Tibetan self-immolated on Saturday taking the total self-immolation to 76, of which 62 died
The rise in cases of self-immolations is being interpreted as an attempt by ethnic Tibetans to focus attention on what they perceive as Beijing's Communist Party of China (CPC) rule.
The US government on Friday reiterated its concern over the worsening human rights situation in Tibet, and urged the underlying causes of the self-immolations in Tibet.

"We regularly raise our concern about the Tibetan self-immolations with Chinese authorities. We encourage China to work with authorities in Tibet to address the grievances of the people and to protect the cultural diversity of their country. So this is obviously – and to address the worsening human rights situation in Tibet – we will continue to do that," State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said on Friday.

"We've been clear for decades about our commitment to human rights in Tibet, that we want to see China address the underlying problems there, the threats to the distinctive culture and linguistic identity of the Tibetan people, and our grave concern about the fact that people would feel so desperate as to resort to self-immolation," she said.

"The Chinese leadership must heed the urgent call of the international community, especially the UN Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay's strong appeal, to promptly address the longstanding grievances of Tibetans," said Kalon Dicki Chhoyang of the Department of Information & International Relations of the Central Tibetan Administration.