Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08BEIJING983
2008-03-15 17:12:00
SECRET//NOFORN
Embassy Beijing
Cable title:  

ADDITIONAL REPORTS OF RISING TENSIONS, VIOLENCE IN

Tags:  PHUM PGOV KIRF PREL CH 
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VZCZCXRO6009
OO RUEHCN RUEHGH RUEHVC
DE RUEHBJ #0983/01 0751712
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
O 151712Z MAR 08
FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5836
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 000983 

SIPDIS

NOFORN
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/15/2033
TAGS: PHUM PGOV KIRF PREL CH
SUBJECT: ADDITIONAL REPORTS OF RISING TENSIONS, VIOLENCE IN
LHASA, PROTESTS IN OTHER TIBETAN AREAS

REF: A. BEIJING 982

B. BEIJING 981

C. BEIJING 980

D. BEIJING 979

E. BEIJING 976

F. BEIJING 975

G. BEIJING 973

Classified By: Deputy Political Section Chief Ben Moeling.
Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

SUMMARY
-------

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 000983

SIPDIS

NOFORN
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/15/2033
TAGS: PHUM PGOV KIRF PREL CH
SUBJECT: ADDITIONAL REPORTS OF RISING TENSIONS, VIOLENCE IN
LHASA, PROTESTS IN OTHER TIBETAN AREAS

REF: A. BEIJING 982

B. BEIJING 981

C. BEIJING 980

D. BEIJING 979

E. BEIJING 976

F. BEIJING 975

G. BEIJING 973

Classified By: Deputy Political Section Chief Ben Moeling.
Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

SUMMARY
--------------


1. (C) ConGen Chengdu continues to receive reports from
sources on the ground in Lhasa indicating rising tensions,
increasing violence and the presence of tanks as nightfall
descends on the city. The city has apparently been sealed
off. Meanwhile, sources say protests in Gansu Province have
turned violent in Labrang and Bora, where Tibetan monks
reportedly attacked government buildings, resulting in the
town being "locked down." Other Tibetan areas have
reportedly witnessed increased deployments of security
personnel but no violence. End Summary

Further Details on Rising Tensions in Lhasa
--------------


2. (C) ConGen Chengdu has received additional deails
regarding the rising tensions occurring in Lhasa on the
evening of March15. (See ref A for latest report on
conditios in Lhasa the afternoon of March 15.) At 17:05
local time, ConGenOff spoke by telephone to an American
citizen working near Lhasa's Barkhor area. Although the
Amcit was not able to leave his compound, from the vantage
point of his front gate, he reported the mood was "getting
intense again" and that there was gunfire nearby. People's
Armed Police (PAP) personnel were firing single shots from
their rifles into stores nearby, perhaps to "intimidate."
The Amcit's Tibetan staff told him they were expecting "more
shooting tonight." The afternoon of March 15, the Amcit had
heard that police had been banging on doors in the central
part of the city.


3. (C) The Amcit said he had seen six to eight "armored
vehicles" in front of the Jokhang Temple, with numerous vans
and buses there too, and that it appeared authorities had set
up some sort of "command post" there. When asked about

tanks, he responded affirmatively, saying he had watched one
tank drive down the street linking Beijing Street with the
Barkhor, ripping out telephone poles and smashing an SUV
along the way. He said a journalist affiliated with the
Economist told him he had tried to walk to the Barkhor but
had turned around when he saw a tank and it swiveled its
"turret" toward him.

Lhasa Sealed Off, Reports of Violence
--------------


4. (S/NF) According to sources contacted by ConGen Chengdu's
FSN, roads in and out of Lhasa have been sealed off to all
traffic, including public transportation. Currently, the
main area of violence in the city is centered on Najing Road
and Jiangsu Road, with some areas still burning around the
large mosque near the Barkhor. No vegetables are available
in city markets. In Youdian Dalu near the post office, a
dead body lies untended in the street under a box, they
report.

No Han Chinese Deaths Reported
--------------


5. (S/NF) Of the four Tibetans in Lhasa contacted by ConGen
Chengdu FSN today, none had seen or heard of a death of a Han
Chinese. Han Chinese have been the targets of violence. One
contact reported walking in Lhasa with a Han friend on March
14, when they were set upon by a gang of Tibetans carrying
long knives. The contact identified himself as Tibetan, and
the gang left him alone but slashed his Han companion with a
knife.

Tibetans Note Offer of "Leniency"
--------------


6. (C) Other Tibetan sources reported the afternoon of March
15 hearing about the offer by police to impose more lenient
sentences on rioters who turned themselves in by Monday the
17th at midnight (ref A). They also said that the police

BEIJING 00000983 002 OF 002


were offering "monetary rewards" to those who turned others
in. (Note: The Ambassador asked Assistant Foreign Minister
Liu Jieyi to provide more information about this in a meeting
the evening of March 15 (septel),but AFM Liu had no
information to offer.)

Most Tourists Gone
--------------


7. (C) Most tourists have left central Lhasa under police
escort, according to the Amcit source in Lhasa mentioned
above. When he was out this afternoon with a Tibetan
employee, a gruff PAP officer confronted them and asked his
employee why he (the Amcit) was not leaving. The Amcit
produced his work permit, and after a swift explanation by
his Tibetan employee, the Amcit walked away from the PAP
officer without further incident.

Unrest in Other Tibetan Areas: Violence in Gansu
-------------- --------------


8. (S/NF) According to sources of ConGen Chengdu's FSN, monks
from Bora Monastery (a branch of the Labrang Monastery) in
the Gansu town of Bora have attacked government buildings,
and the town has reportedly been "locked down." Meanwhile,
reports from Labrang in Gansu say monks have been beaten by
police with batons there, but there have been no deaths.


9. (C) Areas of Sichuan's Aba Prefecture also report
increased security presence around monasteries but no
violence.


10. (C) Other areas in the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR),
including Shigatse and Lhoka Prefecture (Chinese Shannan),
report heavy security presence but no violence. One contact
in Lhoka said he had gone to a scheduled meeting on March 15
with a group of friends. When the police saw the group of
about 20 people on the street, they were immediately
surrounded and questioned and then hustled inside a hotel.


11. (U) This message was coordinated with ConGen Chengdu.
RANDT