KATMANDU, Nepal (AP) - Tibetan exiles protested at the Chinese Embassy on Tuesday, shouting "We want a free Tibet" before more than 100 were hauled away by Nepalese riot police.
Protests in the Nepalese capital occurred almost daily following China's crackdown on rioting in Tibet last month, but were temporarily halted last week during the country's national elections.
About 4,000 Tibetans exiles took to the streets on Monday and emerged again Tuesday at the walled compound of the embassy's visa section.
The protesters came in several waves. The first were a dozen burly males wearing orange vests printed with "China lies, Tibetans die. Stop genocide in Tibet." They grappled briefly with police who forced them onto a truck.
They waved Tibetan flags and shouted slogans as the vehicle pulled away.
Monday's protest began as a silent march with demonstrators holding candles, but soon they began chanting anti-China slogans as they proceeded through a western area of Katmandu filled with Buddhist monasteries and Tibetan refugee shelters.
Unlike at recent rallies, Nepalese police — who previously broke up demonstrations violently with bamboo baton charges and mass arrests — did not intervene at Monday's demonstration. They also refrained from tough measures Tuesday.
Nepal has been criticized by international rights groups and the United Nations for use of excessive force against the protesters. Nepal's government had said it would not allow any demonstrations against friendly nations, including China.
The protesters are generally released on the same day of their arrest.
Members of the 20,000 strong Tibetan community in Nepal have focused on the Chinese embassy and the United Nations building for their protests.
Demonstrations were suspended for about a week before last Thursday's elections for a Constituent Assembly in Nepal.
The Tibetans say they will now hold regular protests. |