download the report - International Campaign for Tibet

TIBET AT A TURNING POINT: THE SPRING UPRISING AND CHINA’S NEW CRACKDOWN
way to Makye Ame restaurant, then turned a corner, and ran across the small alley.
Most of the shops on both sides were destroyed, and many messy things were scattered
all over on the way. As you know, this area is mostly Chinese Muslim and the mosque
is just ahead. I saw some Tibetans burning cars. Three cars and one motorcycle were
set on fire in front of the mosque. I dared not stay, so I walked through the crowd and
walked through that especially high gate. TAR Public Security Bureau is located just
across the street.
“What is more strange is that there were over ten policemen in front of the gate of the
TAR Public Security Bureau, but they only stood there looking on. But only one street
away, there were actually Tibetans smashing and burning things. I remember two
butcher’s shops owned by Chinese Muslims and seven cars were destroyed, but the policemen
did not do anything. They acted as if this had nothing to do with them. There
were also many onlookers, who were standing on the edge of the streets. They were
watching and discussing things amongst themselves.
“There was only one street between these two sides, but they were like two worlds.
Even now I still do not understand why the special policemen in Barkhor fired and
killed people, but the policemen outside of Barkhor did not go to stop [the people] at
all. It seems that not long after there were three tanks [these are likely to be armoured
personnel carriers] that drove over from Jiangsu Road, and arrived at Lingkhor East
Road. All the soldiers in the tanks were holding guns. When the tanks drove over, the
ground was vibrating. As soon as people saw tanks coming, all the onlookers dispersed.
[…] I don’t know what the tanks were doing because I simply fled. [With my
friends] I drank beer until past 11:00 at night, and we were all drunk.
“We were not very drunk, but it seems that we all had courage now and no matter
what, we wanted to go back to our own places. When we three arrived at the crossroads
of Jiangsu East Road, we were stunned, and almost sobered up — 40 or 50 soldiers
were standing there, with their guns in their hands, and they were also holding
rubber clubs, batons or something like them. We were ordered to stop and hand in our
papers. Luckily we had our I.D. cards in our wallets, then the soldiers said ‘Beat it.’
One of my friends retorted “We have our papers, what makes you think can curse at
us?” Immediately we were done for. The soldiers pounced on us and started to beat us.
Two of them held our arms and two others started to randomly beat us right in the
face. My eyes were beaten severely and began to swell and at that time I thought
I would be beaten so severely that I would become blind.
56