6TH LD: '2 dead in Tibet riots': report

BEIJING, March 15 Kyodo

(EDS: UPDATING WITH MORE INFO)

At least two people have reportedly been killed during protests and rioting in the Tibetan capital Lhasa on Friday, a U.S.-government funded Tibetan radio station said, with reports of at least one other pro-independence demonstration outside the city.

Radio Free Asia's Tibetan service quoted witnesses as saying that two bodies were seen in the center of Lhasa after clashes earlier in the day.

A witness in Lhasa, who asked not to be named, also told Kyodo News that he had seen six or seven people shot dead, but his account could not be confirmed.

A British journalist in Lhasa said that by the early hours of Saturday morning most protestors had gone home and situation was quiet.

James Miles, a correspondent for The Economist magazine, said fire trucks with armed escorts were also in the city center putting out blazes started by rioters and looters.

He said there were more armed security forces in the center of Lhasa, but no major military deployment.

''The situation is tense, but calm at the moment,'' he said.

Miles added that Tibetan State TV is constantly broadcasting appeals for calm and is urging people to support government efforts to restore order.

The broadcasts also blame the Dalai Lama and his supporters for orchestrating the violence, he said.

Miles reported that looters have sacked ethnic-Chinese shops and businesses.

He said he also saw stones thrown at one Chinese child and he understands that most ethnic-Chinese have left the area for fear of further violence.

''This appears to be ethnic violence borne of sheer frustration,'' he said.

A spokesman for the pressure group Free Tibet Campaign, Matt Whitticase, said witnesses have told its staff in India that at least three pro-independence demonstrations were held in Lhasa on Friday.

In one demonstration, security forces used tear gas to disperse about 400 protestors near the Jokhang Temple in the center of the city, he said.

In another, about 500 Tibetans burned a shop and set fire to police cars after holding a demonstration near the Potala Palace.

Whitticase said witnesses believed at least four people have been killed and dozens seriously injured in the clashes.

He added a witness also informed his organization of another protest near Labrang monastery in the neighboring province of Gansu, with thousands marching on government buildings in the nearby town of Xiahe.

He said the protestors had dispersed after security forces fired shots in the air.

China's state-run Xinhua News Agency reported injuries during the violent clashes in Lhasa on Friday, but has not confirmed any other protests or clashes elsewhere in Tibet or neighboring areas.

The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama issued a statement Friday, urging China to stop using force and Tibetans to refrain from violence.

''I am deeply concerned over the situation that has been developing in Tibet following peaceful protests in many parts of Tibet, including Lhasa, in recent days. These protests are a manifestation of the deep-rooted resentment of the Tibetan people under the present governance,'' he said.

The U.S. Embassy in Beijing says Americans have reported gunfire and rioting in Lhasa and it is urging its citizens to remain indoors.

''U.S. citizens in Lhasa should seek safe havens in hotels and other buildings and remain indoors to the extent possible,'' it said.

A hotel employee, who asked not to be named, told Kyodo News she also heard gunfire coming from the old part of Lhasa on Friday afternoon.

She said her hotel has closed for the day and employees and guests are not venturing outside because of concerns for their safety.

The police department in Lhasa made no comment on Friday's clashes. The Foreign Ministry in Beijing said earlier they had no knowledge of the incidents.

A foreign tourist in Tibet left a message on a travelers' online message board Friday, saying their tour group had been barred by the authorities from entering the city.

''Our guide has just told us that it's not possible to enter Lhasa because of major fights, fires, deaths etc and that the Chinese government has forced all travel agencies to get their clients to leave Lhasa or not to come to Lhasa,'' the person wrote, without leaving a name.

The protests against Chinese rule began Monday when monks marched to a police station, demanding the release of fellow clerics arrested during previous demonstrations.

A small pro-independence protest was held in the center of Lhasa on the same day, the anniversary of the failed uprising against Chinese rule which led the Dalai Lama to flee the country.

Human rights groups said before Friday's violence that this week's protests were the largest antigovernment demonstrations in the Tibetan capital for nearly 20 years.

China says massive investment has improved the livelihoods of all Tibetans and it rejects allegations that Tibet's religion and culture are not protected under Communist rule.

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