Governor denies use of lethal force in Lhasa riot, indignant over Dalai's lies

by Xinhua writers Yi Ling, Lou Chen

BEIJING, March 17 (Xinhua) -- Tibet's governor has denied the use of lethal force in dealing with Friday's violence in Lhasa and said that he is furiously "indignant" over the Dalai clique's distortion of what had happened. He made the comments at a press conference here on Monday.

"Throughout the process, [security forces] did not carry or use any destructive weapons, but tear gas and water cannons were employed," Qiangba Puncog, chairman of the Tibet Autonomous Regional Government, said.

He told reporters: "We did so in order to maintain social stability, to defend the nation's legal system and to safeguard the people's fundamental interest."

The Tibetan official updated the death toll from the unrest to 13, up from the previous official figure of 10.

"Thirteen innocent civilians were killed. Some were hacked and burned to death and some others suffocated in fires," he said, adding that some media reports on the death toll, ranging from 30 to 80, were exaggerated.

"The ways the mob acted were extremely atrocious and brutal," he said, citing such reported incidents as pouring gasoline onto people who were then set on fire and cutting a piece of flesh out of a policeman's body.

Reportedly, 61 police have been injured, six seriously. Three persons are said to have jumped off buildings as they sought to avoid arrest.

The official said that throughout the incident, public security personnel and armed police exercised restraint and showed great professional spirit and adherence to the law.

On March 14, violence involving fighting, destruction of property, looting and arson broke out in urban Lhasa.

The riot, which authorities said had been planned and directed by the Dalai Lama's backers, had not only caused heavy losses of life and property in the city but also seriously disturbed social order.

Rioters set fires at more than 300 locations, including residences and 214 shops, smashed and burned 56 vehicles, and attacked schools, banks, hospitals, shops, government offices, utilities and state media offices, officials said.

"A handful of separatists and lawbreakers undertook extreme acts with the goal of generating publicity to wreck the hard-earned stability during this crucial period of the Beijing Olympic Games," he said later.

The regional government immediately organized task forces to put out the fires and rescue the injured and strengthened protection of hospitals, schools, banks and government offices.

Law enforcement authorities in Tibet issued a notice on Saturday that urged participants in the violence to surrender by Monday at midnight and promised leniency for those who surrendered.

"These people will not go unpunished by law in any country," said Qiangba. "For those who committed minor offenses and showed repentance, we will educate them; for those who initiated and committed serious crimes in the riot, they will be sternly punished in accordance with the law."

He also criticized the Dalai Lama's followers' version of events, which had been reported by some Western media. He said that they were confusing right and wrong while calling the riot a "peaceful demonstration" and slandering efforts of local law enforcement in keeping order as a "crackdown on the peaceful demonstration."

"I'm indignant to hear that the Dalai clique and some Westerners call the severe violence a 'peaceful demonstration'. It's even more ridiculous that those people distort the efforts of our law enforcement officials in keeping people safe and maintaining social order as a 'crackdown on the peaceful demonstration'," he said.

Criticizing Western coverage, Qiangba Puncog said: "I would like to know whether there is any government preaching democracy and advocating the rule of law that could tolerate such violence."

Qiangba said that foreign nationals and foreign companies were neither required to leave Tibet nor being told to remain. But, he said, "it is not the right time for them to come to Tibet, due to safety concerns."

The regional foreign affairs office had suspended granting permits for foreigners to travel to Tibet. No foreigner had been harmed since Friday's riot. "They have been well protected," said Ju Jianhua, the director of the regional foreign affairs office.

For those foreigners who wished to leave, the office would coordinate civil aviation, railway and highway departments on their behalf, Ju said.

The main streets of the ravaged plateau city have been cleared up, power supplies have resumed throughout Lhasa, and shops, government agencies and schools reopened on Monday, officials said.

"The situation in Lhasa is returning to normal and our work has been proven effective," Qiangba said. The separatists' intention to destabilize Tibet would never win the hearts and minds of Tibetans and was therefore doomed to failure, he said.

"I believe," he said, "the autonomous regional government, under the leadership of the central government, is completely capable of safeguarding social stability and the dignity of law, and make sure to protect the safety and interests of all people in Tibet."