A Tibetan monk died after self-immolating in China, taking to 15 the

A Tibetan monk died after self-immolating in China, taking to 15 the number of people who have set themselves on fire in Tibetan areas in protest in less than a year.

Nyage Sonamdrugyu, 40, set himself ablaze early Sunday morning in Qinghai in northwest China, the official Xinhua news agency reported, saying the monk was a high-ranking lama — a Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader.

It is the first time the Tibetan-inhabited province has been hit by such a protest. Most self-immolations have taken place in the neighboring province of Sichuan, in what rights groups say are protests against perceived religious repression.

The Tibetan government-in-exile, based in India, said in a statement the victim, whom it called Sonam Wangyal, self-immolated in Darlag county in the Tibetan autonomous prefecture of Golog to protest a lack of religious freedom.

“Due to his position as a local spiritual leader, approximately 2,000 local Tibetans are said to have held a candlelight vigil urging the local police authorities to release his body,” it said.

The incident comes after two former monks in Sichuan set themselves on fire on Friday — one died and another is being treated in hospital.

The two — 18 and 22-years-old respectively — had once been monks at Kirti monastery, the scene of sporadic bouts of unrest since a young monk named Phuntsog set himself alight last March.

Many Tibetans in China accuse the government of religious repression and eroding their culture, as the country’s majority Han ethnic group increasingly moves into historically Tibetan areas.

What a way to die! If you want to go out with a bang, guess that is the way to do it!

Source AFP