China on Tuesday blamed Buddhist monks for causing unrest in a Tibetan region, accusing them of disrupting social order and defaming their religion. The foreign ministry refused to confirm allegations two Tibetans were killed in a security crackdown at the Kirti Monastery in the southwestern province of Sichuan, but gave the clearest official acknowledgement yet of unrest there.
“In recent days, a small number of monks in Kirti Monastery in Aba county, Sichuan have disrupted social order and disobeyed Tibetan Buddhist rules,” foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei told reporters. They have “disrupted local normal order, defamed the image of Tibetan Buddhism and harmed the feelings of Buddhist followers.”
According to the US-based International Campaign for Tibet, unrest in the Chinese region erupted in March when a young monk set himself on fire and died in an apparent anti-government protest.
