Monk's failed suicide captured in amateur video

Monk's failed suicide captured in amateur video

Exiled Tibetans have released amateur video that they say shows the failed suicide bid of a Tibetan monk in south-west China last month.

The monk is one of at least 10 Tibetans in their late teens and 20s who have set themselves on fire since March to protest China's rule over Tibet, with five or more of them dying from their injuries. The man in the video is believed to have survived.

The individuals who shared the video did so on condition of anonymity for fear the videographer and those who helped get the video out of China could be punished by the Chinese government.

They said the man in the video is Lobsang Konchok, a teenage monk who tried to set himself on fire Sept 26 at Kirti Monastery in Sichuan province's Aba prefecture, where tensions between monks and the authorities have been high for months.

Source: AP
Published Oct 23 2011