WASHINGTON, July 3 — Police in New York City said today that a man died from severe burns near the United Nations headquarters, while activists and a media outlet run by exiled Tibetans identified him as a Tibetan who set himself on fire in an appeal for independence.
A New York City Police Department spokesman said officers responding to an emergency call at about 6.30 pm local time found the man with severe burns.
He was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said, adding that investigations were ongoing. Police did not identify the man or provide a possible motive for his actions.
Voice of Tibet, a media outlet run by exiled Tibetans, said Tibetan activist Lobga Rangzen "self-immolated outside the UN headquarters in New York after a live appeal for Tibetan independence and unity”.
Rangzen, an Uber driver, went to the scene carrying a Tibetan flag, local news site amNewYork reported. The website quoted fellow Uber driver Lobsang Paljor as saying he knew Rangzen through gatherings within the Tibetan community.
Paljor told the news website that Rangzen "was enraged by the restrictions the Chinese government had placed on his countrymen".
Ethnic unity law enacted
The US and the European Union have expressed concern over China's new ethnic unity law, which came into effect this week and provides Beijing with the legal basis to take action against people outside its borders.
The law seeks to create a "shared" national identity among the country's 55 ethnic minority groups, including Tibetans and Uyghurs, some of whom have expressed discontent under Chinese governance. Tibetans around the world have opposed the law.
Tibetans have previously carried out acts of self-immolation in protest against Beijing's policies in Tibet and neighbouring regions with large Tibetan populations.
China took control of Tibet in 1950 in what it describes as a "peaceful liberation" from feudalistic serfdom.
International human rights groups and Tibetan exiles, however, have consistently condemned what they describe as China's oppressive rule in Tibetan areas. China rejects those allegations.
Ethnic minority issues remain highly sensitive in China, where Tibetans and other minority groups are subject to extensive surveillance for any signs of alleged "separatism". Beijing has tightened institutional control over Tibet since Xi Jinping became the country's president in 2012.
Tencho Gyatso, president of the International Campaign for Tibet, described Rangzen as "a tireless advocate for Tibet" and said she was "deeply saddened" by his death.
The International Campaign for Tibet said there were more than 150 self-immolations by Tibetans between 2009 and 2022. According to its data, 10 self-immolations by Tibetans have occurred while living in exile.
