NEW DELHI // Nearly one thousand Tibetans staged a march through the Indian capital today amid heavy security to protest the Beijing Olympic Games. Carrying Tibetan flags and joined by monks, the protesters shouted "Say no to Beijing Olympics" and "No Olympics in China" as they assembled at a protest site in the heart of the city. More than 100 police and paramilitary troops were deployed at the venue with fire extinguishers, blankets and buckets of water amid fears that some protesters may set themselves on fire.
A Tibetan set himself ablaze two years ago outside the hotel of the visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao during a protest in the Indian financial hub of Mumbai. "We will keep up our protests during the Olympics to draw attention to human rights violations in Tibet," said Dhondup Dorjee, vice president of the radical Tibetan Youth Congress. India is home to more than 100,000 Tibetan refugees, including exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama and radical youth groups, and has seen frequent protests since an outbreak of unrest in Tibet on March 10.
Six Tibetans on an indefinite protest fast at the site were shifted to a hospital this week after suffering from severe dehydration. Another six protesters have joined in and are refusing to eat or drink, activists said. A candle-light vigil is due later today. * AFP
