China Is Paying Tibetans to Not Set Themselves on Fire
China Is Paying Tibetans to Not Set Themselves on Fire
Self-immolation has become something of a symbol for the Tibetan struggle against Chinese rule. It’s been going on for years, but after a recent resurgence in the ultimate display of civil disobedience, the Chinese government has decided to try to stop Tibetans from coating themselves in gas and lighting a match in a bid to restore “social harmony” once and for all.
Their method of doing so was to post a notice in the Kanlho area offering around $8,000 to snitches willing to rat out fellow Tibetans who plan on committing the “crime” of self-immolation. Rather than quash these acts of rebellion, however, further suicides by fire actually led to the highest incident level on record, with seven Tibetans taking their own lives during one week at the end of October. Astoundingly, it seems the oppressed are unwilling to give up their friends and neighbors for a bit of cash, with immolations carrying on into November, including the first incidence of a triple immolation.