At least 270 Tibetans arrested while marching towards Tibet

Pithoragarh (Uttarakhand), June 5 : At least 270 Tibetans were arrested here on Thursday while they were marching towards their homeland Tibet.

Tibetans marching peacefully to Tibet were stopped by the police at Berinag and were sent back to Pawtasahib near Himachal Pradesh.

Tibetans began their journey on March 10 from Dharmshala, the seat of the Tibetan government-in-exile.

After days of peaceful march the protesters were asked to retreat back from where they started.

It was then that protesters resented the move and started protesting.

Police arrested the Tibetans who raised slogans and were later forced into police vans.

It was followed with series of clashes between the police and protesters.

The protesters are infuriated and discontent with nearly 85 days of peaceful march being revoked.

The protesters had planned to arrive in Tibet to coincide with the Beijing Olympics Games, which will be held in August.

Tibetan diaspora all over the world are seeking an end to Chinese repression in Tibet and have staged a wave of protests across the world especially at Dharamsala, home of the Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama in India.

Tibetans have been staging series of protests since March this year in an attempt to draw international attention towards their cause.

Chinese officials met envoys of the Dalai Lama recently in a bid to resolve the issue without much progress.

The talks took place a few months before Beijing hosts the Olympic games in August and weeks after deadly riots in Tibet and the subsequent security crackdown that drew international criticism.

ANI